In all my years of coaching, the number one regret that I heard from my clients was that they failed to stay in touch with people they had been friends with earlier in their careers. They hadn’t stayed connected to classmates from college and graduate school. They’d lost touch with co-workers from previous jobs. They hadn’t kept former bosses up-to-date on what they were doing.

As the years went by, they discovered that these people could be helpful to them in their careers or in their lives. Their roommate from freshman year might now be working in an industry they would like to crack in to. Or their fellow intern lives in a city where they are now moving and where they know no one.

Understandably, it seems awkward to get back in touch with someone you haven’t spoken to in 10 years. But if you find yourself in this situation, don’t be reticent to reach out and reconnect. In my experience, assuming that the outreach is not too transactional, people are actually happy to hear from you. After all, the friend has also let the relationship languish and is probably a bit embarrassed about that as well. You may be surprised at how easy it is to pick up where you left off!

But why put yourself in the position of agonizing about whether you should contact someone you have lost contact with? Why not make a habit of staying in touch with friends who no longer work down the hall? It can be as simple as an annual holiday greeting card with pictures of your recent travels or a personal message on LinkedIn congratulating them on a recent achievement (just make it personal – not the automated one). You could invite a former colleague out for coffee and have a chance to catch up. You could organize an annual lunch with friends from college or invite the summer interns you worked with out for drinks.

Staying in touch with people will pay tremendous dividends throughout your career. It’s a great habit to develop!