A talk with a retired shop owner in Boise made me drop my business cards

I met him at a small meetup, and he asked me how many real connections I made at big events. When I said maybe two per event, he shook his head and told me, 'Son, you're collecting contacts, not building a network. I got my best job for 30 years from the guy I helped fix his truck.' That stuck with me. I stopped going to large mixers cold. Has anyone else shifted to smaller, more helpful groups and seen better results?

3 comments

3 Comments

hollym8224d ago

My friend found his at a library book club.

margaretj4024d ago

A library book club? That feels like finding a unicorn these days. I tried joining one at my local branch and it was just me and three people over 80. Walker.hayden is right about small groups being the way to go, but you have to find the right one. My problem is all the good ones seem full or they meet at terrible times. I guess your friend just got really lucky with that spot.

walker.hayden24d ago

That old guy nailed it. Big events are a total waste of time for real connections. I switched to a small weekly coffee group years ago. We actually help each other with problems, not just swap cards. Got my last three clients from that group. It's about being useful, not just being seen. How did you find your first small group to join?