How to Become Well-Connected

#1

Post by rchen8 » Tue, Apr 25, 2017, 5:05 PM UTC

How to Become Well-Connected
firstround.com

Re: How to Become Well-Connected

#2

Post by verdverm » Tue, Apr 25, 2017, 5:37 PM UTC

Dale Carnegie 101 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_to_Win_Friends_and_Influen...

Re: How to Become Well-Connected

#3

Post by Arqu » Tue, Apr 25, 2017, 5:45 PM UTC

This got to be the worst choice of colors for mobile I've seen in a long time. Can barely read it at max brightness.

Re: How to Become Well-Connected

#4

Post by pdog » Tue, Apr 25, 2017, 5:45 PM UTC

These are good techniques for working a network but you'll need better advice than "be human" if you want to be influential.

Networking is overrated. Figure out what you're good at and make sure people hear about it. The network will take care of itself.

Re: How to Become Well-Connected

#5

Post by Arqu » Tue, Apr 25, 2017, 5:46 PM UTC

Arqu wrote: post #3

This got to be the worst choice of colors for mobile I've seen in a long time. Can barely read it at max brightness.

Actually seems just that some css didn't load properly.

Re: How to Become Well-Connected

#6

Post by speeder » Tue, Apr 25, 2017, 5:46 PM UTC

I liked the article but it doesn't explain how to start a network... much of its advice is about how to manage an existing one.

Examples: it mentions that you should sometimes offer stuff to people you already know, instead of only interacting to ask. But what to do when your network is nonexistent and you have nothing to offer?

Re: How to Become Well-Connected

#7

Post by hellogoodbyeeee » Tue, Apr 25, 2017, 5:51 PM UTC

Id love some opinions on a couple networking questions I have. I'm looking for a new job currently and I'm trying to be more proactive in networking. Is it presumptuous to cold email somebody and ask them for coffee? I imagine everyone is busy and doesn't have time for coffee with strangers, but I really hate talking on the phone. And if the person I am emailing is someone I want to work for, should I be upfront about looking for a position or should the initial email be more of a request for an informational interview on the industry or company?

Re: How to Become Well-Connected

#8

Post by netvarun » Tue, Apr 25, 2017, 5:51 PM UTC

Title is obviously a little click-baity. But I can attest that Chris Fralic practices what he preaches.

Back in 2013, yours truly was a fresh college grad, fresh off the boat, to play the SV lottery.

He took an hour long meeting with us, and politely declined to invest and explained his reasoning (probably the only VC who did that and which I really appreciated at that time since pretty much everyone else 'let me circle back'-ed out of orbit).

He could have cut us of there, but he went the extra mile, got us a couple of passes for us to the ChannelAdvisor conference in Vegas that year - through which we ended up getting a couple of customers!

Re: How to Become Well-Connected

#9

Post by cortesoft » Tue, Apr 25, 2017, 5:52 PM UTC

I feel like this piece starts with the assumption that we should WANT to be well connected. Being that well connected, however, doesn't come without costs (in time and effort, mainly).

I don't think I want to be this well connected.

Re: How to Become Well-Connected

#10

Post by sjg007 » Tue, Apr 25, 2017, 5:55 PM UTC

speeder wrote: post #6

I liked the article but it doesn't explain how to start a network... much of its advice is about how to manage an existing one. Examples: it mentions that you should sometimes offer stuff to people you already know, instead of only interacting to ask. But what to do when your network is nonexistent and you have nothing to offer?

Start with your friends in the business and ex colleagues.