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Networking is Overrated

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Re: Networking is Overrated

#31

Post by 7Figures2Commas »

jblow wrote: post #5

Networking is for people who don't know what they are doing and who don't have better ideas regarding what to do with their time and energy. So if you go to a networking event, understand that you are automatically putting yourself into this class of person. If you are someone who provides a lot of value, other people will go out of their way to meet you, and then you don't have to go to networking events. So the fac…

> Networking is for people who don't know what they are doing...

"Networking" is simply the process of meeting other people with whom you might one day establish a (professional) relationship with. It takes place everywhere people meet. That includes university classrooms and the offices of employers.

> So if you go to a networking event, understand that you are automatically putting yourself into this class of person.

You must have a very narrow view of what constitutes a "networking event." A lecture with a reception is potentially a "networking event." An conference is an opportunity to network. Are you seriously going to suggest that folks who attend lectures and conferences are all hapless fools? If so, I take it you rejected your invite to the Allen & Company conference in Sun Valley?

> If you are someone who provides a lot of value, other people will go out of their way to meet you...

This akin to the mistaken belief that if you build it, they will come. If nobody knows who you are and what you do because you've "cloistered" yourself for half a decade, nobody is going to seek you out because they don't know you even exist.

> Do you think Elon Musk goes to a lot of networking events? Do you think Steve Jobs went to a lot of networking events?

Steve Jobs met Steve Wozniak through a high school friend. Elon Musk is a member of the "PayPal Mafia." If you believe that Steve Jobs and Elon Musk built billion dollar businesses on their own while holed up in a bedrooms in a house on a quiet street in Silicon Valley, you might want to read up on their stories before trotting them out as examples of business titans who never networked.

> If you are early in your career and legitimately aren't providing a lot of value yet, because it's early, then I would offer that your time is much better spent cloistered away becoming excellent at what you do...

Excellence often does require focused, individual effort, but it's a lot harder to achieve if you refuse exposure to folks who have more knowledge and experience than you.

Re: Networking is Overrated

#32

Post by d0m »

>> Instead of networking for networking’s sake, focus your efforts on activities that will bring you revenue. If networking can drive a sale, great. Otherwise, you might be better off going heads down and executing internally.

The thing is that if you only focus on executing internally you might work VERY HARD on a not-so-good opportunity. Networking is not just about "meeting important people" but also being on the lookout for new opportunities that may arise.

Re: Networking is Overrated

#33

Post by [deleted] »

sscalia wrote: post #21
jblow wrote: post #5

Networking is for people who don't know what they are doing and who don't have better ideas regarding what to do with their time and energy. So if you go to a networking event, understand that you are automatically putting yourself into this class of person. If you are someone who provides a lot of value, other people will go out of their way to meet you, and then you don't have to go to networking events. So the fac…

I can't believe this is the top comment on this story. You have got to be kidding me. Networking events are invaluable, especially to new graduates. It's important to know how to interact face to face with other human beings. It's important to show you can have a real human conversation with someone, understand body language, understand emotions and social cues. I realize these skills aren't highly valued on HN for s…

[deleted]

Re: Networking is Overrated

#34

Post by pwim »

jblow wrote: post #5

Networking is for people who don't know what they are doing and who don't have better ideas regarding what to do with their time and energy. So if you go to a networking event, understand that you are automatically putting yourself into this class of person. If you are someone who provides a lot of value, other people will go out of their way to meet you, and then you don't have to go to networking events. So the fac…

The Homebrew Computer Club was a networking event that helped launch Apple.

Re: Networking is Overrated

#35

Post by hbags »

nostrademons wrote: post #29
codegeek wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Networking is for people who don't know what they are doing and who don't have better ideas regarding what to do with their time and energy. " Wait, what ? No. That's not what networking is for. You don't network only because you have nothing better to do and you are at the bottom of the food chain but because networking helps you create influence in a world where ultimately, everything comes down to human beings. D…

So when I was in college I was pretty shy, but I heard that networking was essential for career success, and so I was kinda terrified about what my future held. It's 8 years later, I'm in my early 30s, and I feel like my network is doing pretty well. At least, some of my direct friends - people I would invite to crash on my couch when they're visiting town, or go out for dinner with weekly - are tech leads of major c…

"seek out other people who are passionate about it"

ding ding ding ding ding. This is what networking is. Purposefully interacting with people whose passions, and goals overlap your own.

It saddens me that so many tech folks do exactly what you did: writing a screed about how networking is useless, in which you explicitly note that you networked, and that your network is responsible for all of your big career successes.

Re: Networking is Overrated

#36

Post by mikektung »

codegeek wrote: post #16
jblow wrote: post #5

Networking is for people who don't know what they are doing and who don't have better ideas regarding what to do with their time and energy. So if you go to a networking event, understand that you are automatically putting yourself into this class of person. If you are someone who provides a lot of value, other people will go out of their way to meet you, and then you don't have to go to networking events. So the fac…

"Networking is for people who don't know what they are doing and who don't have better ideas regarding what to do with their time and energy. " Wait, what ? No. That's not what networking is for. You don't network only because you have nothing better to do and you are at the bottom of the food chain but because networking helps you create influence in a world where ultimately, everything comes down to human beings. D…

A lot of the commentary here is just shifting around the definition of networking--anywhere from attending public meetup events to "people skills".

The useful realization for an entrepreneur in a place like Silicon Valley is that networking is increasingly a commodity. The social graphs are so much more open and connected than before that anyone you'd want to meet is just one or two hops away. Thus, time and attention is better spent not on networking, but on the harder task of being a person of value to the network, so that other people will want to network with you.

Re: Networking is Overrated

#37

Post by nostrademons »

hbags wrote: post #35
nostrademons wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So when I was in college I was pretty shy, but I heard that networking was essential for career success, and so I was kinda terrified about what my future held. It's 8 years later, I'm in my early 30s, and I feel like my network is doing pretty well. At least, some of my direct friends - people I would invite to crash on my couch when they're visiting town, or go out for dinner with weekly - are tech leads of major c…

"seek out other people who are passionate about it" ding ding ding ding ding. This is what networking is. Purposefully interacting with people whose passions, and goals overlap your own. It saddens me that so many tech folks do exactly what you did: writing a screed about how networking is useless, in which you explicitly note that you networked, and that your network is responsible for all of your big career success…

It's also a little sad to see a bunch of people going to events they're not passionate about because they hear "networking is important". Unfortunately that happens a lot: people mistake effect ("I got involved in things that interested me, and met a lot of interesting people doing that") with cause ("I should go out and meet lots of people because then I'll be successful.")

Re: Networking is Overrated

#38

Post by Goladus »

I think a better perspective is to include the networking angle in anything you do, whenever possible. The most successful people are never not networking, except when they are engaged in a solo activity like programming or practicing. This goes hand in hand with self-promotion and marketing.

As others have mentioned, though, there are different definitions of the term. Going to "networking events" may not be the best use of your time. That doesn't mean you shouldn't be building connections and relationships-- with classmates, professors, roommates, bartenders, skiing buddies, vendors-- as many as you can handle. And yes: interest group meetups and and clubs can be a good place to make connections.

Re: Networking is Overrated

#39

Post by csixty4 »

Back in the day, people used to have Rolodexes, and it wasn't uncommon for a Rolodex to follow you out the door from one job to the next, growing steadily with each new acquaintance you made. A good executive relied on their Rolodex, kept it up-to-date. If you barely recognized a name, maybe it was time to call that person and meet them for drinks, catch up on what's new in their life.

Sometimes, you'd find yourself helping them move, or calling in a favor to get them front-row seats at a concert. And then when you'd have a need for a particular skill, you could say "it's ok, I know a guy" and call in a favor from them.

That's networking. That's all networking is. It's making connections with people and maintaining those connections over time. It's why executives and sales people spend so much time on the golf course. Connections. Relationships. Just short of friendships.

Somewhere along the line, that got packaged up, conceptualized, productized. People were told they should be networking. Here's a course on how to network. Let's have a "networking event"...bring your business cards! Networking went from a verb to a noun.

Screw that. Meet people, online and off. Help them out with their problems, or just hang out. Don't be a stranger. That's it. I bet if each of you thought about it, you network all the time.

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