Some Good Ol’ Fashioned “Networking Hacks”

I originally wrote this in 2018, but somehow it’s still resonant in many ways.

Personally I’m not a big fan of “hacks,” and think the real secret is putting in work on stuff that matters to you. But for this article, I’ll use the term “hacks.” Sue me.

2018 is coming in less than a week. January 1st will be a disaster, naitch (Monday Funday) but everyone’s back to the grind on January 2nd, give or take. Within that will be a series of networking events, new partnerships, first-time business meetups, etc. It happens to all of us. Your first one might be January 3rd or March 18th. It doesn’t so much matter. It’s going to happen within the year.

Now, you could drown probably the entirety of Estonia in books and articles written about networking. Everyone has advice and hacks on this topic. Much of it is bullshit, and here’s why: everyone is different, and everyone’s social skills and relationships to meetings and gatherings is different. Some financial geniuses are horrible in social settings. So they’d be great to network with — you need their skills! — but you’d probably hate them at a networking event. This cuts many different ways.

When we cookie-cutter or one-size-fits-all the idea of “networking,” it usually fails. People and situations are…