WEBVTT - Think connection, not networking

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's tip is to think connection, not networking. When you

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<v Speaker 1>have a broad and diverse group of people who like you,

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<v Speaker 1>you can accomplish your professional goals. You can achieve those

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<v Speaker 1>broad and diverse connections simply by being a helpful, kind,

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<v Speaker 1>and engaging human being. That feels a lot better than

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<v Speaker 1>handing out business cards and trading favors. Today's tip, like

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<v Speaker 1>some others this week, comes from Ashley Stall's book You Turn,

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<v Speaker 1>Get Unstuck, Discover your Direction, and design your dream career.

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<v Speaker 1>Ashley is a career coach who helps people figure out

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<v Speaker 1>what they want to be doing in life. In her book,

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<v Speaker 1>she details some of her time in Washington when she

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<v Speaker 1>was working for the Pentagon in counter terrorism. When she

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<v Speaker 1>was freshly in d C. Trying to get to know people,

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<v Speaker 1>she went to networking events as one does, but it

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<v Speaker 1>turns out that one of the most interesting and useful

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<v Speaker 1>connections she made was a cab driver. He hadn't even

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<v Speaker 1>been her driver. What happened is that she had been

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<v Speaker 1>talking with a homeless man in a metro station and

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<v Speaker 1>giving him a granola bar, and he mentioned that he

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<v Speaker 1>knew someone who drove a cab and was often in

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<v Speaker 1>line at the place where she was going to a

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<v Speaker 1>particular event. She went and said hello to that driver

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<v Speaker 1>and mentioned that she talked with his friend who had

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<v Speaker 1>been at the station. After a while with her going

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<v Speaker 1>in and out of the event to talk with the driver,

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<v Speaker 1>who seemed a little bit more interesting than the suits

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<v Speaker 1>at the event. He mentioned that he sometimes drove for

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<v Speaker 1>some people at the White House and could help Ashley

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<v Speaker 1>get a meeting with them. Not bad right now. I

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<v Speaker 1>am not saying that this is what always happens in life,

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<v Speaker 1>and in fact it usually doesn't. But in general, connection

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<v Speaker 1>is a good thing. And connection is so much better

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<v Speaker 1>than trying to evaluate who is useful and who is

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<v Speaker 1>it and only talking with the people who seem immediately

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<v Speaker 1>useful and then hitting them up for favors when you

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<v Speaker 1>don't really know them. So instead of networking, I think connection,

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<v Speaker 1>and then make sure you are connecting with lots of people.

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<v Speaker 1>The upside of this mindset is that it makes any

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<v Speaker 1>conversation useful, at least on some level, and I mean

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<v Speaker 1>with anyone the postal clerk. You get to know every

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<v Speaker 1>time you bring in samples to mail to potential clients,

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<v Speaker 1>the people in your running group, the lady who is

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<v Speaker 1>always out on her porch two blocks away from your house,

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<v Speaker 1>people at your house of worship, or the other parents

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<v Speaker 1>who are always there when you bring your kids to

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<v Speaker 1>dance class. Now, I am not saying don't bother with

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<v Speaker 1>professional networking events. Your hit rate for immediately valuable professional

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<v Speaker 1>opportunities is obviously going to be higher at an event

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<v Speaker 1>that is for your industry and involves people who have

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<v Speaker 1>the ability to make decisions. Of course you should go

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<v Speaker 1>to those, but again, go with the goal of connection,

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<v Speaker 1>not networking. Get to know people, make friends, even if

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<v Speaker 1>it doesn't lead to anything professionally. You will have really

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<v Speaker 1>cool people to hang out with at the next networking event.

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<v Speaker 1>And that is fun too. And it also happens that

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<v Speaker 1>we often need different things in life, and it is

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<v Speaker 1>the randomness of knowing lots of different people that can

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<v Speaker 1>help there, including the random people that the people you

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<v Speaker 1>know happen to know. I was reminded of this recently

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<v Speaker 1>while reading a blog post by Kristen Over at The

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<v Speaker 1>Frugal Girl. She had been living with her parents after

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<v Speaker 1>a personal crisis and she wanted to find her own

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<v Speaker 1>place where she and her girls could live. Multiple places

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<v Speaker 1>fell through, and since she is self employed, the approval

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<v Speaker 1>process was always harder. Then in the midst of this,

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<v Speaker 1>her mom went to her Bible study and shared what

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<v Speaker 1>Kristen was going through. One of the women in the

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<v Speaker 1>group informed her that her son's tenants had just informed

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<v Speaker 1>him that they were moving out in a few weeks.

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<v Speaker 1>Kristen applied before the home was even listed for rent

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<v Speaker 1>and was approved to move in. All sorts of connections matter.

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<v Speaker 1>The more you have, the better, So instead of networking,

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<v Speaker 1>I think connection. You'll connect with more and different people

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<v Speaker 1>and probably enjoy the process more too. In the meantime,

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<v Speaker 1>this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making

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<v Speaker 1>the most of our time. M Hey, everybody, I'd love

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<v Speaker 1>to hear from you. You can send me your tips,

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<v Speaker 1>your questions, or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter,

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<v Speaker 1>number four, then Breakfast p o D. You can also

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<v Speaker 1>shoot me an email at Before Breakfast Podcast at i

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<v Speaker 1>heeart media dot com that Before Breakfast is spelled out

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<v Speaker 1>with all the letters. Thanks so much, should I look

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<v Speaker 1>forward to staying in touch? Before Breakfast is a production

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<v Speaker 1>of I heart Radio. For more podcasts from my heart Radio,

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