Your Network is Your Net Worth

Right before the pandemic life was really turning around for me.

I had just gotten out of debt.

I was making more money than ever.

I had a beautiful fiance who loved me.

And, maybe it’s hard to see that for yourself now, but if you spend 2-3 years improving your life, you’re going to make more money.

I wish I could say at this stage I was the “Smart Guy” that I talk about in my videos. But I was still “Dumb Guy”.

My self-confidence in my ability to get rich and invest grew. I wasn’t thinking about building out my savings.

I had never read a book on financial literacy. It’s not that I wasn’t focused on self-improvement, but I had focused on learning about sales and how I can become better at my career. That was what was going to lead to more income.

Then COVID happened….

My company laid me off. My “Emergency Fund” was all tied up in stocks that were tanking due to the uncertainty in the market. And let me tell ya, I did not feel Financially Stable!

Normally when you get laid off you can and should apply for unemployment pay. I’m not a fan of living off of it forever, but look, if you get laid off that’s what it’s there for! And ideally, you pick up some side gig while you look for a new job so that you can maintain paying all of your bills and not fall behind.

Well in my case, getting unemployment was nearly impossible. So many people had been laid off, that the government couldn’t keep up with the amount of requests coming in.

And while I would have loved to get a side gig, everything completely shut down. 

An Emergency Fund will also prevent you from making rash decisions.

Like selling your stock. Dumb Guy!

Lucky Me!

Shortly after I sold my stocks I got a call from an executive I reported to at my previous company.

It turned out he was leaving that company and joining a new startup. And he wanted me to be the first person he hired. Talk about lucky!

Unfortunately, I’m here to tell you, for most of life, it’s not what you know, it’s who you know.

And sure, if people know you as an unorganized slob who can’t be trusted, maybe it doesn’t matter.

But if you can focus on the things you can control:

• Positive attitude

• Showing up on time

• Working hard

• Being honest and respectful

• Coachability

People are going to want you involved in their projects.

Today I have no fear when it comes to my career because I’ve built out a strong network of people who know that I can add value to their company/team. And I finally built out that emergency fund lol!

Whether you’re in school, changing industries, a former stay-at-home Mom looking to get back into the workforce, you can use networking to your advantage.

And!

Whether you’re cozy in your job, a leader in your industry, or currently a stay-at-home Mom with no plans to get back into the workforce, you should spend some time networking.

We save up an emergency fund because we never know what might happen and we want to be prepared.

We build out a network because we don’t know where life is going to take us and who we might lean on to help us achieve our goals.

How Do We Network

Networking is easier than you think. And it doesn’t mean you need to be blocking off time every week to go out to various events.

These have been the most successful places I’ve networked:

LinkedIn: So I’m not a huge fan of the content on here, but I think if you know how to use it you can develop connections here. The most effective way in my opinion to use LinkedIn is to reach out to alumni from your school. If you can find a connection point with people, they are likely to at least accept your request and message with you. Many will even hop on a call if you have a good reason (like working at their company). And if you’re in the same town, it could be a chance to meet in person. Shoot your shot!

Connect With Your Coworkers: I know this is obvious for some but that means people who aren’t your friends at work too. Find people on other teams, in other departments, and executives (depending on how big your company is) and try to get 20-30 minutes with them. This is honestly the lowest-hanging fruit. People only spend 4 years at their jobs on average, so when your coworker goes to that amazing company, now you have an in.

Meetups: Unless you’re in a town with a couple thousand people, your city/town probably has meet-up groups for everything. Use Facebook and Meetup.com to find events. Some of them are going to be junk. But, once you find one that suits you try to stick with it. I’ve found that it’s hard to develop relationships the first time, but if you keep going you will have a group of people with similar interests in your corner.

But, here’s the thing, as soon as you leave your house, you may find yourself with a chance to network. At the gym, church, maybe even the grocery store!

Once you find yourself in a networking situation, here are some things that you’re going to focus on:

Be Authentic: Don’t build relationships with people with the sole purpose of “getting”. It will come out in how you treat them. People crave authenticity, the more that you can be yourself the better.

Have a Pitch: Develop a concise pitch about yourself. This is especially important if you’re meeting people at events and there is limited time. Regardless of what you do, if you can sell yourself, you will get ahead.

Follow-up: Don’t wait to hear back. Follow up as soon as possible and ask a question or provide a next step to keep the connection engaged. There is no point in putting in the effort if you’re not going to follow up after.

Be Helpful: Spend more time actively listening and looking for ways that you can help that person. The more you give to the world the more you receive.

And just know, most people are uncomfortable with networking.

Lean into that discomfort once in a while. You can even tell people, “I’m a little nervous, I never come to these types of events but [insert your pitch about yourself].”

If you’re serious about networking and don’t know where to start, just reply back to me here with some information about yourself and I’ll help you get started.