

Networks give you an unfair access to success - aqeel
http://www.gigpeppers.com/networks-give-you-an-unfair-access-to-success/

======
mindcrime
There's no question that networks help, although I guess you could quibble
over whether it's "unfair" or not. But what comes up here on HN sometimes -
and this is one place I disagree with michaelochurch - is the issue of gaining
access to certain networks or individuals. I think MOC and some others feel
like you're largely "in or out" now and forever, and that you can't find a way
to forge a bridge into a network (say, local VC's) that you aren't already
part of. I have not found this to be the case, at least here in the Raleigh /
Durham, NC area.

Now, truth be told, if you're somebody "important" like a VC or a well known
angel investor, you might not be seeking out "common people" to pull into your
orbit, and when you're in a position where a lot of people are coming to you
wanting something, you probably learn to be a bit more guarded and put up some
filters. This may not be completely unlike the way some very attractive women
put up what guys sometimes call a "bitch shield" when they get tired of
getting hit on all the time.

But, at the same time, these people are human, and they are social creatures,
and they ultimately _need_ the people with good ideas and startups, just as
much as they are needed in turn. And if you take the time to learn how they
work, where they hang out, what events to attend, and you trawl your existing
network and ask for connections, etc., you can reach a point where your
network includes VC's, or angels, or CEO's of companies, or pretty much
whatever. Treat people like people, not like caricatured images, ask politely
for their assistance with something, demonstrate that you represent (at least
potentially) some value to them, and most people will reciprocate, and the
relationship can grow slowly over time. It is almost like dating in a sense.

Now what you can't necessarily do is develop a network of "all my Stanford
alumnus friends" if you didn't attend Stanford, or whatever. But you _can_
build a network of the kind of people you need to have relationships with...
if it's hotshot engineers you feel like you need to connect with, go to the
local LUG and JUG meetings, Perl Mongers meeting, Ruby Brigade meetings,
Javascript meetups, Hadoop User's Group meetings, etc. And, like mentioned in
TFA, start establishing your credibility in your field by blogging, tweeting,
speaking publicly (speak at the aforementioned LUG, JUG, HUG, etc. meetings,
for example) and other active steps. Write a book if you have to; self-publish
on Lulu.com if you want to, and get an ISBN so it will be available on
Amazon.com and via special order at retail book shops.

None of this stuff is _easy_ but it's doable. Trust me, I know. I was the
"country bumpkin" guy who grew up in Redneckville, NC, far away from anything
or anybody technical, and after I moved to the RTP area, I did pretty much
everything I just said (minus writing a book, which I'd still like to do, but
don't have time right now). And while I'm not the most connected person in the
world, I know many of the local VC's and angels, have friends who are VP's,
CEO's, etc. of companies, and have a broad network of talented technical
people that I have relationships with. It has taken work and taken time (and
the journey isn't over) but you can "network up" with some effort in my
experience.

Edit: Oh yeah, another thing you can do, although I really don't recommend
this as purely an exercise in network building / PR: Run for public office. It
varies by state, but here in NC, you can run for a statewide office, like, for
example, Lieutenant Governor, just by filing some paperwork and paying the fee
and - depending on whether you are associated with a party or not, and that
party's status, possibly doing some petitioning. If you run as a Republican or
Democrat, you will likely have a primary against the other members of that
party who file for the same office. If you run as a 3rd party, like
Libertarian, you're likely to be unopposed in the primary phase and will
automatically go straight to the ballot in the general election. Anyway, once
you file, you'll start getting surveys to fill out and invites to various
candidate forums and events. Go to them and speak.

I did this (running for NC Lieutenant Governor as a Libertarian) and got about
126,000 votes, so at least a few people have heard my name out there. But,
again, I wouldn't necessarily recommend this just as a way to network. Yeah,
you'll meet a lot of people, and you will get a little bit of media coverage
(even as a 3rd party unknown, the media don't _totally_ exclude you, they just
_mostly_ exclude you) and you might even be on TV in a debate. But whether or
not the people you meet doing this will help your later career or initiatives
(unless you really _want_ to be a politician) is subject to debate. And more
than a few of the people you meet will automatically put you in the "enemy"
bucket just due to party affiliation, so it could actually hurt you down the
road. And you probably won't even know if it happens.

------
tomkarlo
Just because "networks" have value doesn't mean they're in anyway "unfair".
It's like saying that having a college degree is "unfair", because it makes
you more qualified for a job than someone who doesn't have one.

There are lots of people who make their _entire career_ out of leveraging
their personal networks, from salespeople and recruiters to VCs and
politicians. It's no coincidence that half that people I work with worked with
each other at previous jobs.

Calling it a "network" devalues what it really is: a hard-won portfolio of
people who you have relationships with involving trust and credibility. They
know who you are and you know who they are, and that gives you both value. In
an age of linkedin and networking events part of what's lost is that
networking isn't just about knowing someone's email; it's about having a
strong enough relationship with them that you can leverage that.

------
jiggy2011
About the value of blogs, what is the best way to blog in a way that gives you
a decent chance of being read by "the people that matter"?

It feels like technical blogs are 10 a penny these days.

~~~
mindcrime
I think the most important thing is probably to produce high quality content,
and write about "stuff" that people are interested in. Do at least basic
(white hat) SEO to try to make your blog as discoverable as possible through
organic search. Then start marketing the blog: Tweet about your new posts, and
use relevant hashtags. Add your blog to any relevant blog directories. Share
your entries in relevant sub-reddits, or here on HN, or wherever makes sense
relative to your content. Share posts on G+ and, again, use relevant hashtags.
If you're feeling ambitious, find other bloggers who cover a similar area, and
email them and talk about writing a guest post for them. See if you can get
somebody who is at least a "mini celebrity" to write a guest post for _your_
blog. Record podcasts, screencasts and/or video blogs. Share the screencast /
video blog posts through Youtube. Join relevant LinkedIn groups and share your
blog posts with the group. Share on Facebook, G+ Communities, etc., etc...

Setup Google Analytics and Webmaster Tools for your blog so you can get an
idea of what keywords are bringing people to you, and what content is
attracting the most attention. Optimize based on your findings.

Anyway, that's just a handful of basic ideas. I'm far from an expert on SEO,
content marketing, etc., but there's tons of good info our there on the net.
Google "content marketing", "permission marketing" and/or "search engine
marketing" for more ideas.

~~~
X4
You suggest good SEO. Ok.

Counterexample, use the power of a Botnet to do something unorthodox, dive
into the grayzone, get media attention. _Hustle_

Hitting the right persons nerves will again trigger success or failure. If you
gain respect this way you probably will get attention. Your responsibility
then is to react timely. If you do it wrong, you could get negative reactions,
which could be good for SEO, but bad for credit/respect.

But the first thing I would suggest you to do in order to join a network is
simply to join a related network that persons inside of your desired network
are in. Sports/Clubs/Organizations/etc.

~~~
mindcrime
_You suggest good SEO. Ok. Counterexample, use the power of a Botnet to do
something unorthodox, dive into the grayzone, get media attention. Hustle_

Under the right circumstances, I'm not opposed to doing the unorthodox (I
might skip the botnet though), and I agree that hustle is important and
getting media attention is good. I just wanted to share some of the obvious
stuff that jumped to mind immediately.

You saying that reminds me of another resource of interest: Ryan Holiday's
book _Trust Me, I'm Lying: Confessions of a Media Manipulator_.[1] There's
some interesting stuff in there about manipulating the media. You could almost
think of it as "black hat PR".

[1]: <http://trustmeimlying.com/>

~~~
X4
Thank you for the smart input!

I'll put the book into my reading list.

------
obviouslygreen
It's understandable that the simple axiom "life isn't fair" is so hard to
internalize until you've actually seen it in action. It is nice that this
article gives at least a little depth to that, but the title is a bit of a no-
brainer.

For people who don't understand it yet, this post is unlikely to help (but
then, nothing will, and I won't fault the author for trying). For those of us
who do, though, it's almost comically self-evident.

------
GhotiFish
I disagree, in order to get into a network, you have to build respect. What is
that if not a job interview by proxy?

Further, the "objective" criteria we judge new people by are anything but
fair, or even accurate.

I'm looking at you, interview questions.

~~~
IvarTJ
While building respect is a great attitude, it is not the only thing that help
you land in networks. The network connections of your family and the posh kids
you went to school with also play a role.

