Larry Chiang’s book, What They Don’t Teach You At Stanford Business School, has an entire chapter devoted “Networking”. As CEO of Duck9, he networks with coeds to get college consumers get a FICO over 750. Post Harvard Law School keynote, Harvard Business wrote: “What They Don’t Teach You at Stanford Business School“. This post coincides with Stanford’s first SXSW party and is about “South by Southwest”.
NY Fashion Week has supermodels getting a high FICO credit score because I supermodel on-the-side |
Anna Faris at Austin’s SXSW for “House Bunny”
Here are 7 things to help us network at SXSW:
-1- Set a networking intention.
When you’re on the yoga mat, you set an intention. So, why not set an intention at a Film conference called SXSW
For example, my intention is to get five people a free credit report with the 5 envelopes I will carry with me. Its weird but memorable. It is weird but super useful.
-2- Get your networking whale out of the way
Ryan Tedder mentored me on a United flight. He said, “Get your hit song out there and then that way, you will never have to worry about writing a hit.” This applies to networking. For example, on day #1 I like to meet someone like Anna Faris or Danny McBride or Makado Murphy. This way, my whole trip is paid for and I can just let providence take over. When I say “whole trip paid for”, I mean the whole trip my company, Duck9, pays for.
-3- Let providence take over.
The universe conspires to help you. In this case, it helps you network. Sometimes, you are your own worst enemy. In networking, working it too hard actually hurts you. For example, I see people shoulder surfing. For example I see people looking over shoulders for VIPs to talk and network with while they’re with a VIP. I am honored that in every networking picture, my chin, eyes, mouth and feet are in the perfect listening position.
Which brings me to my next point…
-4- Listen
Motivational listening is critical. I take this networking hack to the Nth level when I sit in the front row of my own keynote, install a Pop Up guest speaker, take selfies and take notes. I call this sitting first chair entrepreneurship. First Chair Entrepreneurship looks like this
Larry Chiang takes a selfie while installing a female audience member to the VC panel
-5- Selfie.
When networking, always reciprocate the people that want to be in a selfie with you. Do not be that celebrity that just takes and does not reciprocate.
For example, lets say after your press junket at Four Seasons’ Waterloo room is done. And a fan wants to be in a selfie with you. YOU MUST TAKE OUT YOUR CAMERA AND SAY “ONE WITH MINE TOO!”
-6- Bang less, get ahead.
My company, the board and its shareholders paid for my executive ass to go to Austin. They expect
– more distribution via networking
– more revenue due to networking
– more money in than money out. Money in = revenue. Money out = expenses.
Banging while at a work conference is normal. But it doesn’t help (a), or (b) and def hurts (c).
-7- Networking with people with imperfect work
Ira Glass, mentored me by saying, “We all got into the game because we have taste. But it takes hours and hours before our work starts to look impressive.” See his content “On Being Creative”
Look at this art. It looks like Dave McClure drew this drunk. But it is great because he published imperfect work that me and Adrianna Gascoigne were happy to promote
Here are two more articles about “networking” in Harvard’s harbus
https://www.harbus.org/2014/what-mr-peabody-can-teach-harvard-business-school-about-the-fifth-epiphany/
and
https://www.harbus.org/2013/lets-do-well-at-sxsw-this-sxsw/
This poster was the result of my helping a studio do networking before the premier of Mr Peabody at SXSW
Larry Chiang’s Mr Peabody movie launch party at SXSW
Duck9 is a credit score prep program that is like a Kaplan or Princeton Review test preparation service. We don't teach beating the SAT, but we do get you to a higher credit FICO score using secret methods that have gotten us on TV, Congress and newspaper articles. Say hi or check out some of our free resources before you pay for a thing. You can also text the CEO:
