X is bringing more attention to Communities, a feature that allows X users to connect and engage in discussions around a given topic, similar to how itβs done on Reddit. Today, tabs to access popular Communities are pinned to the top of the appβs homepage alongside your For You feed and other Lists. Now, youβll [β¦]
Zeng advised ending every interaction with the question, "How can I help?"
Josie Elias/Getty Images
Building relationships well is widely considered to be a desirable soft skill in the workplace.
You might call it 'networking.' But Langni Zeng has been calling it 'biz rizz.'
Zeng, who learned people skills at McKinsey, shared her top tips for developing 'biz rizz.'
This as-told-to essay is based on a transcribed conversation with 25-year-old Langni Zeng, based in LA. The following has been edited for length and clarity.
During my college years studying business at Queen's University in Canada a lot of my fellow students' parents were VPs at big organizations.
There's a certain culture to their backgrounds around the way you dress, how you speak, and what you talk about. One big culture shock for me was learning how to pick wine at dinner.
My dad is an engineer, and my mum is a former lecturer, so I wasn't very exposed to corporate America. I didn't grow up around corporate functions or know what investment banking or the consulting space was like.
At college, I learned more about consulting and saw it as a good field for someone like me who wanted to be a generalist and work on problem-solving. I took part in consulting extracurriculars and landed an internship at McKinsey for the summer of my third year.
After the internship, I joined McKinsey full-time as a business analyst in 2021.
I stayed at McKinsey for around two years and then left to take on a director of strategy and business operations role for a tech company. My tenure at McKinsey strengthened my ability to build relationships in professional environments, a skill that has helped me throughout my career. I've also been using a fun term to describe this skill: biz rizz.
Mentors helped me with relationship-building skills
When I started at McKinsey, I was linked up with a professional development manager who helped staff me on projects. In consulting, you don't really have a set manager and team β it's all project-based. Every few weeks or months, you're working with new people, clients, and often in new cities.
There are obviously hard skills consultants should have, like making Excel models and analysis, but also soft skills β the ability to build relationships with clients. Some of this was formally taught, such as in a training session about trust, but I also developed soft skills organically.
One of my biggest barriers to developing relationships in the workplace was confidence and comfort. At McKinsey, you can be 21 sitting in a room with C-Suite executives, which can be intimidating. You overthink in those situations about what's appropriate to say.
When my parents found out I had this job, they advised me to keep my head down, but I think professional relationship-building is important. I tried figuring out how to network and make small talk.
I was lucky to have great mentors on my first projects. One of my managers coached me to present to a C-suite executive. One of my mentors told me to think about the executive as my friend's uncle or someone I know in real life to make things feel more familiar.
At first, I struggled to relate during some conversations with my peers. Travel came up a lot; I didn't grow up skiing in the Alps or playing golf. Going to business school helped train me for these conversations, and my background wasn't as big of a constraint as I thought. I think the key is to be authentically yourself.
Having 'biz rizz' has helped me throughout my career so far
I used feedback from the teams I worked with to gauge how well I was developing my relationship-building skills.
On one project, I was tasked with preparing a celebration at the end of our off-site. It was a circle of appreciation. Everyone had to say what they appreciated about someone they were assigned, like a secret Santa.
I wrote a funny poem with silly rhymes about the person I was assigned, who was a client. I was more experienced at that point, so could confidently gauge what was appropriate. Earlier in my career, I wouldn't have done something like that. Afterward, the key stakeholder from that client referenced the poem for months after the off-site.
Soft skills like this can strengthen your reputation and relationships at work. They have been helpful beyond my time at McKinsey.
In a previous job, I was a director of strategy and business operations for a tech company. I was trying to facilitate change management and worked with leaders across different functions. You have to build trust-based relationships to get people to align with your vision. This can be hard when you're younger or new, but my time at McKinsey taught me how to engage with senior stakeholders.
At times when I've done coffee chats or mentorship sessions with students, a lot of their questions are about what grades they need or tactical skills they should build to get a certain job. That's all important, but another really important part is how you network and build a personal brand.
Here are some of my top tips for building 'biz rizz'
I've been casually using the term 'biz rizz' among friends for years. "Rizz" became a popular slang term used to refer to charisma, so we'd use 'biz rizz' to describe professional relationship-building. I posted a TikTok about this last year, which really took off.
One of my relationship-building tips is to end every interaction with the question, "How can I help?" or tell them, "If there's anything you need, let me know." This can be seen as strategic because people like it when you help them, but it's also a generally positive thing I'd do with people in my network.
Another big piece is communication. People really respond to a good speaker who is concise and eloquent. I was not naturally a good speaker, but being part of an international case competition team at college and doing presentations at McKinsey helped me with this.
Be authentically positive. Don't think of networking as a ploy to advance your interests, but think about how you can have the most fun working with people.
Many people perceive networking as kissing up to senior leaders, but I think it goes beyond that. I've learned so much and gotten so many opportunities from it.
Do you have a story to share about professional networking? Contact this reporter at [email protected]
If you don't have much professional or research experience yet, it helps to emphasize your contributions to the field via any open source projects on Github, for example, Nair said.
As with any other job, the basic guidance still applies: Show employers what you've done that's applicable to the role you're applying for.
"I mostly just outlined the engineering projects that I'd done and then explained that in a concise way," Nair said.
"Highlighting any impact in your previous projects, especially in a result-driven way, is effective," he said. "It's even better if these results can be quantified into a number."
Instead of writing "Worked on building a novel recommendation model for page feeds," try instead: "Developed a novel recommendation model for page feeds that increased user engagement by 5%."
Impact can be quantified in a number of ways, including business you've generated for the company, resources you've saved, features you've built, or how your work has improved customer engagement or satisfaction, for example.
Nair was also careful to focus on action verbs in his resume, starting bullets with words like "developed," "built," and "designed."
Draw attention to your skills, but don't go overboard
Nair listed some programming languages and frameworks with which he has experience. He cautions against throwing in extra skills just for the sake of it, especially if you're not confident in them.
"Adding a lot of skills in this section, especially ones that you are not very proficient in, could backfire since you could also be judged on your knowledge of them in the technical interviews," he said.
Networking
A recruiter reached out to Nair for his current role at Google, but he'd laid the groundwork by previously reaching out to the recruiter in his prior job search.
When Nair was searching for his prior roles, he blasted cold reach-outs to hiring managers, recruiters, software engineers, and others at his target companies to get a sense of who might be hiring for their teams or who might be able to refer him for a position.
"I was reaching out cold to everyone who had a title in their LinkedIn which said that they're hiring for the teams or that they're a manager for a team," he said. "You just have to send out as many cold emails as you can, and you might just get lucky."
I'm a <role> working on <brief description of what you're working on>. I'm interested in <target role> at <company> and would love to connect to learn more about opportunities.
It was very much a numbers game, but it worked for Nair in the end.
"A lot of people might not respond, but that's basically the worst that can happen," he said. "You just need one person to respond, and that's kind of what happened to me."
Preparing for the interviews
Nair's interview process for his current role included several rounds of technical interviews focused on coding and problem-solving skills, he said, as well as a team match.
He prepared for the interviews by scouring online forums to see what he could expect based on other candidates' previous experiences, brushing up on his technical skills, enlisting his friends for mock interview run-throughs, and learning from other interviews he was doing with different companies.
"Compared to the other companies that I did interview with, Google is a lot more focused on if you do understand the problem and are able to solve it from first principles as opposed to just needing to give a perfect solution," he said. "They care if you can solve the problem, if you're able to think through it, rather than having just memorized something that you've seen before."
Sometimes a job search might involve turning to relatives for help networking on LinkedIn.
Lynne Sladky/Associated Press
CEO Brendan Ripp's LinkedIn post helped his cousin secure job interviews quickly.
Willingness to advocate for a relative on the platform is a signal it's becoming less formal.
It can be a good thing to share with your network that a relative needs a job, experts said.
Brendan Ripp is a CEO. He's also a proud relative.
In December, Ripp shared with his LinkedIn network that a cousin who'd recently graduated magna cum laude was looking for a job.
"Anyone in my advertising & marketing networks hiring smart kids out of college?" Ripp, head of the audience-development platform Pushly, wrote before linking to his cousin's post about earning her degree.
It was the first time Ripp, who's often pressed for time running a young company, had shared with his more than 8,500 LinkedIn followers that someone he knew well was seeking work, he told Business Insider.
"This felt like the best and fastest way that I could provide assistance and yield a result," Ripp, who lives outside New York City, said.
Within two days of the post, his cousin had three interviews lined up, Ripp, 48, said.
Networking on LinkedIn has been central to the platform from the start. Yet anecdotal evidence suggests that the pandemic-tinged informality that's taken hold in so many workplaces β think athleisure at the office β has also seeped into how we network on LinkedIn.
While several posts on the platform about users' personal lives have gone viral β finding B2B sales lessons in a marriage proposal might be asking too much β when it comes to the friends and family posts, workplace observers told BI it's broadly a good thing.
"That's old-school Rolodex networking. We're just bringing it to the internet," Maria Ross, an empathy researcher and the author of the book "The Empathy Dilemma," said.
Ross told BI that some LinkedIn users' willingness to get a bit more personal stems, in part, from a collective experience over the past five years.
"What we've learned in the pandemic was that we can't park our humanity at the door," she said.
'She's dope. She's amazing.'
If you have someone you feel called to help find a job by posting on LinkedIn, do it, Jasmine Escalera, a career expert with MyPerfectResume, told BI, adding that it's time to throw out "old-school narratives."
She said that as long as people are truthful in what they write, there shouldn't be an issue announcing that your niece has graduated from college and saying, "She's dope. She's amazing. You should hire her."
Josh Bersin, CEO of the Josh Bersin Company, a human resources advisory firm, told BI that because LinkedIn users don't operate anonymously, they should mean what they say if they make a laudatory pronouncement on someone's behalf.
"The reason LinkedIn has survived so well is because it's honest. You can't put a fake name on there. Your reputation goes with you," he said.
A LinkedIn spokesperson told BI that the platform doesn't have data on how often people help out relatives with networking appeals and endorsements.
'Work-adjacent' posts
Bob Gruters, a father of four, is a fan of the friends and family post. The 56-year-old executive turned to LinkedIn to share when his oldest son graduated, got a job, and was promoted. Gruters also issued professional huzzahs on the platform when his other sons nabbed internships.
Gruters, who's president at ReachTV in St. Petersberg, Florida, recently reposted his daughter's announcement that she'd earned her undergraduate degree and would begin a program to become a physician assistant.
"This human of ours dreams big and then makes them come true," he wrote.
Gruters, a former Facebook exec, told BI that the accomplishments he posts about on behalf of his family are "work-adjacent."
Gruters's posts about family members have often elicited friendly responses, he said. People have offered to introduce Gruters's sons or daughter to those already at a school or workplace.
"That's what we all used to do. We used to network," Gruters said. "LinkedIn, in its best form, is a way for us to professionally connect and link and network."
Gruters said that posting about these "big moments" in his family life is a window into what drives him as a businessperson. Letting connections know about these milestones also makes sense because many colleagues have, in some way, played a role, he said.
"Every boss I've had has contributed to my life," Gruters said.
However, he said the LinkedIn announcements he sometimes sees about birthdays and the like are better suited to other platforms.
Craving connection
Christie Smith, who's held leadership roles at Deloitte, Apple, and Accenture and is coauthor of the book "Essential," told BI that before they post on behalf of someone, LinkedIn users should consider their employers' norms regarding advocating for relatives. Yet, generally, she thinks it's a good thing to see people lifting up others on LinkedIn.
"People are craving connection and community, and that's part of why we're seeing more transparency," she said.
Ross, the empathy researcher, said a willingness to help others, even those in their family, is part of a broader shift toward being more open about once-taboo subjects like mental health, even on a professional platform like LinkedIn.
"The authenticity is good," she said. "You're not just some faceless EVP from a company, but I get to know you."
Plus, there's the conundrum that often faces people at the start of their careers: It's hard to get a great job without experience. That's where an online boost, even from a relative, might help, Peterson said.
"If it's no endorsements or one from somebody who is related to you, maybe you want that one because that's all you've got," he said.
Ripp, the CEO who went to LinkedIn to help his cousin, said she's had interviews with a half dozen employers she connected with.
That's proof, he said, that his 38-word post, which drew nearly 5,000 impressions and more than 60 "likes," was more effective than sending a handful of emails to connections who might be hiring.
"I was incredibly overwhelmed and surprised by the response," Ripp said.
Mastodon, the decentralized alternative to X, is going to adopt a controversial feature from the platform formerly known as Twitter: quote posts. The company on Friday shared the progress itβs making on the implementation of the feature, which has divided users over its potential to be used for online abuse and bullying. Critics have long [β¦]
Sonnenfeldt described himself as "member No. 1" of Tiger 21.
Courtesy of TIGER 21
Michael W. Sonnenfeldt started TIGER 21 so he could learn about wealth preservation from peers.
The network now has nearly 1,600 members who all have a minimum net worth of $20 million.
The biggest concern members have is probably how to not screw up their kids, Sonnenfeldt said.
This as-told-to essay is based on a transcribed conversation with 69-year-old Michael W. Sonnenfeldt, the founder of TIGER 21, a membership organization for high-net-worth individuals. The following has been edited for length and clarity.
I'd sort of made it in life by the time I was 31 years old.
I achieved significant success in the real estate development world by developing the Harborside Financial Center β my partner and I bought an industrial warehouse when I was 25, with a vision to turn it into a modern computer center, and we sold it a few years later.
My next venture wasn't successful, and I lost money. I then went on to build a real-estate merchant bank called Emmes, which I sold in 1998.
When I sold Harborside, I didn't know the term "wealth preservation." At 30 years old, you're more focused on your next deal than preserving wealth, but losing money on my next venture was a wake-up call for me, and I wanted to avoid losing the capital I'd created after selling Emmes.
In 1999, I started TIGER 21, an organization for high-net-worth individuals to connect and discuss their finances and lives. I wanted to learn from other smart people about how they were grappling with wealth preservation.
Within the organization, ultrawealthy members are able to confidentially share and receive feedback on their investment portfolios, as well as discuss how not to screw up their children. It's produced some magnificent learnings.
I started TIGER 21 to support entrepreneurs who'd sold businesses
Although I'm the founder and chairman of TIGER 21, my first role is "member No. 1."
I started the group with six people who I'd connected with through Vistage, a coaching organization for business executives. These people, like me, had sold their businesses at a similar time and were no longer CEOs.
I invited these members to form a new group focused on the transition from entrepreneurship to investing and wealth preservation.
The group was born out of the realization that once you sell your business, you need a new body of knowledge about the next stages of your life. It's not just about finances but also legacy, children, health, and community.
Our members are primarily first-generation wealth creators, such as executives or entrepreneurs who've sold a business. They didn't grow up with that wealth, so managing it is new to them.
Some members have inherited wealth and have to manage it. The mix of wealth creators and inheritors helps wealth creators get insight into how their children might react to their wealth, and inheritors can connect with the entrepreneurial spirit of their ancestors who created that wealth.
Members share issues they're facing and talk about their investment portfolios
In 1999, the original threshold to be a TIGER 21 member was a minimum of $10 million of investable assets. Now, our community is for members with a minimum net worth of $20 million. We have nearly 1,600 members.
Net worth is just one factor in our rigorous application process. We look for individuals who meet the "five Cs" of membership: character, contribution, capacity, conditions, and capital.
A TIGER 21 membership costs roughly $33,000 a year, plus an initiation fee of $5,000.
At the core of the community experience is a full-day monthly meeting in small groups. We start with a world update or "personal board of directors" segment. Everyone in the group shares how the news in the last 30 days has impacted their views on investing and life.
Then, groups will discuss a few key issues that members have mentioned they're grappling with, like a family issue or investment consideration.
We tend to have a speaker at every meeting sharing on a topic, like biodiversity or China. Lastly, there's a portfolio defense. One group member will present their investment portfolio to the others for about an hour and a half. Everyone is bound by confidentiality.
Members also discuss parenting and passing wealth onto children
If you plan on leaving money to your children, you have to think about the estate tax impact, but there are also non-financial issues about how you treat each child. Do you treat them equally, how do you set up an estate plan?
These issues are talked about in every group, but we've also set up a family office division to address this. It's for principal leaders of single-family offices β private businesses established by families for financial management β who meet separately from our core groups to discuss themes like estate planning, family governance, and succession planning. It costs $50,000 a year with a one-time $5,000 initiation fee to be part of this division.
Throughout all of TIGER, the No. 1 concern probably isn't how to preserve wealth, but how to not screw up your kids. I'd say that some part of every meeting always touches on a situation happening with a member's children and how to address it productively.
I was in a family office group recently where two members shared their parenting approaches. One member talked about making their kids rake leaves or do odd jobs and telling them they'd have to pay for their first car because they wanted their kids to appreciate the meaning of labor and wealth. Another member shared their family "charter," outlining the family's values.
We discuss best practices all the way around.
It doesn't matter how much money you have, if you do something smart, it'll pay off. And if you do something stupid, it'll kick you in the butt.
Do you have a story about networking you'd like to share with Business Insider? Email the reporter at [email protected]
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Threads, Metaβs microblogging service, is growing at a fast pace as users gravitate to the app over rivals like X. During the companyβs fourth-quarter earnings presentation on Wednesday, CEO Mark Zuckerberg revealed that Threads now has 320 million monthly active users (MAUs), up from 300 million last month. The app had 275 million monthly active [β¦]
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Applying for jobs is becoming an increasingly frustrating process for many.
Iryna Melnyk/Getty Images
Job ads have been getting too lengthy and have long lacked salary details.
Hiring managers are being inundated with applications thanks to AI.
The situation is untenable and something needs to change, hiring experts say.
Job ads need an overhaul. They're often too lengthy, too demanding, and may prompt candidates to lean more on their networks to avoid a relentless application-rejection cycle.
With an era of "revenge quitting" on the horizon, companies that want to attract top talent may want to rethink what they post on job boards, use AI sparingly but smartly, and remember that hiring is an inherently human process.
Research from the HR and recruitment software company iCIMS, shared with Business Insider, found that job openings were up only 3% between December 2023 and December 2024, but applications rose by 13%.
Rhea Moss of iCIMS told BI that this underlines a "self-fulfilling prophecy" in the job market: candidates can't help but contribute to the vicious cycle by applying for more jobs.
Job hunting can be frustrating. Susan Levine, the founder and CEO of the recruitment and advisory firm Career Group Companies, told BI that job ads "frequently paint an unrealistic picture of the roles they represent."
Using buzzwords to draw attention rather than accurate descriptions can contribute to the culture of love-bombing and ghosting in the jobseeking world, where candidates believe they are perfect for a role β only to hear nothing after an interview.
"This practice can mislead candidates, leading them to believe they are a strong match when their qualifications may not align with what the company truly needs," Levine said.
Ads can also be too long and demanding. Data from the recruitment software and hiring platform Applied, shared with BI, found more than a third of "entry-level" job ads sought an average of 2.5 years of experience.
Michael Horn, a lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and coauthor of "JOB MOVES: 9 Steps for Making Progress in Your Career," said: "Job descriptions are really, really broken at this point."
"They have gotten ridiculous in terms of the number of listed and credentials and qualifications," he told BI. "They read much more like legal documents."
Ashley Ward, the founder and CEO of the recruitment agency W Talent Solutions, said poorly constructed job ads contribute to a frustrating cycle for all involved.
"A job ad should serve as a compelling invitation, not a laundry list of unattainable qualifications," Ward told BI. "Yet, too many ads are designed more as exclusionary gatekeepers than as tools for engagement."
'Soul-crushing' process
Shannon Talbot, a former banking director and VP at an advertising agency turned career coach, told BI that hiring managers often "copy and paste old, potentially irrelevant job descriptions because they're in a rush to fill the role."
"These descriptions turn into wish lists of requirements rather than focusing on what's truly needed. Add to that the lack of transparency around salary and job levels, and it's no wonder candidates feel frustrated."
The language of job ads can be off-putting. The Applied report, which analyzed just over 7,500 ads, found that using masculine wording (including "individual," "challenging," and "driven") reduced the number of women applying by 10%.
There's also no guarantee the jobs being advertised actually exist.
A recent analysis from Greenhouse found that as many as one in five jobs advertised online may be "ghost jobs" β roles that are never filled, and companies may never have any intention of filling in the first place.
"The job market has become more soul-crushing than ever," said Jon Stross, president and cofounder of Greenhouse.
The human touch is missing
AI was supposed to make everything better, with job hunting becoming easier and more efficient than ever on both sides of the process.
Horn said hiring managers may receive thousands of applications, mostly from people wholly unsuitable for the job.
"Individuals applying to things are struggling to figure out, thinking, I don't even know what this means. Am I a good fit for this? I have no idea," Horn said. "Might as well let the AI apply, and then we'll figure it out later."
Meanwhile, good candidates may be automatically rejected by an algorithm.
Rise of the networks
When met with an unfulfilling market, people may instead turn to their networks for their next career move, said Horn.
This could have consequences for DEI. Managers have a tendency to want to hire candidates like themselves, whether they mean to or not. Networks becoming more important could have a disparate impact on underrepresented groups, Horn warned.
Hiring managers can help make the application process more transparent by maximizing automation while maintaining the human touch.
Lisa Frank, the founder and CEO of the recruitment and coaching firm LBF Strategies, said hiring managers should embrace AI but remember that it can't be fully relied on to make decisions.
"You're still dealing with humans, hiring other humans, humans working with other humans, or working for or managing them. We can't turn our backs on that," she told BI.
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Susie Moore, a life coach, moved to NYC and landed a tech job by leveraging mutual connections.
Networking to set yourself up for a future opportunity is especially effective during the holidays.
She suggests setting intentions, creating ping lists, and attending events to expand your network.
When I was 25, I moved to New York City from Sydney without friends, career prospects, or a college degree. Despite being what some might call unprepared, I knew I would land a job because I excel at connecting with people and taking initiative.
Within two months, I started working for a tech company because I leveraged a mutual connection, an industry peer in Australia whose company had an NYC office. I asked for an introduction to her US team, and she gave me one. A single warm email connection was all it took to get me in the door.
Moore in Tokyo.
Courtesy of Susie Moore
Networking is simply building relationships by being proactive, and it doesn't have to be a cringe-worthy chore. It can be fun, graceful, and extremely rewarding, and the holiday season is the perfect time to do it. There's an undeniable "holiday glow" to people in December.
Now, as a life coach of over 10 years, I encourage my community to expand and nurture their networks no matter their career choices or future goals. If you want to step up your networking game as 2025 fast approaches, here's a checklist to seize the season before the year ends.
1. Set an intention
What do you want your networking efforts to accomplish? Are you seeking a new position in the new year? Do you want to attract new clients to your business? Do you want to kick off a side hustle? Or do you simply want to strengthen your network for the future?
A measurable goal is ideal, but networking is valuable even without a specific goal. A mentor of mine once told me she has a spreadsheet of 50 people she emails casually every quarter for no reason but to say hello and keep the relationship alive. So few people do this!
We let so many relationships go to waste because we make too little effort, so those who keep in touch win because we stand out and are top of mind when opportunities roll around β and they do. My connections have brought me investment opportunities, speaking engagements, and book deals.
2. Get into the holiday spirit
The season of goodwill is a great time to reach out and express gratitude. Most people are reflective and slow down a bit this time of year, so it's the ideal time to send a short gratitude note, text, or DM like this:
"Thanks for your help with X project this year β it meant a lot. Wishing you the best holiday break and start to 2025!"
"I'm lucky to have worked with you this year, and I hope the new job at X is going great! Hi to (spouse name)."
"I just found the coolest candle shop/whisky tasting/tennis memorabilia site (insert picture/link of the thing the person likes). Happy holidays to you!"
Sincere, short, sweet, personal messages go a long way in letting people know how they've encouraged, inspired, or helped you β or even that you're just thinking of them.
3. Create a custom ping list
Success can come down to volume and some experimentation. It's easier to start with people you know, but you can also include some people you'd like to know β for example, I might include 5-10 people I admire with mutual connections.
When I moved to NYC, I looked up connections of my friends on LinkedIn and used that as a way to introduce myself:
"Hi name! You and I are both friends with the lovely (friend's name).
I've just moved to NYC and this city is just beautiful in December. Perhaps we could have a latte if you have 20 minutes free next week? It would be great to share some industry information and connect. I'll gladly come to (part of the city where that person lives/works).
Happy holidays!"
Aim to reach at least 30 people before year-end based on your intention. These can be former coworkers, members of your running or book club, friends of friends, or anyone you'd like to know better.
Not everyone will respond to you, but the right people will. A few Decembers ago, I met up with a fellow entrepreneur who had recently moved to Florida. We've enjoyed more than one business collaboration since, and she's also become a client of mine.
4. Get out there
December is a social season. I've made many connections at apartment lobby parties, holiday celebrations, and New Year's Eve gatherings.
If you're more introverted, be selective about what you attend β just keep returning to your intention (a tech mixer might be worthwhile, for example, but drinks at your next-door neighbor's place may not). Generally, it's worth showing up if you feel on the fence about an invitation. A little face-time goes a long way in nurturing connections.
People are also less busy around the holidays than you think, particularly during the last two weeks of December when schedules slow down. This can be a great time to suggest meeting for coffee, a cocktail, or even a walk. This can also mean a lot to folks in an age of increasing isolation.
5. Underthink it β do it now
The reach-out part is fast. Attacking your ping list doesn't require blocking out hours on your calendar. You can act on it in small pockets throughout the day β waiting for an Uber, in line at CVS, when you have five minutes to spare before a meeting. Ditch the social media scroll and do something valuable with these idle minutes.
Doors open for those willing to knock. It's no secret that those who create and maintain sincere relationships experience more opportunities over time. Your network provides a safety net and a steady foundation for information-sharing, mutual support, and fun, so stay connected.
Susie Moore is a former sales director and startup advisor, a life coach and advice columnist, and the host of the Let It Be Easy podcast.
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