Take that meeting…

Vulcan mind meld - star trek

Make that connection...

“I don’t really use LinkedIn or Twitter.”

“I don’t go to meetups.”

“I don’t really have time to meet people.”

These are just a few of the phrases I hear all the time from people I come across — whether they’re in tech or otherwise. And it shocks me.

I have long lost count of how many business connections, opportunities, jobs, professional acquaintances, referrals and just plain friends I’ve made through both social and real-life networking. To this day, I maintain the philosophy of taking every meeting. Sometimes they’re in person and sometimes they’re over Skype. Sometimes they’re just email conversations. But the connection is made.

Even if we don’t talk again for a year or if we never talk again, we’ve both gained something. And you never know where that little connection may lead. So take that call. Return that email. Schedule that coffee and accept that invitation. You won’t regret it.

[Jeff]

About Jeff Gothelf

Jeff Gothelf has spent a 15 year career as an agile product designer, team leader, blogger and teacher. He is one of the leading voices on the topic of Agile UX and Lean UX. In addition, Jeff is the author of the O'Reilly book (2013), Lean UX: Applying lean principles to improve user experience (www.leanuxbook.com). He is a highly sought-after international speaker and workshop leader. Jeff has led cross-functional product design teams at TheLadders, Publicis Modem, WebTrends, Fidelity, and AOL. In 2012, Jeff launched Proof, a product design and innovation studio that combines lean processes with strategy, design and technology that has since been acquired by Neo.com where he is now Managing Director.
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