There is no such thing as the self-made man. While I can certainly understand and even appreciate the gesture, the truth is that every successful man had some help along the way. That help usually comes in the form of others.
My guest today is David Burkus. He is the author of Friend of a Friend: Understanding the Hidden Networks That Can Transform Your Life and Career. Today, we talk about the power of “weak ties,” how to leverage “preferential attachment,” how to become a super connector, and how to tap into your hidden networks.
“The good news is it’s who you know not what you know because who you know is inside your control.” Tweet That— David Burkus
David Burkus
Today, I have the honor of introducing you to my friend, David Burkus.
As you might imagine, I have the opportunity to talk with hundreds and hundreds of successful men but David is someone who stands out to me as one of the most intelligent, articulate, and well-researched guests we’ve had on.
He is a best-selling author, a speaker, and associate professor at Oral Roberts University. In his new book (which I highly recommend), David offers readers a new perspective on how to grow their networks and build key connections—one based on the science of human behavior, not rote networking advice.
He’s delivered keynotes to the leaders of Fortune 500 companies and the future leaders of the United States Naval Academy. His TED Talk has been viewed over 1.8 million times and he is a regular contributor to Harvard Business Review.
“It’s not just who you know, it’s who they connect to and how you can help serve that community and how they can help you.” Tweet That— David Burkus
Show Highlights
- How to find your hidden networks
- The power of “weak ties”
- How to develop silos and clusters of networks
- How to become a super connector
- Why building teams are critical to your networking success
- How to leverage “preferential attachment”
- The difference between mixers and activities
- The science of networking
- Connecting over strange ties
- How to develop stronger social capital
- Why the adage, “who you know” isn’t the whole story
- Overcoming and utilizing the “illusion of majority”
- The benefits of becoming a network broker
“Almost everybody that you need to meet in your professional life is one or two introductions away from you if they’re not in your network already.” Tweet That— David Burkus
Friend of a Friend
Exclusive Brotherhood, The Iron Council
I know you’ve heard me talk about the Iron Council by now but you probably haven’t heard me talk a whole lot about the specifics of what’s included. That is by design as we’re really only interested in bringing men in who are extremely interested in improving in every facet of their lives.
That said, I do want to share with you one new feature we’ve added over the past two months. That is guest experts. Last month, we had Rorke Denver (Navy SEAL and New York Times Bestselling Author) join us on our weekly call and this month, we have Jeff Rose (Financial Advisor and best-selling author, blogger, and YouTuber) joining us to talk about all things money.
These are men who most people normally don’t have access to. But I realize that there are so many experts out there who are significantly more qualified to talk about certain topics than I am.
If you’re ready to tap into these expert guests and all the other benefits of the Iron Council, I’d encourage you to learn more and join us at www.orderofman.com/ironcouncil.
“If you have some hesitancy because you feel like you’re taking, maybe it’s because you haven’t given enough.” Tweet That— David Burkus
Connect with David Burkus
“If you care about something in your life, you’re intentional about it. So why shouldn’t you care enough about all of your connections and relationships to be intentional about those?” Tweet That— David Burkus
Building a Thriving Tribe
