Question
They say that when you reach out to someone online (over email, LinkedIn, etc), you should give value before you ask for something from them, and I understand that. How do you provide value to someone who you've never met before?
If you consider yourself influential (someone that other professionals are likely to respond to and connect with), what do you look for when you decide which contact requests to accept?
If you are not well known, what strategies have worked (or not worked) for you?
Thanks..
Answer
One thing you can do is simply show up at various networking events that occur in every city. This can be anything from the local accountant's association monthly luncheon to an angel group, or the board of a theater, and so on. By showing up, you'll naturally find that there are interesting questions to be asked, and comments to be made. And from that, the beginnings of your network are born.
