We’ve already addressed the importance of having close friends. Here, we’ll be discussing moving beyond that 1st degree network of our intimates and broadening it to reach new people, basically, acquaintances.

Obtaining a Network

Acquaintances are crucial in the journey of self productivity as they offer more diversity than our close friends, who are by contrast very similar to ourselves and our beliefs. Acquaintances are going to be the ones who will offer you new information and knowledge as they know people, places and ideas that you may not be familiar with. They connect us to broader social networks and in our growing urban lives this is key to capitalize on.

Once again, Industrious Framework is a very opinionated framework and therefore we have set out the best way to create these expanded networks and it entails the following:

1. Dunbar's Number
2. Balanced Network
3. Focus on Your Specialty

Dunbar's Number

First proposed in 19990 by British Anthropologist, Robin Dunbar, Dunbar’s Number is a suggested cognitive limit to the number of people with whom one can maintain stable social relationships—relationships in which an individual knows who each person is and how each person relates to every other person.

Dunbar maintained that number was 150 people. Although modern critics have argued that number largely due to the increase in virtual networking and social media, many still claim 150 to be the golden number. From this principle the Industrious Framework maintains a stance on having a close knit circle of 150 people.

Example Dunbar Network

The following is an example of my personal Dunbar network. These are the people or social groups I have mapped out amongst my family, friends, work colleagues and all other acquaintances to give the highest priority in getting to know. I wrote down their professions or knowledge base these people have as a way to show the diversity of information I can access by just maintaining a connection.

Now it’s your turn to create your own Dunbar's list. Create a folder in your Google Drive called "Dunbar Network" and inside a Google Sheet file, let’s say, "Dunbar Network" with categories; Name of Social Group, Amount of People and Information/Notes.

Balanced Networking

There are many ways to network. Even within the virtual vs in-person networking there are many avenues to explore. Take advantage of the plethora of resources in the modern era. Here are some ways to network:

Conferences

Conferences are great for networking especially when they are focused on what you want to learn or connect with. Perhaps someone you have been keen to meet but have not had the opportunity to, has posted on their Linkedin that they will be attending a conference. This is a great way to get to that person, and alike. By scoping out conferences that meet your target social networks, you will be able to efficiently and in an easy manner network. Conferences are made for networking and very often have round tables, coffee breaks and networking activities at the events. Use Eventbrite, Linkedin and Meetup to find conferences near you.

Social Events

The Industrious Framework weighs social events less in regards to networking because the theme of social events is usually more centered around dating, friends and leisure. However, attending a social event that is centered around topics you enjoy and are interested in, then definitely use those events as an opportunity to network. For example, a wine drinking event at a museum could curate ideas and knowledge of history, wine making, wine tasting etc. Or a trivia night with friends at a bar could also lead you to meeting others with similar drives. Feel free to attend any social event but transform it into what the framework insists on, which is to implement strategies for networking.

Corporate Sponsored Events

In my experience, if you're eyeing a chance at an interview at or a connection with a certain company, there is no better way to do this than to go to a corporate sponsored event by that company. Usually, you can find which events a company is sponsoring by going to their website’s events page. There will always be a representative from the company plus, employees themselves tend to go to sponsored events because they’re paid for by the company, they earn employer trust from attending and they like to make impacts beyond their immediate duties. Which leads you to the perfect opportunity to simply go up to one of the employees (maybe they are at a booth, or wearing a company name tag) and discuss your interest in working there. If your qualifications and experience is something they are looking for, you will most likely get an interview or at least an email to further connect.

Other

There are other types of networking events:

1. Industry-Specific Seminars
2. Virtual Groups(webinars, zoom meetups)
3. Career Fairs
4. Trade Shows
5. Breakfasts/Luncheon Meetings
6. Community Service Groups
7. Speed Networking
8. Roundtable Discussions

Just to make a point, however, digital networking will ultimately be more effective. in many scenarios.

Digital Marketing

Digital networking is one of the most powerful tools in networking today and was only accelerated by the last years of COVID 19.

“I am __ and I am interested in getting involved with __ ”. This is my favorite go-to-tool for making introductions on Linkedin. Anyone is accessible these days so the challenge is not in finding the right people to network, but in how to approach them. Since this is essential for today’s networking, we plan to dedicate a section to discuss it in more detail. For now, try and hone in on one person you really want to connect with and start from there. I’ll never forget the time I found a potential candidate that was in a unique position to help my company. I dropped everything I was doing at the time, put all my eggs in one basket, and focused on getting to them.

Focus on Your Speciality

This brings us to the last point to The Obtaining a Network Framework: Focus.

Expand your circle, network and reach out online, but focus on the areas that pertain the most to you, or your speciality. I am most interested in tech and software development so, the conferences, linkedin outreach and social events I attend are mostly centered around that. I am interested in meeting more business developers, marketers and other professionals not in software development, but I keep the networking focused around tech so those non developer professionals are still within my focus. Like, a marketing specialist in the field of SaaS, or an event planner who is well connected to AI companies.

Once you’ve assessed, balanced and focused on the people you want to meet and mediums you want to use to get there, you will see obtaining a network will come easily. After that, it’s all about maintaining the network which we will expand on in the next part of the framework.

Obtaining a Network

Once again, Lean Creativity is a very opinionated framework. Likewise we have an opinion towards the best way to create a network, and it entails the following: three pillars

1. Dunbars Number
2. Balanced Network
3. Focus on Your Specialty

Dunbars Number

Dunbar's Number created by Robin Dunbar:

Dunbar's number is a suggested cognitive limit to the number of people with whom one can maintain stable social relationships—relationships in which an individual knows who each person is and how each person relates to every other person.

From this principle, we maintain to keep a very close-knit circle of 150 people.

Focused Networking

This is a principle, within the context of yourself, and who you can manage. Keep the network focused. From this principle extends the following:

Conferences

Conferences that are extremely focused, can be worth your time. In particular, if you know someone you want to meet will be there, and they wouldn't give you the time of day otherwise. However, for the most part, if you know who you want to reach out to, find them over social media(primarily LinkedIn), grab coffee, lunch, or dinner, and gain what you want that way.

Social Events

Likewise, social events, unless simply trying to have a good time, or explore a new avenue that you are not looking for, can be a waste of your time. Especially within the framework of Lean Creativity, wherein time is incredibly precious, try and stray away from social events. Feel free to go to one to just get an idea for the advice this framework is handing over, but then try and implement the strategy for digital marketing that we advise on.

Corporate Sponsored Events

In my experience, if you want to get an interview at a company, there is no better way to do this than go to corporate-sponsored events. Employees tend to go because it's a great way for them to earn their employer's trust, and make an impact beyond their immediate duties. For you, simply go up to one of the employees, discuss your interest in working for the company, and if your resume is good enough, you will most likely get an interview.

Other

There are other types of networking events:

1. Industry-specific seminars
2. Virtual Groups(webinars, zoom meetups)
3. Career Fairs
4. Trade Shows
5. Breakfasts/Luncheon Meetings
6. Community Service Groups
7. Speed Networking
8. Roundtable Discussions

Just to make a point, however, digital networking will ultimately be more effective. in many scenarios.

Digital Marketing

I am __________ that wants to get involved with ___________. My favorite go-to tool for making an introduction is LinkedIn. We live in a day of age where anyone is accessible. However, the difficult part is how do you make the introduction. Without going into detail now, we will go into more detail at a later time, try and hone in on the person you want to introduce yourself to. I will never forget about a particular candidate I once realized was once in a unique position to help our company. I dropped everything I was doing, and put all my eggs in one basket. I focused on him and 5 other likewise candidates. it worked, and 2 new candidates joined the company over the course of 6 months.

Example Dunbar Network

The following is an example of my Dunbar network. These are the people I have chosen to give the highest priority in my life and get to know in life. Of these people, I have maybe accomplished 10% of these people, and I admit I am desperately trying to increase my network. Feel free to create your own. Create a folder in your Google Drive called "Dunbar Network". Inside of that folder, create a Google Sheet file called "Dunbar Network". Copy and paste the below table into your Google Sheet. Feel free to modify.

Social Group Name	Number	Notes
Family Members	30	Depends on your circumstance
Close Friend	1
Crew	5
Spiritual Guide(Rabbi for me)	1	Depends on Creed
Judaic Judge(Posek)		Obviously depends on circumstance
Lawyers	3
Accountants	3
Bookkeeper	2
Product Manager	3
Software Architect(Front End)	1
Software Architect(Back End)	1
Software Engineer(Front End)	1
Software Engineer(Back End)	1
Full Stack Engineer	1
Cloud Architect	1
Devops Engineer	1
Mentee	2
Mentor	1
Market Research	3
Marketing Strategy	2
UX Designer	2
Graphic Illustrator	1
Font Designer	1
Cleaners	3
Restaunters	3
Cooks	3
Entrepreneurs	3
Government	3
Law Enforcement	3
Private Investigator	3
Interior Designer	1
Plumber	2
Information Security Analyst	3
Management Consultant	3
Financial Manager	1
Financial Planner	2
Health Services Manager	3
Doctor	2
Nurse	1
Civil Engineer	2
Operations Research Analyst	2
Administrative Services Manager	2
Cost Estimator	1
Instructional Coordinator	1
Database Administrator	2
Realtor	2
Personal Trainer	2
Fire Man/Woman	2
Civil Worker	1
Handy man/woman	2
Babysitter	2
Clinical Psychologist	2
Organizational Psychologist	1
Career Coach	1
Life Coach	1
Philosophy Academic	1
Mathematics Academic	1
Physics Academic	1
Business Consultant	2
Politician	2
Foreign Contact	3	People who live in other countries
Private Gym Owner	1
Community Manager	1
Party Planner	1
Teacher	2
General Doctor	1
Specialized Doctor	2
Total =	150

How to keep tab on network

First and foremost, I would like to remove the stigma of keeping a tab on your network. By no means am I advocating stalking people. Being aware of the larger things in life, such as life-changing events, location they live in and their current professional status is what I am talking about. I am currently working through a solution using Airtable that would keep tabs on their LinkedIn profile, and occasionally Facebook.

In addition, I am working on a solution that has a list of pros and cons, and reasons why this person is worth my time. Ideally, something that would fit into an excel sheet, but would display a UI. So, while I have advice specifying that keeping tabs on a network is valuable, I have no tangible way of automating that process. I will circle back to this one, as I feel this is a V2 after the groundwork for the general Lean Creativity framework is complete.

Iterating On Network

Obviously, as time goes on, the needs you have in life will change. That is only natural and swapping out people will happen at a pace more frequently than you are comfortable with. At times, it will be difficult to keep up with, and you might find gaps in your network. However, it is important to note nonetheless, that this will happen within the framework. Go to your Airtable and update the specific slot within your network. Having an archive of old connections I've found is overkill. Simply delete, and find a new individual.

Making Sure It Comes From The Right Place

I'm reminded of a story I recently saw, about a bank that wanted to create a purpose-driven business, because they knew the members involved would be more driven to complete the work. It fell flat because this bank missed the point of purpose-driven business. There is no faking it when it comes to purpose. It either exists, or it doesn't. If you try going through the motions with something, but you don't believe in the working relationship, it won't work. Every person here in this network and I'm speaking to myself, will need to find a real and true way to be invested in your network's life. It is the natural approach towards creating a long-term meaningful relationship. Obviously business takes priority, but a sprinkle of humanity during that time period can only help.

Main take away point

If there's one particular point i wanted to make with this chapter, it's less so Dunbar's number, and more so focus. A lot of individuals I know, waste time on networking that honestly isn't helping them. Try and guard your time, by reminding yourself on the section fo "Focused Networking". The best of luck with your networking endeavors.