CHAPTER 8•BUILDING USEFUL NETWORKS 179
tive and provide the entrepreneur with new and nonredundant informa-
tion. Multiple points of view can offer more than one solution to a
problem.
17
Entrepreneurs need information and resources from a vari-
ety of sources,
18
so having diverse contacts increases their chances of
developing good leads on potential markets, business locations,
sources of capital, promising business partners, or key management
personnel. Individuals with social networks that include people from a
variety of backgrounds enjoy a richness in the information exchanged,
attitudes formed, and personal interactions.
19
Cultural norms explain why networks are homogeneous and why,
at the broadest level, men prefer to be with men, and women with ...