It's Who You Know, 2nd Edition

CHAPTER 1Shift your mindset

The 2012 movie Disconnect features three different groups of characters, their search for connection and their dependence on technology. A young married couple who recently lost a baby have their identities stolen and exposed online. Two teenagers use Facebook to cyber-bully a lonely and unpopular classmate whose hardworking lawyer father is so hardwired to his phone that he can't find the time to communicate with his family. An ambitious TV reporter uncovers a story about an 18-year-old webcam porn performer that could make her career — then she falls in love with him.

These disparate stories become increasingly entangled and connected as the film progresses. By the end (spoiler alert!), they all come to realise that what is most important in life is the love they share with those closest to them, from whom they have become estranged and disconnected.

Connecting. Networking. Sounds simple, maybe too simple. These are not new concepts. Rather, connecting and networking have been the cornerstones of good business since business began.

As explored in the movie Disconnect, the internet has opened up a whole new world of content, connections and networking possibilities. The explosion of digital and social media has fundamentally changed the way we function, communicate and do business both online and offline.

Yet the technology that was supposed to connect us and bring us closer together actually seems to be having the reverse effect.

SOMETHING ABOUT ...