CHAPTER 1Networking = NOTworking
JUST STOP!
You don't know anything about me, we have NO relationship, and you're bombarding me with irrelevant products and services on LinkedIn! You're singlehandedly ruining this platform (more leaders are disengaging from LinkedIn daily!), destroying your credibility (fastest way to get blocked!), and diluting the real impact of others who use the platform for good (research, interviews, and authentic, value-based connections). Do your due diligence, make your outreach personable, relevant, and effective, and build a relationship first (read: invest) before you ask for a favor, a sale, or access to my relationships.
This post on LinkedIn yielded over 20,000 views and 50+ comments by others who, after such experiences, felt strongly about the abuse of perceived relationships online. I'd just taken the time to schedule an intro Zoom with someone who had reached out to “learn more about your business and share unique insights I have discovered via an audit of your website.” Intrigued, I looked forward to our discussion. Instead, I left angry and incredibly disappointed. Online scams and relational laziness in doing zero homework or knowing anything about the target audience aren't new. My anger arose from the betrayal of initial trust and the self-serving garbage that had infiltrated LinkedIn—and I'm far from alone with this sentiment.1 More importantly, this abuse of kindness poisons the well for others who do their homework and have a value ...
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