‹ Skills for Life
Networking. The strength of weak ties.
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Skills for LifeGL-00102
Networking
The strength of weak ties
Building relationships that carry information and opportunity both ways.
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Your next opportunity is more likely to come from someone you barely know than from a close friend. Mark Granovetter proved this in 1973. Close friends share your world. Acquaintances connect you to different worlds. These "weak ties" bridge separate networks and carry information that would not reach you otherwise.
- Networking is not collecting contacts. It is building relationships where both sides gain value. Offer before you ask.
- Talk to people outside your usual group. Join a club, attend a talk, volunteer. Each new connection extends your reach.
SourceGranovetter (1973), "The Strength of Weak Ties." Standard network theory
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