Let's be clear — I am never too busy to answer a message written with the recipient (me) in mind. Better yet, if you have taken the time to build a relationship or craft a compelling, respectful note.

This is what makes the Web work. Discovering new projects, learning and expanding horizons, meeting new people and getting to know them through shared interests.

Every month, Colleen Wainwright reminds me how powerful it is to make connections by earning them. This month her newsletter talked about this very topic: How social networks are filled with "sell, sell, sell".

These days the noise level on those has gone up quite sharply.

From quick hits via LinkedIn requesting connections with my network with headlines like "nice to work with you" (when, pray tell me?) to spaghetti-style threads that are doing all the talking at me all the way to downright bullying behavior when not getting one's way.

Are you experiencing connection fatigue?

It may be because occupy-type tactics only get you headlines in the ever escalating fantasy world of the social media lost generation and high fives from buddies who find the whole thing amusing. They look like a good shortcut until they lead nowhere.

It is by inhabiting the work, building capacity, becoming the person someone would want to get to know that connections are made.

Increasing leverage starts with building something.

 

[people, too. Image credit]

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Valeria is an experienced listener. She is also frequent speaker at
conferences and companies on a variety of topics. To book her for a
speaking engagement click here.