The Networking Mindset

The word 'networking' is thrown around every day in the music industry. Everyone is constantly talking about how to network and what events you have to be at to meet the best people. While I agree that knowing people is an important part of getting where you want to go in the music industry, I think that this mindset of meeting people just for this reason can be detrimental to our relationships. If we are only meeting people to get ahead in our own careers, we are not actually thinking about the humanity and value of the other person. We are only thinking about how we can use them. One of my former professors, Mark Maxwell, wrote a book on this called 'Networking Kills: Success Through Serving'. He argues that the only way to truly connect with other people is through serving them. If you go about life thinking about the ways that you can serve the people around you, no matter who they are or what they can do for you, you will become a kinder person. Kindness is an underrated quality in the music world. When a business is looking to hire someone, they are always going to hire the person who is kind and gets along with the team over the person who is the most qualified. Another reason that service can get you farther than just networking is that serving others requires you to have a relationship with them. You have to take the time to get to know them to understand how you can help them. Learning should always come before service. If you're just starting out in the music industry, it's easy to think that you don't have anything to offer the people that you are meeting. But this isn't true! We all have things that we can learn from each other, no matter where we are in our lives. You can always ask someone how you can help them. They will be touched to know that you care enough to ask. People have value all by themselves, without their accomplishments or what they can do for others. It's important to treat them like they do.

"I once heard a play on the word network, pointing to men on a shore preparing their nets. Look for those preparing their nets for their own big catch, but make sure they have their own boat. This is the only kind you want to "network" with. Otherwise, they will ask to get in your boat only to weigh it down." ~ Jill Riley