Transcript
Speaker: Hey, stop for a second. if If you're over 50 and you think networking is just for finding a job, are you missing half of its power? Here's the thing.
Speaker: In the next 15 to 20 minutes, I'm going to show you what networking really is, why it matters after 50 more than ever, and seven places to start this week, whether you want your first job or you're looking for your first customer.
Speaker: and stay to the end because number seven is the one most people d never use.
Speaker: Let me be honest with you. Networking is not asking for a job. It's not schmoozing and it's not only selling yourself. Here is what it actually is.
Speaker: Networking is building relationships where information and trust can move before an opportunity ever goes public. So think about that.
Speaker: Most jobs are filled before they ever even hit a job board, through referral, through conversations. and And most first customers, they don't come from a cold ad.
Speaker: They come from warm introductions, people that you know. So let me ask you, when was the last time that a cold application actually worked for you versus a ah conversation with someone who already knows you.
Speaker: You're not asking for favors, no. You're making it easy for people to help you, to hire you, or to buy something from you.
Speaker: Your network is not a backup plan. It's actually, if you think about like this, your distribution system. For a job search, it distributes your reputation. And for a business, it distributes your offer.
Speaker: It's the same asset, but you have two completely different payoffs. Let me say this clearly. After 50, networking is not optional. It's your single biggest advantage.
Speaker: Why? If you want your next job, The network, it helps you beat the filter. ATS and AI, they screen you out for age signals before a human ever even sees you.
Speaker: A referral, it skips that filter entirely. It beats the bias. So your resume, it says, dirty years of experience. But the screener reads it and says, hmm, means expensive.
Speaker: However, a person who knows you says something completely different. They say judgment. They say calm under fire.
Speaker: They say knows how to lead when things go sideways. Trust beats paper every single time. Now, if you want to own your own business, it beats the cold start.
Speaker: Your network, it becomes your first customers, your first testimonials, your first referrals. you You don't start from from zero.
Speaker: You start from trust. And that beats your ad budget anytime. You don't need to buy attention when you can actually borrow trust.
Speaker: One introduction, it'll outperform 100 cold ads. So whether you want a paycheck or you want your first customer, the question is ultimately the same.
Speaker: Who already trusts you enough to say yes? In the big picture, you didn't lose your value. You only lost your access temporarily.
Speaker: And networking is how you get back. Here are seven ways to do it. Fast, practical, and you could start them all this week.
Speaker: Why not? Homework assignments later. Number one. your personal network, I mean personal, friends, family, and your neighbors. This is the the warmest trust that you have.
Speaker: For a job, they vouch for your character when a resume simply can't do that at all. For a business, They become your first customers and and your most honest feedback loop.
Speaker: Why do you think the Girl Scouts sell cookies in their neighborhood? I want you to tell 10 people in in one clear sentence what you're looking for or what problem that you can solve.
Speaker: No resume, just one sentence. Number two are former colleagues and managers. They saw your work. They saw your proof of performance.
Speaker: So for a job, they refer you to the hidden market. For a business, they know your reliability and they either become clients or they become referrals.
Speaker: I want you to message five former colleagues this week, not to ask for a job, but to ask for a 15 minute perspective call. Number three, university alumni.
Speaker: This is instant common ground that cuts right through the age bias. I just recently connected with a Bucknell alumnus right here in Thailand.
Speaker: He's 20 years my junior, but we have a common bond. People like to help their own, whatever the connection is. For a job, alumni, they open doors across generations, like the example I gave. For for a business, alumni love to support alumni-owned businesses.
Speaker: Your action step? Use the LinkedIn alumni tool, filter by school and cross-reference by three different target companies or customer types. Find the people that you need to know, and and maybe you can even sing that old college song together.
Speaker: Number four are professional associations and industry groups. This is where the industry still talks even when you're not in the building.
Speaker: So for a job, you you can hear about unposted roles and some of those insider shifts, what's happening in different companies. For a business, you find partners, you can find vendors, and even perhaps your first B2B customers.
Speaker: Your action step, attend one event in the next 14 days, whether it's virtual or in person, just to get back into the room. Number five is LinkedIn, but done right. And let me be clear, this is not posting into the void Facebook style.
Speaker: For a job, it's making insightful comments and warm connection notes that that bypass the the ATS completely. For a business, it's content that demonstrates your expertise and brings customers to you.
Speaker: Your action step this week, five meaningful comments plus maybe three warm connection requests per day. Add insight, not just congratulations or happy birthday. Be a little bit deeper in what do you write.
Speaker: Number six, volunteer community and boards. This is a little bit different one and probably quite underused, but it can be really powerful.
Speaker: So for example, when volunteering, you show your current skills outside of the ageist hiring funnel. you You meet the the decision makers who can see your value live.
Speaker: For a business, you demonstrate your value, which can turn later into paid work faster than any ad can generate. Your action step, look for one volunteer role where your expertise solves a real problem for somebody.
Speaker: And lastly, number seven, I think this is the power move. informational conversations. This is not an interview. It's not a sales call. It's a 20 minute curiosity call where you ask, you listen, and you learn.
Speaker: For a job, this is where most of the referrals are born. For a business, this is where you discover real customer pain points and you can even pre-sell your solution before you even launch the business.
Speaker: Here's your script. I admire how you navigated that challenge at company XYZ. Could I get 20 minutes to hear your perspective?
Speaker: There's no pitch, it's just learning. and And here's an irony alert. I love this one. If you really think about it, it's true. The call where you ask nothing is the call that can bring you everything.
Speaker: Now, I know what you're thinking. That's a lot, seven different steps, lot a lot of things. So let me make it simple. but Let's break it down into a 3-3-3 rule every week.
Speaker: Okay, so three outreach messages, three value ads or or value comments, and three follow-ups. That's it. Nine touches, consistent every week.
Speaker: Here's a message that you can even copy for your for your path. Hi Frank, I valued working with you and I'm exploring my next chapter after our company. I would love to have 15 minutes to get your perspective on this specific topic.
Speaker: No pitch, just learning on my side. wouldn't it Would next week work? it's It's short, it's specific, and it's human.
Speaker: And there's no resume attached. And remember, Always give first and ask second.
Speaker: Your experience, it still solves problems for people right now, whether they hire you or whether they buy from you. Let me leave you with this.
Speaker: You spent 30 years building judgment, building relationships, and and building a reputation. that is not a liability that's leverage for whatever comes next on your path if it's a next job a first business or somehow both at the same time this this is not starting over not by any means this is building on everything that you already know this is our time to rise so
Speaker: Tell me in the comments, which of the seven are you gonna try first? And what are you thinking about? Is it the next job? Is it your first customer? Is it somehow again, both? I read every single comment and I respond to all of them.
Speaker: And if this episode helped you, please subscribe and and share it with someone who might really need to hear it today. Next week, we're going to swing back to franchising briefly. I'm going to be joined by Edith Wiseman, the president of FranData.
Speaker: It's an incredible conversation on whether franchising is the right path for those of us over 50, and she is an absolute expert on the topic. In a few weeks, we're going to dive into some greater detail on how LinkedIn can be used to turbocharge your networking, and I'll get into specifics there.
Speaker: As I always say, Youth runs fast, but age knows the terrain. I'll see you in the next one.
