Connections are King now.

The team has been attending a lot of events lately meeting like-minded partners and prospects and seeing old friends. It’s got us all feeling pretty jazzed here, and it got me thinking.

I’ve been in Marketing a long time. I have done "all the things" as my teenage daughter might say. But the thing is..."all the things," always come down to the same thing...connecting.

Post pandemic and more than ever, what everyone wants, what everyone needs, is human connection. That means in business too. According to recent research, even what our biggest clients are looking for more than anything these days isn’t product, it isn’t content, it’s connection. Connections are King now.

Now, connections don’t just happen. Ok sure, there is the serendipitous occasion where two minds meet and magically forge an instant bond. But that’s what we used to call a “bluebird”. Usually, we have to be far more intentional about connections. We have to make them happen. We have to network.

Of course, networking is a skill that can be mastered. But it requires that we practice it. That is no easy task in itself. Unlike me, everyone is not thrilled by the chance to meet and talk to interesting strangers. Still, practice we must. No risk, no reward, right?

"Networking is not about just connecting people. It's about connecting people with people, people with ideas, and people with opportunities." -- Michele Jennae

Effective networking though, does not a connection make. For a genuine, fruitful, mutually beneficial connection to happen, three key criteria must be met.

The first is RESONANCE.

“Invisible threads are the strongest ties.” – Friedrich Nietzsche

Merriam Webster defines resonance as “the quality or state of being resonant.” Resonant then, is defined as “continuing to sound: Echoing.”

An echo is a mirror, it is confirmation, validation, justification. It speaks directly to our innermost selves, to something we feel strongly about. It is instantly recognizable because it rebounds our own thoughts. It is like hearing ourselves, ringing with empathy from outside of ourselves and in the best way possible. More importantly, it drives us towards the source of that resonance. We must connect to it to reach the second criteria.

AUTHENTICITY.

“Don’t worry about what’s cool and what’s not cool. Authenticity is cool.” ~Zac Posen

Resonance is meaningless without authenticity. Authenticity fosters engagement, encouragement of ideas and mutual growth. Just "be real," my kid would again say. Because being authentic means being vulnerable and open. It means listening and mutual understanding and deeper, more honest discussion and it puts you firmly on the path to the third and final criteria...

TRUST.

Connections are, after all, friendships…partnerships…relationships. Trust is paramount for any of those to succeed.

“Trust is the glue of life. It’s the most essential ingredient in effective communication. It’s the foundational principle that holds all relationships.”- Stephen Covey

We need trust, and more specifically, trust in others, to fully function as human beings and to derive the most happiness out of our lives.

The longest study ever conducted on human happiness has revealed that regardless of all other factors, close relationships and human connections are crucial for our well-being as we age and the single skeleton key to happiness. These sorts of connections do not happen without trust.

***

I remember many years ago meeting with an octogenarian and former New York Ad Executive (think Mad Men) who by then, spent most of his time helping marketing teams excel and imparting wisdom to the young folk like us. I was introduced to him by a colleague and was instantly riveted. He was fascinating, vital and insightful. I learned so many things that day, but 20+ years on, the most important lesson I learned that day is STILL the most valuable lesson I’ve ever learned in marketing...and in life.

“People”, he said, “no matter who they are, or what their station, and no matter what they tell you, are motivated by their emotions.”

Human beings are viscerally, often involuntarily, driven by their own emotion. Full stop. There is no way around it. I’ve watched and worked as three decades have passed and that is as true today as it was that now far away day and it's as true as it was a half-century before, at the height of that octogenarian’s career.

Without emotion there can be no resonance, no authenticity and certainly, no trust. Without emotion, there is no connection. And, without connection, we now know, we will never be as happy as we could be.

“When one tugs at a single thing in nature, he finds it attached to the rest of the world.” ~John Muir

Thanks for reading.

Cat