NETWORKING IS NOT SO BAD For a long time, networking had an unpleasant reputation of being just a means of achieving one’s targets or quotas. Today, Garrio welcomes Kurt Schmidt to prove them wrong. He is the President of Foundry, and author of “The Little Book of Networking: How to Grow Your Career One Conversation at a Time”. Kurt shares his own definition of networking, why it’s important for every person, why it should not be viewed as a selfish act, and how it can help you in your career. Find out more in this latest episode of The Business Conversation. HIGHLIGHTS KURT: DEFINITION OF NETWORKING “What networking truly is, is about finding ways to let people know what your value is, what your worth is, and then understanding what their value and their worth is, and trying to find opportunities to work together” KURT: BEING A STEWARD OF CONNECTIONS AND GOALS “It should be going out and finding out what people's needs are and trying to connect those people who have those needs, and being that good connector and steward of their goals.” KURT: NETWORKING IS A LIFETIME ENDEAVOR “Networking is a lifetime endeavor. You've heard the terms before networking is your net worth and all those things, it's absolutely true. So you've got to find the time to invest in those things, and I've found that building systems around it, that allow you to help you has been really powerful.” KURT: GETTING CONNECTED HELPS WITH YOUR SKILLS “It really let me hone my pitch and get good at pitching, I got better and better at anticipating what the questions were that were going to come up, I got better at anticipating and changing my pitch to address questions before they even showed up. Because I saw commonalities in how I was pitching. And my confidence was going up in my pitch” KURT: FIND THE PEOPLE WHO WANT TO TALK TO YOU “You've got to talk to people that want to talk to you, they got to understand what you're looking for what your value is. And then they have to also understand that you're off there looking out for them as well. Like I said, these micro partnerships, which I find to be super valuable, I built a multimillion-dollar business on it. Let's just put it that way.” Follow the link below to learn more about Kurt Schmidt: Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/-kurtschmidt/ Foundry Website: https://www.foundrymakes.com/ The Little Book of Networking: How to Grow Your Career One Conversation at a Time: https://www.amazon.com/Little-Book-Networking-Career-Conversation-ebook/dp/B0BPB2ZTHZ?ref_=ast_author_mpb This series is being put together in collaboration with AIGA Minnesota - one of the largest chapters of AIGA, that works to enhance the value and deepen the impact of design across all disciplines of business, society, and our collective future. & Curious, a group of B2B marketers helping their clients define a conversation that is unique, relevant, and honest with their ideal customers. They then help their clients find their ideal audience to start the conversation by pushing content through the most efficient channels, whether that be traditional or digital.