a simple way to multiply your network

The best contacts in your network are probably your former coworkers. You spent a lot of time with them - they know you and your capabilities. Hopefully they trust you.

As time goes on, they develop more contacts of their own. As long as you’ve kept up with them, this passively grows your own network.

You can accelerate this process by volunteering. Working on a charitable project or engaging in a free advisory relationship with an early-stage founder replicates that coworker type of relationship on a much shorter timescale.

It doesn’t have to be a huge commitment. You can do a few of these a year, for only a few hours at a time, and create high-trust branches on your network as though you had cycled through several jobs.

Plus you can do some good with it! It’s a win-win-win.

Reach out to your local tech accelerator or university entrepreneurship program - there are always founders looking for technical advice.

— Clark