One Conversation. Two Clients. Zero Sales Pitches
This is how networking is supposed to work.
Welcome to issue #187 of The Introverted Networker. Every Tuesday, I teach you to be a better networker. My favorite part of the week is hearing from my readers, so leave a comment or ask a question, if you are so inclined.
I Got My First Client the Day After I Quit My Job
And it wasn’t luck.
Well, the timing was lucky.
But what made it possible had nothing to do with luck at all.
This issue takes about 4 minutes to read…
Networking for a Job vs. Networking for a Business
Most of the networking advice I give is aimed at people looking for a job.
Find your dormant ties.
Reconnect with people you already know.
Tell them what kind of role you’re looking for and at which companies.
That process works.
But when I launched Retention and Rewards Partners last year, I realized networking for your own business is a different game.
Not harder. Just different.
And the difference matters.
When you’re job searching, you’re networking with people at the companies you want to work for.
You’re trying to get inside.
When you’re building a business, your goal is different.
You’re not necessarily trying to connect with your target client directly.
You’re trying to connect with people who already serve your target client.
Think about that for a second.
If the people in your network work alongside your ideal client as vendors, consultants, advisors, or peers, and they know what you do and what problems you solve, they become your sales force.
You’re not selling yourself to your target client.
Someone else is doing it for you.
That’s the difference.
Katie’s Text
I had been keeping in touch with a woman I’ll call Katie for years.
We both worked in HR in Denver.
Different companies, different roles, but we stayed connected.
We’d check in.
Share what we were working on.
Talk about the industry.
That’s it.
No agenda.
No ask.
Just a relationship I had maintained over time.
When I started feeling the pull to leave corporate and go out on my own, Katie was one of the first people I talked to.
I told her exactly what I was thinking.
I wanted to do fractional total rewards consulting.
I told her the specific problems I solve.
I used the words a client would use to describe those problems, not the words an HR professional would use to describe the solution.
That’s something I tell everyone to do.
If you want people to refer you, make it easy for them to recognize when someone needs you.
Give them the words.
We had that conversation in early summer 2024.
And then we went on with our lives.
The Monday I Quit
In August of 2024, I submitted my resignation on a Monday.
Twenty-seven years of corporate work.
Done.
The next morning, I got a text from Katie.
“Do you know anyone who could do fractional total rewards consulting for a client in Denver?”
I stared at my phone.
I had quit my job less than 24 hours earlier.
I texted back: “Yeah. Me. I just resigned yesterday.”
That was my first client.
And then Katie hired me for a project at her own company.
My first two clients came from one relationship.
One conversation I had invested in years before any of this was real.
And, because she already knew me and what I could do, I didn’t have to pitch the first client.
I came in with a referral, and provided I was who I said I was, I was going to get hired by that client.
My network did the selling for me.
Was It Lucky?
Yes and no.
The timing was fortunate.
A week earlier and I would have still been employed.
A month later and someone else might have gotten the call.
But the fact that it happened at all?
That wasn’t luck.
It happened because I had stayed in touch with Katie over the years.
It happened because I told her exactly what problems I solve, in the words of the people who need them solved.
It happened because she had stored that information and was ready to use it the moment she heard someone say those exact words.
That’s not luck.
That’s the Connection Loop doing what it’s supposed to do.
What This Means for You
Whether you’re building a business or building a career, the principle is the same.
The people who can help you most are often not your target client or your target employer.
They’re the people who already know your target.
Find those people.
Stay in touch with them.
Tell them exactly what you do.
Use the words of the person who needs the problem solved.
Then be patient.
The text will come.
Maybe not the day after you quit your job.
But it will come.
Your Turn
Has something like this ever happened to you?
A moment that felt like luck, but when you looked back, it happened because you had done the work of staying connected?
Leave me a comment and tell me your story.
Best Things I Found Online This Week:
Donnie Boivin challenges the myth that “Your Network Is Your Net Worth.”
Jessica Hernandez gives job seekers a series of actions to take after your resume and LinkedIn profile are updated.
Don't forget to tell me your best networking story!