Brad Feld Quotes

I just like to talk to people. I don't know how to bridge the gap between getting to know someone and then schmoozing and sort of working contacts and business connections.

I do a lot of schmoozing.

I think it's a really big deal to be able to meet people outside the context of something like a conference room or someplace where everything feels like it's formal talk.

It's really about making opportunities for yourself and connecting with people on a more-than-normal level. That opens doors. You never know if the caterer's brother is someone. You don't know who someone is having dinner with that night. So being a nice person and touching people creates opportunity.

I was networking every day from 21 to 28 years old. I sent 10 letters a day, which means I reached out to 3,000 people in a year.

You've got to develop relationships. You can't do things just in a formal context.

I was hesitant to go around and shake hands, just go up and stick my hand out to strangers. Then I learned to stick my hand out.

I often joke that I've just become a professional schmoozer. Like, nobody cares how well I can rock climb anymore. It just has to do with how well I can schmooze.

If you don't go talk to your boss, if you don't go talk to your mentors, if you don't go talk to people who can influence where you want to be, then they don't know. And they're not mind readers.

I don't know how to work a room. It's a real skill.

I'm dreadful at schmoozing at Hollywood parties.

I meet a lot of people.

It's hard to make friends as an adult. You gotta work at it, you know? You have to ask people to lunch, and if you don't know them, it's weird.

Networking is working.

I love to get out and meet people.

Often, the best jobs come out of just meeting people and letting one thing lead to another.

Relationships will get you far in this industry. It's about how you move and how you act. Just be yourself.

Some of the most lasting contacts and friendships that I have developed began by just grabbing a drink or breaking bread with a stranger at an industry event.

Any time I meet someone or learn about someone that's really interesting or inspiring to me or has a story that really resonates with me, I just cold call them, and I try to meet him or her.

I was never much of a networker.

I'm somebody that you should know.

Saying hello doesn't have an ROI. It's about building relationships.

Keep saying hello to people. They will be the differentiator for you for the rest of your life.

Often, I'll ask clients who've found a great contracting relationship how they did so. The answer is almost always that they heard about them through a friend or colleague.

Effective networking isn't a result of luck - it requires hard work and persistence.