I had ended my blog of December 2022 by stressing that "a strong network is both necessary and a valuable asset for entrepreneurs."
This is very true. Average person has 610 people in his/her network. About 90% of Americans have social connections of 250 -1700 persons*.
However, the sheer number (quantity) of connections is not the indicator of a strong network. On the contrary, it is the quality of friends/acquaintances that help innovators and entrepreneurs build their working environments and achieve their goals. These individuals help the entrepreneurs accelerate the development of their social intelligence and help them change their fixed mind-sets.
I strongly recommend entrepreneurs to establish their networks not with many in number but, with individuals who have different ideas than the entrepreneur, and who are givers rather than takers. This is because givers add value to the new ideas, thus, expanding the horizon of the entrepreneur. Also, let us keep in mind that entrepreneurs' operating systems favor giving to taking. The end result is a network, which has a greater value for the entrepreneur.
In addition to being givers, the quality network members of an entrepreneur must:
Have common work interest
Seek opportunities for collaboration
Have diverse and different perspectives on issues
Appeal to different interest groups
Trying to be a member of many groups, attending the conferences, seminars and social events will definitely increase the number of friends/acquaintances, hence, the size of the network of the entrepreneur. Yet, effectiveness of such a network will be limited if the basic qualifications mentioned here are not present.
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* King, M., Social Chemistry, Dutton Penguin Random House, Jan 2022