693: (Solo) How I Built a Billion Dollar Network From Nothing (And How You Can Too)

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0:58Nathan Chan:All right, now let's jump in the show.

1:03Welcome back to another episode. This one drives me crazy, guys. I don't know about you and I'm not saying this from a place of arrogance, but I get messages all the time, DMs, emails, where people say, hey, Nathan, can I pick your brain or some version of that? And look, I get it. The intention is good. You want to learn. You want to connect. But I want to tell you something. what that message actually says to someone that is receiving it. I want your time, which is very valuable to you and even more valuable to me. Can you give it to me? And I'll give you nothing in return. And oh, and you're somehow entitled to help me because I've asked.

1:37That approach is completely broken. And I know this because I've had to figure out networking from scratch. I grew up in the suburbs. I wasn't surrounded by successful people. None of my friends wanted to start a business. My parents weren't in business. I had zero entrepreneurial connections, none. And I've been able to build up an amazing network this past decade. And every relationship, every connection, every room I've ever been in, I've built from nothing, guys. And this principle that I've unlocked is stupidly simple that I want to share with you.

2:10Nathan Chan:Hear the stories, learn the proven methods, and accelerate your growth and future through entrepreneurship. Welcome to the Founder Podcast with Nathan Chan.

2:24What I want to talk to you guys about today is a framework that actually works. So here's the principle. Serve first and ask later. So if you want to build a network and be surrounded by people you can learn from, you need to approach it with one question. How can I genuinely help this person and expect nothing in return? That's it. That's the whole framework. Not what can I get from this person? Not how do I extract as much possible value from this person? It's how do I serve first? And you don't need a magazine. You don't need a podcast. You don't need millions of followers. You just need to think about what can you offer that person that they actually need.

3:05So let me show you how it played out for me. And then I'll tell you some other ways that I've done it with specific people. So first case study, Richard Branson. When I started Founder, little digital magazine, I had a stock image for the front cover. It was a side hustle. I was working in IT support, literally crawling onto people's desks, fixing their computers, changing their passwords, pulling out USB keyboards, plugging them back in. That was my day job. But I had this magazine. I had this dream to interview successful founders and share their stories with the world. So four months in, when I started building the magazine, I went to Richard Branson.

3:37I tried to get him. And I got in touch with his head of PR. I called three or four times, left voicemail. She never picked up. And then finally, one day she answered. And she's like, I've got literally two months. I'm just about to jump on the tube. I was calling her when she was in trance. She was just starting her day. And basically, I stumbled through my pitch and she said, please understand, Nathan, we get like 10, 20 of these pitches a day. But here's what I did differently. I sent a follow-up email and I played on the fact that Branson's first business venture was a student magazine. And I positioned it as, we want to use your story to help educate our audience of young founders.

4:15It wasn't give me your time. it was here's why your story serves our community and for whatever reason he said yes that interview gave founder authority i made that edition free i blasted it everywhere it gave us credibility and then from there i really built the brand and it taught me the first lesson of networking you have to frame the ask around their story their mission what they are focused on not your need another case study gary v fast forward we'd grown founder tover real quick before we jump in i want to shout out one of our sponsors zero i've used zero from day one of founder 13 years now and it's still how we run the business today it's cloud accounting software built for founders exactly like us and it automates all the admin that i used to do when i first started founder invoicing chasing payments expenses all the accounting it really helps me get paid faster and keep an eye on cashflow.

5:13So founder listeners get a crazy 95 % off for the first six months. Just sign up through our form at founder.com forward slash zero terms and conditions apply. Remember when you support our sponsors, you are supporting the show. All right, now let's jump back in. A million Instagram followers. This was early Instagram, but we built it fast. And Gary V's team actually reached out to me and you know he was launching one of his books the ask gary v book and he needed press he needed distribution so i spoke to his biz dev guy and we figured out how to align what founder was doing with what gary needed so we would promote his book to our audience and in return he did an interview and gave us a testimonial for founder and the brand and our relationship was born do you see the pattern it wasn't hey gary can i pick your brain it wasn't hey Gary can I get a testimonial for founder it was well you have a book launch we can really support you we can promote that book we can produce content to grow your brand and it was how do we make this work for both of us serve first ask later a mutually beneficial exchange in value right Mark Cuban Mark Cuban was launching his private messaging app kind of like Snapchat where messages would disappear.

6:28And I found his PR person and said, hey, how can I help you get behind this software? We'd love to support the launch. That opened the door. We talked about the app, but also got him to share his entrepreneurial insights with our audience. Again, I led with how can I help promote your thing? Not I want your time. Ariana Huffington, you know, she was launching an incredible book because she went through burnout. I literally emailed her and said, hey, I want to help you promote that book. Off we go. We interviewed her. I connected with her further. So here's the mindset shift, guys. And I really want you to hear this.

6:59And it's something I've learned after interviewing hundreds of incredibly successful people, billionaires, Fortune 500 founders, people who have built things that have impacted millions and millions of people. And this is how I built an amazing network. I have such an incredible network. All of these people are just human beings. They're somebody with an idea. They surrounded themselves with the right people, the right place, right time, right environment, right opportunity. They're all human beings. They all started from somewhere at the bottom. And I think it's important to acknowledge that.

7:27They've just been working and it's literally all they've been doing. So stop putting these successful people on a pedestal. Stop acting like they're a different species because they're not. They're just people who've been grinding just like you, just like I. And the reason this matters for networking is when you approach someone like they're above you or they're a God, you're already in the wrong frame. You're taking, you're asking for a blessing. But when you approach them as a fellow human who has a problem you might be able to help with, now you're in the right frame. So let me give you the actual playbook.

7:57If you're starting from zero, no audience, no platform, no connections, here's what I'd do. Figure out what you're good at, what other people need. Maybe you're good at design. Maybe you're good at AI right now. Maybe you can build something, whatever it is. That's your currency. Find someone you want to connect with, but you have to have agency, right? You have to be working on a craft, right? You have to be good at something, something other people need. You have to have skill. AI is a great one, right? How many people need help with AI? I know I do, right? So find someone you want to connect with and study with what they're working on right now, what they're working on, how you can potentially help them.

8:31Not last year, right now. What are they launching? What are they promoting? What problem are they solving? And reach out with a specific offer of help tied to what they're doing. Not, can I pick your brain? Not, I'd love to catch up. Hey, let's network. Hey, you free next week and assume. It's something like, hey, I noticed you're launching X. I did Y for somebody else and it worked really well. How to help if you find it useful? No strings attached. And actually follow through. Do the work. Deliver the value. And then you'll be amazed at how many doors this can open. Surround yourself with people at the same stage as you.

9:01And then a few people are steps ahead. You need both. Peers keep you sane. Mentors keep you growing. And when I went through some of my toughest years in business, when everything was falling apart personally and professionally, the thing that saved me was my network and the people that I surrounded myself with. I put myself out there. I got vulnerable with people that I trusted. I learned from people who have built bigger businesses than me. You can't do that. If you've spent years burning bridges with can I pick your brain messages. Here's my challenge to you guys. This week, find one person you admire.

9:31Don't DM them, can I pick your brain? Instead, serve first and ask later. Expect nothing and watch what happens. That's how I've been able to build my network from zero. And that's how you can too. All right, guys, I hope you enjoyed this episode. Please do take the time to leave us a review. We worked so hard to produce this podcast. It's 100 % free. please share it with a couple of friends that would get value from it the more we can grow this podcast the more we can get sponsored on board that supports the show so guys thank you so much and i'll speak to you soon