Your Network Is Your Net Worth

April 1, 2013
The most valuable asset you have is not your money but your "interpersonal creative riches," says public speaker, entrepreneur, and blogger Gale. She champions cultivating social capital to create a "safety net," and describes her networking recipe with clear steps and tools. Though readers may initially find her advice daunting, Gale is an effective cheerleader: "I've been in a pot that was outgrown. You can either stay and wither or get a bigger pot." She tells readers how to put her advice into action, by helping others when you don't expect anything in return, navigating privacy issues, relying on a "core circle" for support, and learning to work with "hub players." Sprinkled throughout are stories of reluctant networkers who learned to draw on their own circles for strength. The most inspiring of these anecdotes, however, are Gale's own, and they are sure to convert even the most jaded of readers. With a foreword from Guy Kawasaki, Gale's book is robust, encouraging, and entertainingâperfect for anyone who gets faint at the mention of a cocktail party. Readers will come away prepared to build relationships and lift themselves to higher levels of success. Agent: Stephen Hanselman, Level 5 Media.

June 1, 2013
Effective networking modalities for a hyperconnected world. Energetic international public speaker and entrepreneur Gale displays passionate determination in her promotion of ways in which both established and novice businesspeople can improve their chances for success. Her message of strengthened connectivity from effective networking is delivered with the measurement of one's "social capital" (interactively systemic net worth) and in real-life profiles of entrepreneurs and business professionals who have found great value in what others would consider failures, like a job loss. Gale's advice is grounded in the power she believes can be achieved when a synergistic balance is struck between professional productivity and quality of life. A positive attitude and a willing mindset are key, she writes, to successfully identifying and overcoming the personal barriers that stunt professional growth. Her theme is consistently positive and galvanizing, fused with advice derived from more than 20 years of work experience and episodes of her own long-overdue soul-searching and efficacious networking. Gale offers decluttering techniques to maximize efficiency and activity variations to promote and increase opportunities. The pages of personal profiles are entertaining and relatable, and they contain the most accessible business-friendly lessons. The author also discusses how to network offline using the tried-and-true face-to-face approach. Gale stresses that although utilizing social media outlets and honing creative potential are paramount to career fulfillment, breaking old habits is just as important. While the author's steps toward achieving a networking transformation are hardly revolutionary, they are smart and straightforward and provide a healthy reminder about the relatively simple things professionals can do to stimulate their motivational processes and achieve even greater success in today's competitive marketplace. A useful guidebook for those desiring success through shrewd networking.

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