Superconnect: Harnessing the Power of Networks and the Strength of Weak Links
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2.7 • 26 Ratings
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
The practical guide to discovering the rules of our superconnected world through the science and sociology of networks.
In Superconnect, Richard Koch and Greg Lockwood show that success is less about who you are than how you connect—a chance meeting with an old colleague leads to a swanky new job; two businessmen collaborate online and cofound a successful start-up; a friend introduces a promising entrepreneur to a millionaire looking to invest. But why do these lucky breaks always happen to other people?
Personal and professional networks shape everything we do, but simply knowing that they exist won’t help you harness your connections for maximum success. With an eye toward business applications, Superconnect outlines the new rules of our densely linked society. At the core of the analysis are three simple network components—strong relationships, weak relationships, and hubs—that interact in surprising, counterintuitive ways. Understanding how these components mesh, and connecting unrelated people, is the way to achieve in today’s hyper-connected world.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Entrepreneur Koch (The 80/20 Principle) and investor Lockwood break down the three types of connection strong links: long-lasting relationships with friends and family; weak links: relationships with acquaintances; and hubs: the junction of several strong and weak links, such as businesses, social circles, schools, nations. The rock stars of social connections and networking are the eponymous "superconnectors" individuals and businesses who are disproportionately connected (and significantly more successful as a result) and their specific talents hold far-reaching implications for market structure, strategy, and industrial policy. Through lively case studies and stories, the authors explore how the Internet has changed links, the new rules and characteristics of a hyperlinked society, and how firms and individuals can benefit from the all-important weak links. Weak links, or casual contacts, are a crucial resource; requiring little work or effort, these relationships "deliver enormous dividends," and this smart and thought-provoking analysis explains how individuals and businesses can harness their power for almost any kind of professional advancement.
