Stop "Networking." Start Being Useful.
How GaryVee's 51/49 principle took me from factory floor to Fortune 500, and how it can work for you.
Networking gets a bad rap. Too often it’s seen as transactional, just a way to get something from someone else. I’ve written before about how networking can open doors to job opportunities, but only if you’re doing it the right way.
Networking events are often performative theatre, with everyone pretending to feign interest in others (“Wow, you’re also on LinkedIn? That’s so interesting. Tell me more!”), when we all know that most networking events are the career equivalent of speed dating as everyone tries to connect with the most powerful people in the room in a desperate hope that the right “date” will offer them the job, opportunities, and income they’ve always dreamed about achieving. Yuck.
But alas, I joined the corporate herd and danced to the same music for years. I quickly came to realize that the issue with traditional networking is that it only works for people established in their careers who already have something meaningful to offer.
As a first-generation college student from a working-class family who had just barely exchanged his steel-toed boots for a pair of dress shoes, I knew that this type of mutual back-scratching networking was not going to work for me.
As a newcomer to the corporate world, I was desperate for advice. I read books, listened to podcasts, and scoured YouTube for anyone who could help me learn to build my career. Enter: bombastic Gary Vaynerchuck with his infamous motivational advice to make the most of the chances you get, “You’re gonna die.”
GaryVee (as he is casually known) clicked for me. As a hard-working underdog who didn’t always fit in, I loved his irreverent, provocative, and helpful guidance for how to pursue a life well lived. I remember the first time I heard him talk about the 51/49 principle and how it freed me from the stodgy networking platitudes that only worked for people who were already in positions of power.
The premise is simple: give 51%, take 49%. That tiny edge toward generosity compounds into real trust over time.
Why Most People Approach Networking Backwards
You need a network, and the old advice still stands:
“Build your network before you need it.”
“Connect with people in your industry.”
“Go where the successful people are or industries are growing.”
But the vast majority of people don’t know what to practically do when they’re trying to build their network. Whether it’s through LinkedIn, an industry meetup, or an official networking event, everyone is a “here I am” person, as opposed to a “there you are” person. Their focus is on them and what people can do for them, not what they can do to add value to others.
Networking has become a room full of people trying to extract value from strangers, and when everyone’s taking, nobody’s getting anything.
I’m not even saying people are doing this with a bad intent, but here’s the reality. If you don’t think you have anything to offer, then you will always default to taking from others (49/51) as opposed to offering value to others (51/49).
I’m a senior leader with a lot of executive experience at Fortune 500 companies, but here are a few unique ways that people with less experience have recently provided value to me:
A graduate student with minimal professional experience shared with me her experience growing up and working in India, helping me to better understand another culture.
A mid-level professional sent me an article about how AI is being leveraged in a unique business context
An entry-level professional sent me an encouraging LinkedIn message sharing that one of my posts really encouraged her
Stop believing that you don’t have any value to add and start discovering what you can offer to others around you (regardless of their role or experience).
Ask a few questions:
Where have I lived or travelled that would be interesting or helpful to people?
What industry or context have I worked in that would be worth sharing?
How can I genuinely encourage or compliment people?
Your “unremarkable” life or career is brilliant and exciting to people who have not had those experiences. You have a lot to offer other people. If you believe that then you will naturally start to offer more to people.
How Being Useful Got Me In at Microsoft
In grad school at University of Washington, I was stretched to the limit. I was working full-time at Starbucks corporate during the day, taking classes at night, and I had a family at home.
I could have put in minimum effort to graduate. But I recognized the program as more than academics: it was a chance to build relationships and practice the 51/49 principle.
Two of my classmates worked in Azure Operations at Microsoft. We weren’t friends, we were just three people who ended up in the same group projects. Throughout the program, I shared frameworks I’d used at Starbucks, went out for happy hours to build relationships, and asked about their work at Microsoft. I also shared my background (warehouses, factories, corporate ops) and how I went from working blue-collar roles to attending college and working in supply chain.
I wasn’t networking. I was just showing up, being useful, and becoming a friend.
Months later, through a referral of one of those classmates, I was able to get an interview at Microsoft. I was starting as a Supply Chain Manager in Azure Operations and those classmates became coworkers. When I graduated I did not leave with the highest GPA, I left with a better job.
That’s the entire game.
The Framework: 5 Ways to Be Useful (That Actually Work)
1. Pick 10-15 People You Actually Respect
Not “people who can help me.” People doing work you find genuinely interesting. They could be classmates, colleagues, people writing stuff on LinkedIn that makes you think, or former coworkers you haven’t talked to in a year.
The only rule: You actually care about what they’re doing.
If you’re faking interest to “network,” they’ll smell it and you’ll both waste your time.
2. Be Useful in Small, Specific Ways
You’re not trying to change their life. You’re trying to make their week 1% better.
Examples:
“Saw your post about XYZ ops challenges. I just dealt with something similar. Here’s what worked: [2 specific things]. Happy to elaborate if useful.”
“You mentioned you’re hiring. I know someone who’d be perfect for this. Want me to connect you?”
“I read your article on agentic AI. Have you seen [this research]? Seems relevant to what you’re working on.”
Notice what you’re NOT doing:
You’re not asking them to coffee.
You’re not asking them to “pick their brain.”
You’re not asking for anything.
You’re just being useful.
Do this once every 4-6 weeks per person.
Not weekly (annoying). Not yearly (forgettable).
3. Make It Specific (Or Don’t Do It at All)
Generic messages get ignored.
“Hey! We should catch up!” = Delete.
“Saw your LinkedIn post about [specific thing]. I just went through [specific similar experience]. Happy to share what worked if you’re interested.” = Response.
Specificity proves you’re paying attention.
4. Help 3-4 Times Before You Ask Once
This is the 51/49 principle in practice.
Month 1: Help them with something.
Month 3: Help them with something else.
Month 5: Make an introduction.
Month 8: “I’m thinking about roles at your company. Got 15 minutes to tell me what it’s like there?”
By Month 8, they want to help you because you’ve already helped them. You’re not extracting value from a stranger. You’re asking someone who already knows you’re generous.
Big difference.
5. Build in Public (So People Come to You)
Here’s the secret that took me way too long to figure out:
The best networking happens when you’re not trying to network.
Post on LinkedIn 2-3x/week. Share what you’re learning. Comment thoughtfully on other people’s posts. Write about problems you’ve solved.
Do this consistently for 6 months and you’ll attract more valuable connections than 10 years of conferences. It works because you’re demonstrating your thinking in public. People who care about the same things will find you and they’ll already know you’re useful before they reach out.
I’ve received more opportunities from LinkedIn posts and this Substack than from any networking event I’ve ever attended.
The Pattern: How This Keeps Working
Microsoft → Amazon:
At Microsoft, I helped a coworker think through supply chain constraints, reviewed his presentation to leadership, and shared a vendor negotiation framework.
Never asked him for anything.
A year later, he left Microsoft for Amazon. Shortly after, he called: “We’re building a new supply chain org. I told my director about you. Apply.”
He didn’t just refer me. He told his new boss I was someone he wanted to work with.
Amazon → Clean Energy Industry:
A former exec from Microsoft joined a renewable energy developer. Years earlier, I’d helped him launch an initiative, shared operational insights, made useful introductions.
Never asked for anything.
Two years after we last worked together, he reached out: “We’re building a supply chain org at a PE-backed renewable energy developer. I want you to lead it.”
Pattern:
Help people. Don’t keep score. Let time pass.
When opportunities arise, they’ll think of you first, not because you “networked,” but because you were useful when you had nothing to gain.
What to Actually Do (Next Steps)
This Week:
Monday:
List 10 people doing interesting work. Colleagues, former classmates, people on LinkedIn whose content makes you think.
Tuesday-Friday:
Be useful to 2 of them. Could be:
Article they’d find valuable
Introduction to someone who can help them
Specific answer to a problem they’re working on
Thoughtful comment on their LinkedIn post
Don’t ask for anything. Just help.
This Month:
Post or comment on LinkedIn 2x/week. What you’re learning, problems you’re solving, observations from your work.
Be useful to 8-10 people. Different people each week.
This Year:
Help 100 people before you ask anyone for anything.
Not joking. Track it. Make it a goal.
100 useful interactions. Big or small. Doesn’t matter.
Be consistently useful to people doing work you respect.
Then watch what happens.
The Uncomfortable Truth
Here’s what nobody wants to hear:
Traditional networking works if you’re already successful, extroverted, and well-connected.
If you’re none of those things? It’s brutal.
I wasn’t successful when I started. I’m an introvert. I had zero connections in corporate America as a first-gen college student from a working-class family. Networking events were torture. Everyone seemed to know everyone, and I didn’t know anyone. I’d stand there with a drink, pretending to belong, collecting contact info from people who forgot me before I left the room.
Being useful first leveled the playing field.
I didn’t need to be charismatic. I didn’t need family connections. I didn’t need to be comfortable with small talk.
I just needed to be helpful to people doing work I respected, which anyone can do.
The Bottom Line
Be helpful, genuinely care about people, go to the happy hour.
Do this for a year and your “network” will be stronger than people who’ve spent a decade working rooms at conferences.
You’re building a network of people who remember you made their life easier when you had nothing to gain.
When opportunities come up, you’re the first person they think of.
Being useful is the best career strategy there is.
Rooting for you,
Justin
If you found this helpful, share it with someone who is in the process of building their career.
And if you want weekly career insights like this—lessons from factory floors to Fortune 500 boardrooms—subscribe to Career Field Guide below.
Regarding the topic, thank you for articulating so well how transactional networking feals; it's a realy critical point for navigating careers.
Justin, this is so helpful. As someone who has left the direct corporate world but is trying to help those in it, I found this super actionable. You earned a sub. Keep writing!