Building a Less is More Network

Or how I went from 30,000 connections to 1,000 true fans

LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, and the like are all built on a simple premise. The more you create, the more people follow you, the more others start to create, and so on. This perpetual cycle is built on an idea that originated over 40 years ago called Metcalfe’s Law.

Robert Metcalfe, the inventor of Ethernet and founder of computer networking firm 3Com, described the value of connecting computers as “N squared”. This means that the usefulness of a network is approximately based on the number of computers on that network squared. Two computers connected is not interesting whereas one billion computers forms the World Wide Web.

The same holds for connecting people. Two people connected is useful, but connecting more and more people can unleash ideas, innovations, and people power to create outsized outcomes. This is the basis for social media and over twenty years of online social networking starting with SixDegrees.com.

It was an idea I ascribed to with abandon. After the failure of my first tech startup exposed the fact that I had no network, I made it my mission to fix this starting in 2010. Eventually that focus led to where I am today, with a 25,000 subscriber newsletter, 17,000 connections on LinkedIn, and 6,000 followers on Twitter. Goal achieved, at least that is what I thought.