Alternative Places to Network

By Jessica Chen of Entrepreneur.com



It's been said that there's a time and place for networking -- any time and any place.

"Every minute you're around other human beings is a chance to network," writes charisma coach Olivia Fox Cabane in her article titled, "Plane Speaking: In-Flight Networking" (first published in the National Law Journal). "Self-made billionaires are known for their tendency to network everywhere and all the time."

So no matter what the occasion -- whether you're at the yoga studio, your child's soccer game or at a religious event -- networking is possible. Here are three entrepreneurs who learned the prime venues best suited to their networking needs could sometimes be found under the most extraordinary circumstances.

Start as Friends

Co-founders Mike Scher and Dan McCann's random encounter in a hospital is what eventually led them to partner and start Frontline Selling, a sales training and outsourcing company based in New York City.

Scher, 47, and McCann, 36, met on May 24, 1996 -- they were at the hospital while both their wives were giving birth to their first sons. Their mothers-in-law started talking and introduced them. They first joked about who had the bigger child; then they scheduled dinner for the following week.

"It became pretty obvious early on that we shared a lot of the same value systems," Scher says. The two also shared a common passion for sales, and they clicked during their first meeting. Over the years, Scher mentored McCann in sales, and McCann would suggest potential businesses to start. They developed a trust and friendship -- something that's often omitted at formal networking events.