The Strength of Weak Ties
Yesterday I wrote how social media is an efficient and effective way to strengthen weak ties and stay on their radar screen. The strength of weak ties concept was first discussed by Mark Granovetter.
I recently looked back at my own career and recalled just how powerful weak ties can be. I have shared this story before but it is worth sharing again. In early 1983, President Reagan signed into law the Surface Transportation Act of 1982. It included a provision that for the first time by statute required that 10% of the federal highway funds be expended with Disadvantaged Business Enterprises. That created new and complicated legal issues for highway contractors. I wrote a guide and spoke on the subject all over the country. One presentation was a panel in Washington, DC. A lawyer from the Federal Highway Administration was on the panel with me. I had never met him before we spoke that day.
About six months later I received a call from the general counsel of one of the country’s largest contractors. They had a $30 million issue with the City of Atlanta. The general counsel told me he heard I was the one to call for help. Later in the conversation I asked how he had heard of me. He said he had called the Federal Highway Administration about the problem and a lawyer there told him that Cordell Parvin was the lawyer who could help them. Fortunately, I was able to help the client solve the problem and that led to a long lawyer-client relationship.
I look back now and almost every major matter or every new client came to me as a result of recommendations from weak ties. Who are your weak ties? What are you doing to stay on their radar screen?
