Leadership isn’t just about titles—it’s about relationships. In this episode of Leaders and Legacies, Michael Morgan shares how networking has been the cornerstone of his career. From his early days at Penn State to leadership roles at major corporations, Morgan reveals how strategic connections opened doors, accelerated his growth, and helped him navigate career moves across the country.

He breaks down the myth that networking is purely transactional. Instead, he emphasizes building authentic, long-term relationships by providing value first. Whether through his fraternity, industry groups, or professional organizations, Morgan proves that leadership is about lifting others while you climb.

For those who didn’t have the benefit of a fraternity or military service, he offers practical advice: find like-minded groups, engage genuinely, and nurture connections over time. He also explains why maintaining relationships is harder than making them—and how a systematic follow-up strategy ensures long-term success.

This episode is a masterclass in leadership through networking. If you’re looking to build meaningful professional relationships that drive career success, this conversation is a must-listen.

Want to learn more about Michael Morgan’s work? Check out his website at https://michaelvmorgan.com/.

Connect with Michael Morgan on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelvmorgan/.

Key Points & Time Stamps

• 00:00:51 - Introduction to Michael Morgan – Craig welcomes Michael, highlighting his book The Power of Networking and his corporate experience.
• 00:03:34 - The Role of Fraternity in Career Growth – How joining Kappa Alpha Psi opened doors for Michael at JPMorgan and beyond.
• 00:07:11 - Networking Across Cities and Careers – Moving between jobs and locations with the support of an established network.
• 00:08:41 - Building Leadership Networks Without a Fraternity – The importance of professional groups, industry associations, and local organizations.
• 00:12:29 - Why You Should Build Your Network Before You Need It – Avoiding the common mistake of only networking in times of need.
• 00:14:09 - How Podcasting Creates Networking Opportunities – Craig’s story of how a podcast guest led to a major speaking opportunity.
• 00:16:40 - The Biggest Misconception About Networking – Why relationships should be built on trust, not transactions.
• 00:22:12 - Maintaining Relationships Over Time – Michael’s method for staying connected through

Transcript

00;00;00;00 - 00;00;30;20
Craig Andrews
I was in a coma for six weeks while the doctors told my wife I was going to die. When I woke up, she told me the most fantastic story. My team kept running the business without me. Freelancers reached out to my team and said, we will do whatever it takes. As long as Craig's in the hospital. I consider that the greatest accomplishment of my career.

00;00;30;23 - 00;00;51;10
Craig Andrews
My name is Craig Andrews and this is the Leaders and Legacies podcast where we talk to leaders creating an impact beyond themselves. At the end of today's interview, I'll tell you how you can be the next leader featured on the show.

00;00;51;10 - 00;01;17;19
Craig Andrews
Today I want to welcome Michael Morgan. He is a professional speaker and a network working guru. Knowing and networking guru. But he's written the book The Power of Networking, which won a ton of prizes. I don't know if I can get all these right. The Literary Titan Book Award, the Global Book Award, the International Impact Award, the Pen Craft Book Award, and the Firebird Book Award.

00;01;17;21 - 00;01;21;10
Craig Andrews
Michael has spent over 15 years working in,

00;01;21;10 - 00;01;28;16
Craig Andrews
in companies such as Amazon, Walmart, JPMorgan Chase and Chevron.

00;01;28;16 - 00;01;43;24
Craig Andrews
What's really cool is networking has been a common thread in his career and the power of that and what that's meant, and I in some ways we could say, well, hey, of course it's important by

00;01;43;24 - 00;01;49;04
Craig Andrews
but I think it's worth listening in because I think there's going to be some nuggets of wisdom

00;01;49;04 - 00;01;50;12
Craig Andrews
Michael's going to share with us.

00;01;50;12 - 00;01;52;05
Craig Andrews
Michael, welcome.

00;01;52;08 - 00;01;57;03
Michael Morgan
Thank you. I love your podcast. It's a pleasure to be a guest on here today.

00;01;57;05 - 00;02;00;20
Craig Andrews
I've been looking forward to it. And we got to connect last Friday,

00;02;00;20 - 00;02;05;00
Craig Andrews
in person. That was so neat. I wish I had wish I had a, you know,

00;02;05;00 - 00;02;11;09
Craig Andrews
Lex Friedman Joe Rogan type studio. So we could have done this in person. Maybe. Maybe that day will come.

00;02;11;11 - 00;02;15;17
Michael Morgan
If you ever get your own studio, let me know, and I'd love to come meet you again.

00;02;15;20 - 00;02;17;25
Craig Andrews
Yeah. So,

00;02;17;25 - 00;02;21;08
Craig Andrews
and what I didn't mention was you. You went to Penn State, you,

00;02;21;08 - 00;02;25;02
Craig Andrews
and, you got your undergrad at Penn State, your graduate at,

00;02;25;02 - 00;02;25;25
Craig Andrews
your MBA at,

00;02;25;25 - 00;02;27;14
Craig Andrews
Carnegie Mellon. Rather.

00;02;27;17 - 00;02;32;26
Michael Morgan
Yes, exactly. So that's on the undergrad and MBA, both in Pennsylvania.

00;02;32;26 - 00;02;36;26
Michael Morgan
MBA in Pittsburgh and in undergrad at State College, Pennsylvania.

00;02;36;28 - 00;02;39;20
Craig Andrews
Okay, cool.

00;02;39;20 - 00;02;48;01
Craig Andrews
I know that part of the state doesn't eat scrapple. Maybe one day it will make its way out there. I grew up eating scrapple. Love it dearly.

00;02;48;03 - 00;02;55;02
Michael Morgan
Yeah, scratch was good. It's been a long time since I had to scramble. But you bring it back. Some good memories.

00;02;55;04 - 00;03;10;00
Craig Andrews
You know, the weirdest place I've ever had. Scrapple is Iwakuni, Japan, about, 30 miles from Hiroshima. I had some I now, obviously, they were Americans. Crew up.

00;03;10;00 - 00;03;21;18
Craig Andrews
Well, actually, the person who made it grew up in Nebraska, but her husband was from Delaware, and so she figured out how to make scrapple, and she'd make it in Japan.

00;03;21;20 - 00;03;25;26
Michael Morgan
That's that that's fantastic. That's an experience that you wouldn't expect.

00;03;25;29 - 00;03;26;05
Craig Andrews
And,

00;03;26;05 - 00;03;34;12
Craig Andrews
that it was it was a very pleasant surprise. So, when you were when you were at Penn, you,

00;03;34;12 - 00;03;47;00
Craig Andrews
you joined a fraternity and and seems like a lot of your networking kind of stems back to to joining that fraternity.

00;03;47;02 - 00;03;47;20
Michael Morgan
Yes.

00;03;47;20 - 00;03;53;01
Michael Morgan
Absolutely. Being a part of the fraternity has been an invaluable resource for me.

00;03;53;01 - 00;04;00;05
Michael Morgan
It's funny, when I speak with a lot of people, a lot of people look at Greek organizations, you know, fraternity sororities as,

00;04;00;05 - 00;04;09;24
Michael Morgan
3 or 4 year organization while they're in college. And my, my experience attorney has been a big part of my network for my entire life.

00;04;09;26 - 00;04;16;11
Michael Morgan
So when I was at Penn State, I actually put together an event on campus for all students.

00;04;16;11 - 00;04;24;26
Michael Morgan
At the time, I was a president of organization called Black Male Leadership Symposium, as well as a member of my fraternity, Kappa Alpha Psi.

00;04;24;26 - 00;04;33;10
Michael Morgan
I was treasurer for the fraternity. So I put together an event where I brought in representatives from J.P. Morgan to come speak to the students.

00;04;33;13 - 00;04;38;11
Michael Morgan
And it was an event put together by both organizations that I was a part of. One of the,

00;04;38;11 - 00;04;47;28
Michael Morgan
my fraternity brothers who I'd never met, but he worked at J.P. Morgan, and he heard about the event that I was putting together, and he reached out. He asked me who my contact was.

00;04;47;28 - 00;04;52;23
Michael Morgan
On the capacity side, he thought I was just the president of the Black Male Asian Symposium.

00;04;52;23 - 00;05;13;05
Michael Morgan
I let him know, like, hey, actually, I'm in the fraternity as well. I'm representing both organizations just based off the strength of us being in the same fraternity. He asked me for my resume. He reviewed it. He he tailored my resume for a role within JP Morgan. He told me about an opportunity for a rotation program within the company.

00;05;13;08 - 00;05;37;15
Michael Morgan
He interview prepped me for the the role. So he basically set me up for success to get the role. And I'd never met. I still haven't met him. I've known him for at this point, probably close to 15, 16 years. So he helped set me up for my first role out of Penn State. And when I joined the company, what I realized was there was a Kappa initiative.

00;05;37;18 - 00;05;58;10
Michael Morgan
They hired a certain amount of individuals from Kappa Alpha Psi every year. So I worked in the Delaware office. But there are there were Kappas that worked in New York. There were Kappas. I worked in Ohio and Delaware and Florida, and once a quarter we would have Kappa calls. And I had the support of the entire fraternity that worked.

00;05;58;10 - 00;06;27;19
Michael Morgan
There's probably 100 of us across the country, and we get on calls and we would support each other, which was valuable for me as my first role out of college. A lot of people, when they graduate and they have that first role, it's difficult transition for them. And the fact I had the support structure of these individuals that I had never met, but because we have the bond of being in a fraternity, it really helped catapult my career as soon as I graduated.

00;06;27;21 - 00;06;30;19
Michael Morgan
So it's it's it's been amazing for me,

00;06;30;19 - 00;06;50;00
Michael Morgan
you know, like when you join an organization or fraternity on campus, like, you have your reasons for doing so, you just at least for me, I didn't realize the long lasting impact. And the network that was at my disposal. And and since then, I've. I graduated from Penn State, I moved to Delaware.

00;06;50;02 - 00;07;11;03
Michael Morgan
I moved to to Pittsburgh. I moved to Houston, I moved to Seattle, I moved to Oakland. And now I'm in Austin. And I tell people my journey moving around the country for different job opportunities for, you know, pursuing my graduate degree. And a lot of people are in shock and they're like, are you able to move to so many different places?

00;07;11;10 - 00;07;31;19
Michael Morgan
You don't know people in these different locations? I know anywhere that I go, whether it's domestic across the country or global, I have the support of my fraternity and I every place that I move to, someone that I know, no, someone else. That's a fraternity brother that lives in the same city that can help me navigate and help me with the transition.

00;07;31;21 - 00;07;42;15
Michael Morgan
So, I mean, if eternity is just one aspect of my network, but they were they are such a big aspect that that has been so influential

00;07;42;15 - 00;07;45;26
Michael Morgan
in my ability to to excel in my career.

00;07;45;28 - 00;08;09;19
Craig Andrews
Yeah, I was never in a fraternity. My, my brother was. And I know he still maintains contact with his fraternity brothers, and I think for me, the my fraternity was the Marine Corps. You know, I spent six years in the Marines. And when, you know, when I run into another marine, we have an instant connection and we look out for each other.

00;08;09;22 - 00;08;21;20
Michael Morgan
Exactly. It's it's the same, exactly the same vibe. We we know that we've we've all been through the same process. And, you know, we ought to look out for each other. We want to make sure that we all excel, you know,

00;08;21;20 - 00;08;31;23
Michael Morgan
and Kappa Alpha Psi we strive for and in every field of human endeavor. And when we see someone else in fraternity, we're trying to help them achieve what goals they have.

00;08;31;23 - 00;08;38;04
Michael Morgan
They're trying to help us achieve our goals. And it's just a big brotherhood. And I mean, I just I love being a part of it.

00;08;38;07 - 00;08;41;19
Craig Andrews
Yeah. So here's the challenge. You know,

00;08;41;19 - 00;08;57;19
Craig Andrews
you know, for people that are, you know, mid-career or what have you, you know, you can't go back and join a fraternity if you didn't join a fraternity, you can't go back and join the Marine Corps. If you're too old, you know, and like old people there. And,

00;08;57;19 - 00;09;01;22
Craig Andrews
they're like in the ultimate the ultimate age discrimination is the US military.

00;09;01;25 - 00;09;02;09
Craig Andrews
And,

00;09;02;09 - 00;09;14;28
Craig Andrews
but you know, so you're mid-career. How do you how do you kind of build those type of bonds without the fraternity structure?

00;09;15;00 - 00;09;37;16
Michael Morgan
Yeah, absolutely. So there are always different organizations that you can join where you can build that camaraderie with other individuals that are like minded, like yourself. So as an example, when I moved to Houston, I worked in oil and gas. I worked for Chevron, I joined the Young Professionals and Energy, I joined the American Association of Blacks and Energy.

00;09;37;18 - 00;10;03;20
Michael Morgan
So I joined organizations with other like minded individuals in the energy industry, in the oil and gas industry, where we can support and uplift each other and make sure that we're all successful in our endeavors. When, you know, when I joined right now working in cybersecurity, when I joined the cybersecurity industry, I joined organization called diversity. It's an organization that strives to get more diversity in cybersecurity, and I'm a board member in that organization.

00;10;03;22 - 00;10;22;25
Michael Morgan
And I've built a strong bond with the other board members because we're working collectively together to put together events for the chapter of Austin. So, I mean, you need to find groups and organization that makes sense for you. If you're a business owner. I know there's organizations out there for entrepreneurs we can uplift support one another.

00;10;22;25 - 00;10;26;27
Michael Morgan
I've joined organizations that need doing this new path as an author.

00;10;26;29 - 00;10;52;02
Michael Morgan
I'm not the first person to publish a book, so I've joined other organizations where I can meet other authors and other speakers, and we can help each other, and I can learn from from their pitfalls, and they can give me advice and I can share what I'm working on or what's been successful for me. But make sure you can find relevant organizations that can help you that have, like many individuals, going through the same things as you and you can help one another.

00;10;52;04 - 00;10;58;08
Michael Morgan
It doesn't have to be a fraternity. Like you said, that that window may have passed. They can't join,

00;10;58;08 - 00;11;08;26
Michael Morgan
the military at this point. They can't join a fraternity. But there are there are organizations out there that you can join that are relevant for you, that can really help you build your network and help you excel in your career.

00;11;08;28 - 00;11;39;00
Craig Andrews
Yeah. Now, I, I saw the movie The Founder, which was about Ray Kroc and and McDonald's. And you always have to wonder what the is, how much of how much of it's true. But one of the things that happened was he was he was a part of a country club and he was trying to build up, you know, franchise owners for the country club and he discovered that the country club crowd was not the type of people that make good operators for McDonald's.

00;11;39;03 - 00;12;05;06
Craig Andrews
And so he quit that and he he quit the country club. They join, you know, the Elks or something. You know, some other thing. And that's where he found that. And that's, you know, the thing that again, presuming that the movie is true, that's where he built his network of initial operators of McDonald's franchises that launched one of the biggest brands in the world.

00;12;05;09 - 00;12;25;23
Michael Morgan
Absolutely nuts. That's one of the greatest things about networking. So I tell people I tell people this all the time, you want to build your network before you need it, and you never know where connection may lead to what doors it may open. So in your example, that individual didn't know that building his network at Oakwood would lead to,

00;12;25;23 - 00;12;29;18
Michael Morgan
you know, so much success with building the McDonald's franchise.

00;12;29;20 - 00;12;45;28
Michael Morgan
But that's why you have to put yourself out there, and you have to put yourself in these situations where you can meet other individuals and you can find out about these opportunities and things will naturally occur. What I see, what I see all the time, and this is my experience. And you can share if you see the same thing.

00;12;46;00 - 00;13;04;22
Michael Morgan
I see like someone that, you know, worst case scenario, someone loses their job and now they're scrambling now like, oh, I need a job. Let me start networking. And every individual they need, they meet like, oh, can you help me get a job here? Can you, can you give me a referral. Can you do? And it's like they just met the person.

00;13;04;22 - 00;13;26;28
Michael Morgan
They're already asking for things as opposed to just organically meeting somebody. You know, getting to know them, seeing what value you can add for them and if the right opportunity arises, hey, maybe we should, you know, create a business together. We we have the same ideas, or maybe we can help one another, but it's not a matter of, hey, just give me this, give me this.

00;13;26;28 - 00;13;35;25
Michael Morgan
Like, I just met you and I'm already asking for things for for my business or for to help me get my foot in the door in this corporate, you know, job.

00;13;35;25 - 00;13;49;00
Michael Morgan
So, like I said, you never know what doors, what opportunities may open when you, you build out your network. So I'm always looking for different opportunities to meet new people and build things just naturally kind of fall into place.

00;13;49;03 - 00;14;09;26
Craig Andrews
Well, you know, we were talking in the green room and you asked me how I was doing, and I said, you know, yesterday, yesterday was a fantastic day. And the thing that started it off was I got an email from somebody who had given a copy of my book to a bunch of friends over Christmas, colleagues over Christmas.

00;14;09;29 - 00;14;32;01
Craig Andrews
And one of them ended up being a vestige chair. You know, vestige is like a peer advisory group for business owners. And he said, hey, my vestige chair wants you to speak at one of our events. And the way I met this fellow was actually through podcasting. I'd been on his podcast. He had been on my podcast. We've stayed in touch.

00;14;32;03 - 00;14;48;17
Craig Andrews
I had no idea that he bought copies of my book and gave them away to people. And and this entire opportunity came through networking. And so now I'm going to be speaking to a roomful of,

00;14;48;17 - 00;14;50;19
Craig Andrews
business owners,

00;14;50;19 - 00;15;07;25
Craig Andrews
some of which will need what I sell. You know, they need some marketing services. And I, you know, I think one of the things I think some people miss when they look at podcasting and it's funny, I see a lot of people come through, and you're not this way.

00;15;07;27 - 00;15;28;12
Craig Andrews
I see a lot of people come through and they're like, it's very clear they are only here to get on my podcast to get access to my audience. They have no interest in getting to know me, and I see that that happens periodically and I can always tell because afterwards I generally try to stay in touch with my prior guests.

00;15;28;12 - 00;15;34;16
Craig Andrews
I actually have a process where that prompts me to reach out and reconnect with prior guests.

00;15;34;16 - 00;15;49;15
Craig Andrews
But the vast majority think they're coming on the podcast just to get access to my audience. And what I've found in podcasting is the greatest opportunities I've had from podcasting has been more the networking angle than the, than the audience angle.

00;15;49;15 - 00;15;53;24
Craig Andrews
Regardless of whether I was hosting or guesting there.

00;15;53;28 - 00;15;59;28
Michael Morgan
You know, you bring up a fantastic point, and I've honestly, I've been doing the same. I've been on a lot of podcasts,

00;15;59;28 - 00;16;12;05
Michael Morgan
and I make sure I follow up with the person that I connected with to the host, whether that's on on LinkedIn, whether that's on Instagram, whether that's through phone. I know we've exchanged phone numbers.

00;16;12;05 - 00;16;14;25
Michael Morgan
But I think that's that's critical.

00;16;14;25 - 00;16;20;00
Michael Morgan
And, you know, I, I generally try to build relationships with, with everybody.

00;16;20;00 - 00;16;40;16
Michael Morgan
But but yeah, that's something like I said, a lot of times this is just my experience. I feel like there's a bad misconception when it comes to networking, where people look at it as transactional, like, like, what can I get out of this? And, like when I'm meet people, I'm generally trying to to get to know them, like,

00;16;40;16 - 00;16;42;10
Michael Morgan
I want to know your your hobbies.

00;16;42;10 - 00;16;54;17
Michael Morgan
I want to know your interests, your your family, your goals. You know, people in I know I've been to so many weddings and birthday celebrations like they're they're they become my friends. They become my family.

00;16;54;17 - 00;17;06;03
Michael Morgan
And I feel when you treat people as individuals and, you know, get to know them as people, not just obviously we all have jobs and, you know, work is what we do, but it's not who we are.

00;17;06;05 - 00;17;14;26
Michael Morgan
Actually spend the time to get to know people as individuals and art, to me, those have made the most lasting relationship tips.

00;17;14;29 - 00;17;25;16
Craig Andrews
You know, when you talk about how a lot of people view networking, you know, as transactional and maybe negatively, there's, you know, I think of one, you know, probably the biggest,

00;17;25;16 - 00;17;36;14
Craig Andrews
networking group is B and I, you know, and I've never been to B and I event but I can I can always spot when somebody is inviting me to one.

00;17;36;17 - 00;17;43;20
Craig Andrews
They just have a certain way about them. And it does feel very transactional.

00;17;43;23 - 00;18;00;19
Craig Andrews
And, and I think what happened I mean, my understanding of BNI is you show up and, you know, you have to make referrals and they they hold you accountable to that. And the thing that worries me about that is,

00;18;00;19 - 00;18;06;16
Craig Andrews
and the reason I've never gone as well, what if I go and I just, I meet these people.

00;18;06;16 - 00;18;13;13
Craig Andrews
I don't have anybody. I can refer to them. It's not that I don't want to, but what if I don't have somebody I can refer to?

00;18;13;13 - 00;18;20;07
Craig Andrews
And I just feel like it kind of puts it, puts me in a unhealthy mindset.

00;18;20;09 - 00;18;20;26
Michael Morgan
Yeah.

00;18;20;26 - 00;18;42;04
Michael Morgan
I completely agree. Especially if they have those type of criteria where you're forced to to bring in people, I think I mean, if you're a part of a good organization, you shouldn't necessarily want to expand it out to your network. You shouldn't have to have a criteria where you have to do X amount of referrals over a certain amount of time period.

00;18;42;06 - 00;19;00;11
Michael Morgan
When I have all the organization I've been a part of, when I have a good experience, you know, I'll I'll catch up with people in my network, friends, family, and I'll catch them up like, hey, I'm a part of this organization. I just went to this event. I thought it was beneficial, and they'll ask me about it. They'll say, oh, can you send me details on it?

00;19;00;11 - 00;19;15;23
Michael Morgan
But that sounds like something I may want to join. So I, I like I've, I've shared information with my network, but I don't push things on people. If, if then the conversation naturally goes in a direction and I bring it up just because it's something that,

00;19;15;23 - 00;19;24;03
Michael Morgan
I'm involved in to my wife and they find interest in it, and, you know, I'll gladly connect them and make the introductions.

00;19;24;06 - 00;19;37;04
Michael Morgan
But I feel like if, if you have a good experience, you can organically expanded into your network as opposed to filling. You have a time crunch. If I have to invite X amount of people to the next event,

00;19;37;04 - 00;19;40;05
Michael Morgan
I think it just sets sets different precedence.

00;19;40;08 - 00;20;05;10
Craig Andrews
Yeah. So. Maybe let's wrap up with this. What what are some tips that you've found, you know, for somebody who maybe has tried network and it's just not kind of working out. Well, if you were to give somebody like 3 or 5 things to do when they were networking, what would you have them do?

00;20;05;13 - 00;20;20;22
Michael Morgan
Number one, I would say put yourself out there, talk about this with a lot of people because some people are more extrinsic, some are intrinsic. And I get it. If you're intrinsic, maybe you don't enjoy going to networking events in these different situations.

00;20;20;22 - 00;20;25;05
Michael Morgan
But there's no way for you to build your networks if you don't put yourself out there.

00;20;25;24 - 00;20;47;07
Michael Morgan
Maybe take baby steps. I wouldn't tell someone who's more intrinsic to go go to a networking event or a conference with 10,000 people and walk away with 100 contacts like, hey, maybe go to this small event, try to make one contact and, you know, start out small, build up the confidence, and then, hey, next time try to make two, try to make three.

00;20;47;09 - 00;20;50;23
Michael Morgan
But first and foremost, you have to put yourself out there.

00;20;50;23 - 00;21;08;20
Michael Morgan
Second piece I would say, and this goes back to what I was talking about earlier, where a lot of people are treated as transactional. I always tell people that networking is a two way street, and I always emphasize the give. So when I meet someone new, I'm always asking them, you know, how can I help them?

00;21;08;22 - 00;21;27;27
Michael Morgan
And trying to understand what their interests are, what their goals are, and maybe something simple, maybe I can make a recommendation for a book. Maybe I can send them an article that would be helpful. Maybe I can send them a training or certification that I've taken that I found valuable. Maybe I can give them a referral at a company, or connect them with someone in my network.

00;21;28;00 - 00;21;29;28
Michael Morgan
But I'm always trying to find a way to,

00;21;29;28 - 00;21;48;13
Michael Morgan
to provide value to them. Sometimes there are people in my network. I never ask for anything else, but if there ever comes a point in time where I want to ask them something, is the process of reciprocity. I don't feel as bad asking because I know that I've, provided something to them first.

00;21;48;15 - 00;21;50;22
Michael Morgan
So I'll tell you, that is number two.

00;21;50;22 - 00;22;12;00
Michael Morgan
Number three. You you brought it up. It's very easy to build new contacts. It's difficult to maintain a relationship. So what I see people do all the time is they'll they'll meet someone new, add them on LinkedIn or save their phone number, add them somewhere else and don't follow up with them.

00;22;12;02 - 00;22;31;04
Michael Morgan
And for years past, five years past now I need something. Oh yeah, this person worked here or this person has this connection. Let me reach out. Well, you've you've you've kind of hurt the relationship at that point. You you haven't talked to them in five years. And the first time you reach out five years later, it's because you need something.

00;22;31;07 - 00;22;51;23
Michael Morgan
So what I do is very similar to you. I'm methodical, you know, I will. I keep a spreadsheet of some of some of the top contacts I've made throughout my, my life, and I'll keep notes like who they're married to, who are their kids, what are their hobbies, where their interests. And I'll just follow up every once in a while like, hey, I haven't talked to you in the last six months.

00;22;51;25 - 00;23;12;19
Michael Morgan
I haven't talked to you in the last year. How are things going? I know that you like to travel. Was the last place you went to. I know you like to run races. Was the last race that you did. And that way I'm maintaining that connection. And I mean, it's it's work to maintain relationships, but that way there's not a lull in time where I haven't talked to the person in five years.

00;23;12;19 - 00;23;15;29
Michael Morgan
Ten years. And now I'm trying to reach out when I need something.

00;23;15;29 - 00;23;22;19
Michael Morgan
So you want to make sure that you're maintaining your relationships, be very methodical about reaching out, and it's you have to,

00;23;22;19 - 00;23;33;01
Michael Morgan
you have to understand your relationship with each individual. There's some people in my network I speak to every week. Some people speak to monthly, some people quarterly, some annually.

00;23;33;03 - 00;23;37;10
Michael Morgan
But you have to understand your relationship and like how often you should be reaching out.

00;23;37;10 - 00;23;47;28
Michael Morgan
But maintaining contacts, that's the difficult part. It's very easy to make a new connection and just add someone to social media or add to your phone, but make sure that you're following up,

00;23;47;28 - 00;23;56;10
Michael Morgan
as often as possible. And then the last piece, I would say technology is great and I leverage technology as much as possible.

00;23;56;10 - 00;24;21;07
Michael Morgan
We have, you know, FaceTime, we have zoom, we have all these different ways, slack, ways to communicate. I don't think anything can replace face to face interaction. So I love the fact that, you know, we both live in Austin. I was able to meet with you in person last week. You know, if I'm traveling to different cities, countries, and I know someone in my network lives there, I'll reach out like, hey, I'm in your city for a weekend.

00;24;21;10 - 00;24;28;02
Michael Morgan
Are you free for coffee? Are you free for lunch? You know, I'm trying to find ways to have that face to face interaction. Eat.

00;24;28;02 - 00;24;39;09
Michael Morgan
You know, I've said I work in cybersecurity. I work a fully remote role. I make a point to go to headquarters once a quarter and have that face to face interaction with individuals. I don't have to.

00;24;39;10 - 00;24;50;05
Michael Morgan
It's not a requirement, but I think it's good for us to build relationships and have that face to face interaction. So, you know, whenever possible, I strongly recommend,

00;24;50;05 - 00;24;55;18
Michael Morgan
that face to face interaction, you know, grabbing lunch, grabbing dinner or grabbing coffee or whatever. Have you,

00;24;55;18 - 00;24;56;03
Michael Morgan
I'd say,

00;24;56;03 - 00;24;57;27
Michael Morgan
it makes a huge difference.

00;24;57;29 - 00;25;19;07
Craig Andrews
Yeah, yeah. No. And it's it's funny when, you know, I was telling you about my speaking event, you know, got invited to speak to this group down in Houston, and I'm starting to think, okay, who are the people in Houston I want to connect with while I'm down there? Because, yeah, it's maintaining that relationship. Well, Michael, this has just been absolutely amazing.

00;25;19;10 - 00;25;28;27
Craig Andrews
Your book is The Power of Networking. I think people should go out and buy that. And you speak you you you speak to groups about,

00;25;28;27 - 00;25;32;06
Craig Andrews
this. And what type of groups do you speak to?

00;25;32;09 - 00;25;38;29
Michael Morgan
That's pretty wide range. I've, I've spoken at universities. I've spoken for organizations, for companies conferences.

00;25;38;29 - 00;25;40;27
Michael Morgan
So I'm, I'm pretty flexible.

00;25;40;27 - 00;25;44;10
Michael Morgan
And, you know, people are willing to, to reach out and let me know,

00;25;44;10 - 00;25;52;19
Michael Morgan
I'm here to solve problems. So on an individual case by case basis, I try to understand what groups are looking for and if I'm a right fit,

00;25;52;19 - 00;25;58;17
Michael Morgan
to step in and share my knowledge, intuitive tutelage to help solve that problem for that group.

00;25;58;20 - 00;26;00;24
Michael Morgan
More than willing to speak their.

00;26;00;26 - 00;26;03;25
Craig Andrews
Excellent. And how do people reach you?

00;26;03;27 - 00;26;15;28
Michael Morgan
The easiest way is my website, so I have my own website Michael V Morgan VS and Victor Michael v morgan.com. So you can go on my website and there's a contact me form. We've sent a message. It comes to me directly.

00;26;15;28 - 00;26;17;15
Michael Morgan
You can also connect me on LinkedIn.

00;26;17;15 - 00;26;19;26
Michael Morgan
Michael B Morgan on LinkedIn.

00;26;19;26 - 00;26;23;07
Michael Morgan
But those are probably the two easiest ways to reach out and connect.

00;26;23;09 - 00;26;26;06
Craig Andrews
Excellent. Well, thanks for coming on Layers and Legacies.

00;26;26;08 - 00;26;30;20
Michael Morgan
Oh thank you. Like I said, it's a pleasure to be a guest here.

00;26;30;20 - 00;26;57;14
Craig Andrews
This is Craig Andrews. I want to thank you for listening to the Leaders and Legacies podcast. We're looking for leaders to share how they're making the impact beyond themselves. If that's you, please go to Alize for me.com/guest and sign up there. If you got something out of this interview, we would love you to share this

00;26;57;14 - 00;26;59;09
Craig Andrews
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00;26;59;11 - 00;27;22;23
Craig Andrews
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00;27;22;25 - 00;27;31;00
Craig Andrews
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00;27;31;00 - 00;29;33;05
Craig Andrews
It means a lot to my team. If you want to know more, please go to Alize for me.com. or follow me on LinkedIn. Thanks for listening. We'll see you next time.