Hey Reader,

Happy Saturday. Pour whatever you're having - this one's a slow-morning read, not a between-meetings scroll.

This week I went along to Holly Nixon's Creating Connections event. If you don't know Holly, she is quite simply a master networker - not in the slightly icky "collects business cards" sense, but in the genuine, rare sense of knowing an enormous number of brilliant people and spending her energy connecting them to each other rather than just to herself.

I left buzzing about the conversations I'd had, and also, if I'm honest, a bit reflective about my own village and who's actually in it.

It got me thinking a lot about villages.

The Village

We all know the saying - it takes a village to raise a child. Turns out it takes one to grow a business too. You cannot do this alone. I don't care how capable, resourceful or bloody-minded you are (and I say that as someone who is all three) - you need a network. You need support.

But look. It can't just be anyone. It has to be the right people. And often, it's not the people that seem like they should be the most obvious choices. Rather than the people who tell you that they're going to be in your corner (and then quote the four figure price), find the people who show you they're in your corner.

People who celebrate you, properly, not through gritted teeth. People who go out of their way to help you succeed, without being asked twice. People who know the difference between "she needs advice right now" and "she just needs me to shut the fuck up and listen to her rant", and who can tell which one it is without you having to explain. People with the skills you don't have, who make you better at the things you do. People who build you up and surround you with positivity, instead of covertly competing with you.

So how do you actually build one of these villages?

A few things that have worked for me, and have worked in my beautiful community, The Wild Collective:

• Give before you need. The best networkers aren't out there collecting favours - they're out there handing them out. Be the person who makes an introduction, shares an opportunity, or shouts about someone else's win.
• Go small and specific, not big and vague. A huge LinkedIn network isn't a village. A handful of people who actually know your business and pick up the phone is. Pick two or three relationships to genuinely invest in this month rather than "networking" as a general activity.
• Say the quiet part loud. Tell people what kind of support you actually need - "I need someone to challenge my pricing" or "I need someone who's been through a launch that flopped." Vague asks get vague help. Specific asks get real help.
• Show up for the boring bits. Villages aren't built at the glamorous events, they're built by turning up to the follow-up coffee, replying to the voice note, remembering the birthdays, their kids names, the thing they mentioned three weeks ago.
• Audit it occasionally. Once or twice a year, genuinely ask yourself: who in my circle drains me, and who fills me up? You're allowed to let go of the energy vampires.

If you've got someone in your life who's your Holly - the connector, the includer, the one who makes introductions for no reason other than "you two should know each other" - this is your reminder to tell them so.

Go on, message them today. It'll make their week. And I think, honestly, it'll make yours too.

One more thing before I go: the next episode of Don't Quote Us On This drops Wednesday, and Nic and I are getting stuck into social media. But we're possibly not saying quite what you expect. We'll be talking about how to use it (or not use it), how it's absolute shit, and how it can be genuinely helpful, all at once. It's a messy, honest one. You'll want to hear it.

Right, that's me for this Saturday. Go enjoy the rest of your weekend. You've earned it.

Speak next week lovely,

Ro x