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298: Networking in a New Niche and Becoming Broadway Investors with Dorie Clark and Alisa Cohn

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Have you ever gotten a sudden sense of certainty that you need to pursue something — maybe something totally different than your career or typical areas of interest? 

I had the pleasure of podcasting in-person with today’s guests, Alisa Cohn and Dorie Clark, to learn more about how their interest sparked to co-found a Broadway theater investing company together. Building upon their successful careers in the business arena, we talk about what it’s like to start from scratch in a new industry when it comes to networking, investing, collaborating and experimenting.

More About Dorie: Dorie Clark helps individuals and companies get their best ideas heard in a crowded, noisy world. She is a keynote speaker and teaches executive education for Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and Columbia Business School. Dorie is the author of The Long Game: How to Be a Long-Term Thinker in a Short-Term World (her latest), Reinventing You, Stand Out, and Entrepreneurial You.

More About Alisa: Alisa Cohn has been coaching startup founders to grow into world-class CEOs for nearly 20 years. She is the author of From Start-Up to Grown-Up. A one-time startup CFO, strategy consultant, and current angel investor and advisor, she was named the number one “Global Guru” of startups in 2021 and has worked with startup companies such as Venmo, Etsy, and more. She was also featured on Tim Ferriss’ podcast in episode 539, where she shared publicly for the first time that she coached his team for several years  


🌟3 Key Takeaways:

  • When you’re starting something in a new industry, build your network in that direction by hosting, not just waiting for invites. 

  • Try Alisa’s go-to opener for conferences—so simple it’s easy to skip: “Hi, my name is X, What’s yours?” At networking or professional events, most people are there because they want to make connections. 

  • On failure: There is a difference between asking yourself, “Did you make a good decision?” and, “Did you get a good outcome?” If you are confident in your decisions, the outcome becomes less important.

 

✅Next Action: Host an event in the next few months where you can bring together a variety of people who wouldn’t ordinarily meet each other, ideally in an industry you are passionate about (even if you’re new to the space).

📘Books: 

🔗Resources:

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