The Golden Networking Hour

Have you ever wondered what the best time is to have a call with someone you do not work with closely, but still want to catch up with?

You do not actually work together, but there might be overlap in the future. You have an open line of communication, but you are not especially close. You enjoy catching up and sharing ideas, but it is not a priority during the work week.

Scheduling a “call” or “meeting” for this kind of thing introduces friction. It makes it feel like work, which is not the point. You end up in a limbo state of wanting to do it, but never quite finding the time.

I have discovered a solution to this, and I call it: The Golden Networking Hour.

I will not bury the lead.

It is the moment when we are primed to have casual, work-adjacent conversations, separate from our day-to-day responsibilities. It is the ideal time to just pick up the phone and make that call.

Friday, between 4:30 and 5:30 pm.

Here is why:

You are still technically at work, but wrapping things up rather than doing anything critical or time-sensitive
Your team has either left, is packing up, or is mentally in weekend mode
You are likely tired, but in a good mood because the weekend is about to start (if it was a productive week)
You are not shipping anything or pushing to production (hopefully)
You are more open to changing context and thinking or talking about something different from what you did all week

That is it. Give it a shot. The rest of this post is just me rambling about meetings, for those who care.

Should you avoid scheduling a meeting?

The rationale above is, admittedly, a projection of who I am.

As a slightly-on-the-spectrum, ADHD-ridden, outgoing introvert who has taught himself to be extroverted at times, social interaction is always draining.

More than that, scheduled calls feel like chains weighing you down. There is nothing wrong with them, but it is not how I want to manage fun or exploratory interactions.

Increasingly, I have started biasing toward ad hoc, pick-up-the-phone calls when catching up with friends or aligning with someone at work. It can result in a bit of ping-pong, but it is worth it.

A huge caveat: There are plenty of situations where this does not apply. Team meetings, interviews, partner calls, and the like still need structure. But if it is optional, this approach is great.

Strengths and Weaknesses

There is a common mantra:

Your greatest strength is your greatest weakness.

The key is being aware of it, recognizing it, evaluating it, leveraging it, and balancing it.

One reason teams I have led tend to be documentation-driven is simply because it fits my nature. I could list other justifications like clarity, remote async work, and scaling, and they are all true. But what is even more true is that organizational culture reflects the personalities of its leaders.

For large meetings, an agenda and or a written doc like the silent meeting manifesto are non-negotiable.

If you do not need an agenda or a document, there is a good chance it can be done ad-hoc. You can have the call without carrying the mental weight of a meeting all day.

Meeting in Person

Related to this, in my opinion, a two-hour coffee or walk-and-talk in person is vastly better than any quick 15-minute call.

DHH summed it up well in this tweet:

When I politely decline scheduling a quick call, it is not because I do not literally have the time. There is always room for 15 minutes here or half an hour there. It is that I cannot afford to spare the attention.

If you are reading this and want to schedule a quick 15-minute call, I would much rather meet in person for an hour instead.