Steve Blank Podcast cover image

Steve Blank Podcast

How to get meetings with people too busy to see you

Apr 24, 2025
Discover the art of requesting meetings with busy professionals without sounding desperate. Learn how to offer genuine value instead of favors. Explore the cultural nuances of networking in Silicon Valley through engaging personal experiences. Gain insights on enhancing professional interactions by emphasizing mutual benefit, making your request stand out in a crowded inbox.
04:33

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

  • Asking for meetings by offering to teach something valuable transforms the interaction into a mutually beneficial exchange, increasing engagement.
  • The common approach of requesting coffee to 'pick someone's brain' is ineffective and often leads to unresponsive emails from busy individuals.

Deep dives

The Ineffectiveness of Generic Meeting Requests

Requesting a meeting by asking to have coffee and 'pick someone's brain' is often ineffective, especially when dealing with busy individuals. As outlined in the discussion, this common approach fails to provide a compelling reason for why someone should dedicate their limited time. The emphasis is that many entrepreneurs struggle to find a way to connect with others who have busy schedules, which leads to emails that often go unanswered. This realization prompts a need to develop a better strategy to capture the attention of potential meeting partners.

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