Ep. 237 - Scot Cohen: The Best Networker in the World. PERIOD.

The James Altucher Show

Scot Cohen is the best networker on the planet. I have never seen anything like it. And he used that skill to make tens of millions of dollars, not only for himself but for many others.

I wanted him to explain, in detail, how.

But first:

I’m sorry, Scot. I am really, truly sorry. I am horrified at my behavior. A year of bad behavior.

Imagine: you owe someone a phone call and you say to yourself, “Ok, I’ll call tomorrow”.

And then tomorrow you say, “Well, maybe tomorrow”.

And then you delayed so much you feel awkward about calling. Because you know you have to apologize and you hate confrontation.

Stupid, right?

Let’s make this even worse: the person you have to call back has been incredibly generous to you. In fact, he let you stay in his apartment for three months for free. You’ve worked together for 14 years and he’s one of the most successful investors in NYC. And then you did this for no reason.

I’m an idiot.

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The day I threw out all of my belongings and gave up my apartment I was sitting in a restaurant with my one bag and I called Scot Cohen. I said, “I’m just sitting in this restaurant.”

“Where are you going to live?”

“I have no idea yet.” I coudl’ve just stayed in a hotel. But for various reasons I was feeling a bit down. I just wanted to sit in the restaurant. I had no idea where I would live.

“Come on over,” Scot said. “Stay here.” And so I did. For the next three months I stayed in one of Scot’s several apartments.

I invested in Scot’s hedge fund in 2003. We’ve worked together on and off for 14 years. He’s one of the most successful hedge fund managers I know.

He’s made tens of millions, invested in dozens of companies that went up 1000s of percent, and I am glad that, in my own small way, I was able to help him in several situations. .

When you build your network over years, over decades, and your network is made up of good people, they help you out. They let you move in their apartment. You work on deals together to make money. You meet each others girlfriends who become wives.

And then sometimes you let them down and you have to apologize.

So I did. On the podcast.

This is how stupid and awkward I am: I hadn’t seen Scot in a year. I had stupidly avoided his calls. And so I said, “come on to the podcast and that’s where I will apologize”.

And then, I said, step by step we will break down and figure out

1. HOW YOU BECAME THE BEST NETWORKER I HAVE EVER SEEN

2. HOW YOU USED THAT SKILL TO MAKE TENS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS

Scot came to NYC with nothing. But he had a skill that is worth tens of millions at the highest level. It's networking at a level I've never seen before or since.

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One time, a year earlier, I was sitting in his apartment. Scot rushed in, changed into a suit and rushed out.

It was Sunday night, 8 o’clock at night. He was rushing from tennis with one hedge fund manager to the wedding of one of his investors.

That’s how he made himself so successful. He networks seven days a week.

I just sit around and fall asleep early.

I asked him on the podcast how he did it. How can I do it? How can anyone do it?

We broke down his story:

1. Self awareness

“Do self-work,” he said. “Really try to dial in on who you are and where you want to go, because if you don’t have that right, you’re never going to be able to get off first base.

“This is fundamental. It takes a while. You’ve got to have patience to play this out, so give yourself the time. You’re not going to get a quick fix. Nothing’s going to happen in three months, or a year. It’s going to take years. So get that fundamental work done on yourself first, and then you can start growing.”

2. Keep a diary

Scot told me to write down where you want to go.

“If you don’t write stuff down, how are you going to go anywhere? You’re not going to remember where you came from.”

“I think it’s really important to be able to quantify what you’re doing during the day,” he said. “You’ve got to keep account of how you’re spending your time. That’s the most important thing.”

3. Meet people

I asked Scot, “What else can they do? Should they start holding dinners? Should they start figuring out who’s good, and doubling down on those relationships? Should they start coming up with ideas to connect people? What should they do?”

His advice was simpler than that… just plant seeds.

“Surround yourself with great people. I don’t care if it’s a plumber. I don’t care if he’s a construction worker. I don’t care if it’s a teacher, a police officer, a guy in the gym, somebody that you met at the grocery store. It doesn’t matter, but just make sure they’re kind. Make sure they’re aligned with where you want to go...”

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