Create meaningful connections in your industry by focusing on making friends, being genuinely interested in others, and being helpful. Lesson Overview: • Understand that networking is about building relationships, not just finding work. • Learn how to make a lasting impression by being social, helpful, and interested in others. • Explore the benefits of in-person networking and the impact of building genuine connections. Lesson Content: 1. Shift Your Networking Mindset: • Concept: The key to effective networking is to approach it with the mindset of making friends and being genuinely interested in others. While your goal might be to find work, your focus should be on building relationships. • Exercise: Reflect on past networking experiences. How can you shift your approach to focus more on building friendships and less on selling yourself? • Reflection: How does changing your mindset to making friends impact the way you approach networking opportunities? 2. The Power of Being Known: • Concept: A mentor once told me, “It’s not about who you know. It’s about who knows you.” The goal is to develop a network of people who think of you when opportunities arise. • Exercise: Consider how you can increase your visibility within your network. What steps can you take to ensure that people remember you and bring you up in conversations? • Reflection: How can being more social and engaged help others remember you when opportunities come up? 3. Being Social, Helpful, and Interested: • Concept: The best way to network is to be as social, helpful, and interested as possible. Engage with others by asking questions, providing thorough answers, and offering encouragement and feedback. • Exercise: Identify one online community or in-person event where you feel comfortable engaging with others. Commit to actively participating by asking questions, sharing your knowledge, and supporting others. • Reflection: How does being genuinely helpful and interested in others change the dynamics of your networking efforts?

What’s up y’all! Mike put out a really great video yesterday on some mindset shifts to make as a game dev if you want to compete in the marketplace with bigger studios. Really important (if that’s what you want) to start looking at yourself as a business rather than simply an artist or a developer. https://youtu.be/eo6caHzfYbM?si=1D8_BfFVNNHlY8RE

Clearly define your ideal customer. This will allow you to create targeted offers and effectively communicate with your audience. Lesson Overview: - Understand the importance of knowing your target market. - Learn how to create a detailed profile of your ideal customer. - Validate and refine this profile through research and real-world feedback. Lesson Content: 1. The Importance of Knowing Your Target Market: - Concept: Without a clear understanding of your target market, your offer is unlikely to succeed. Just as a hunter needs to know their prey, you need to know your ideal customer to effectively attract and serve them. - Reflection: Think about how understanding your ideal customer can help you better tailor your offer and communication strategies. 2. Creating Your Ideal Customer Profile: - Concept: Start by visualizing your ideal customer in a very detailed and abstract way, like creating a character in an RPG. Don’t worry about realism at first—focus on depth. - Exercise: Answer the following questions to build your character: • What do they do? • How old are they? • What are their motivations and fears? • What do they want to accomplish? • What is their daily life like? • What frustrates them the most? • Reflection: How does this character relate to the work you do? How can understanding them help you create an offer that truly resonates? 3. Validating Your Customer Profile: - Concept: Now that you have an abstract profile, it’s time to anchor it in reality. Validate your character by comparing it to real customers or researching customer opinions. - Exercise: - Compare your profile to your favorite past customers. How closely do they match? - Look up 2-3 star reviews of services similar to yours. What do these reviews reveal about your ideal customer’s needs and preferences? - If you’re unsure, conduct research by asking friends, posting polls, or reaching out to professionals in your field for insights. - Reflection: How accurate was your initial profile? What adjustments can you make based on this validation?