I went to Amazon before writing to you today. There, I discovered that there are 45,770 books available on the topic of networking. I explored the subject of networking because I went to a Sustainability Conference at the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) yesterday – an event I almost didn’t attend. All too often, I think to myself that “NO, I won’t go. I’m too busy.” Or, “I can’t afford to go to an out-of-town meeting.” Yet when I do go, I am bowled over as I was yesterday. Not only was I dazzled by all the exciting and often challenging new information I gained, but also by the realization that much of the knowledge I gained only emerges during talks given by experts with an extraordinary range of data. Yesterday, for instance, I learned that there are regulations preventing wineries in California from reusing water sources for irrigation — even though these same water sources have been purified using the same processes as water for drinking.  Surely, this fact has nothing to do with that miracle about turning water into wine?

Distance from Napa, CA to Bismark, ND

I was shocked to hear from my brilliant friend and colleague, noted Wine Professor Steven Kolpan, (see his blog!), that a profound consequence of global warning “may shift the American center of wine from Mendocino or Napa, California to North Dakota (possibly over 1,500 miles!) in order to maintain the desired balance of acidity in the grapes.” Further, that “Warming temperatures will encourage infestations of pests as is already occurring in Germany. And nobody knows what to do about it.” (Will sustainable farmers be forced to spray or have to rethink the idea of releasing millions of ladybugs to gobble the newly emerging noxious pests?) By the end of this gathering, my little grey cells were electrified with new ideas and my emotions were further stimulated by meeting old friends and making new ones. I mention these things to remind myself that there is simply nothing to compare with maintaining what I once heard was described as a ‘mind alive’. I’m already on the look out for the next food conference. I hope to meet you there wherever it will be.

It is hugely expensive to attend a conference, even a small conference. There is the cost of registration added to the air fare and hotel, as well as a hair do and even perhaps some smart new clothes. Then, there is the odd drink or two and maybe a lunch or dinner off site too. All these big bucks are spent with the vague hope something good will come of it.

Networking is the word that hovers on every lip. It is a good word, a good concept but one that may be interpreted in different ways.

Some people plan meetings for every second of every day. With furrowed brow, smart phones and a plethora of digital devices they race about “conducting business.”

I wish I were so organized. I have attended the IACP — International Association of Culinary Professionals — for 30 odd years, and I’ve never had a plan. I just wandered about talking to whoever happened to be nearby. I did carry a stack of business cards, just in case. I found this absolute lack of any sensible organization has worked wonderfully well.

Instead of making “connections,” I have made many lifelong friends. We’ve helped each other with our individual hopes and dreams and yes, business ventures too.

So my fond hope is that everyone attending the IACP  conference in Austin which begins today, will follow their own path and explore every fork in the road. There will be many delightful surprises along the way. And with a little bit of luck, be richly rewarded in ways you never anticipated.

Courtesy of horizonproject2008.wikispaces.com/Connecting+

Yesterday I was invited to give a talk at the 2009 CIA (Culinary Institute of America) alumni reunion. There are 39,000 alums of this school. Other colleges, associations and businesses have even more thousands of graduates, members or past employees.

At our meeting, there was a chef who had graduated from the second class of students soon after the CIA was founded in 1946. There were young and younger chefs who had gone on to become hospitality industry leaders, culinary entrepreneurs, managers, humanitarians, even one who has recently organized a soup kitchen near his home.

No one, (or no one I met), was hustling or trying to sell anything. Instead, everyone was interested in getting to know others in the field; in reminiscing and sharing the interests and experiences they all have in common. They were all inspired by President Tim Ryan‘s visionary (and audaciously exciting) plans for the future of the institute.

I was thinking about the commitment of time that it takes to attend this and similar meetings. And the commitment of money too. There was a very small fee that surely couldn’t possibly have covered the cost of the many marvelous meals and wines and the cost of travel and lodging.

I was also reflecting on the value of this undertaking which turns out to mean different things for different people. For some it is undoubtedly a passive experience in which friendly words are exchanged that may have little impact or long-term value.

For others, there are friendships to be renewed, and new opportunities to be explored. It is the friendships that are the most important part and the piece of the pie that must be savored slowly.

Networks are not about taking but giving. Not so much about talking, but more about listening. For this reason, it would be good to consider changing the word itself from “networking” to “connecting.”

It is the connections that lead to results. We all prefer personal references: a referral to a dentist, a doctor, a car repair shop or a plumber. A personal recommendation of a book, a movie, a restaurant or party planner carries far more weight than a review from a stranger.

Indeed when it comes to measuring our personal self worth, we could ask ourselves whether it can be counted in terms of possessions or measured in the ever-widening circle of our friends.

Margaret Wheatley said, “Relationships are all there is. Everything in the universe only exists because it is in relationship to everything else. Nothing exists in isolation. We have to stop pretending we are individuals who can go it alone.”