Anything but the Weather: How To Create More Meaningful Connections

Connecting to one another is one of the ways we are truly human, according to Susan McPherson, best-selling author of The Lost Art of Connecting and “serial connector.” 

The pandemic opened our eyes to the importance of meaningful connections. After 2 years of isolation during the height of the pandemic, Susan joined a gathering of some of the brightest minds in financial services and fintech to talk about building meaningful relationships at FinTech Festival this past week. 

Her advice is to connect on a human level and build authentic relationships. How do you do this? Susan has three simple steps you can take: 

• Gather: Instead of waiting for the perfect networking opportunity to come to you, think outside the box and create your own opportunity. Susan says to start with your most important relationship - the one you have with yourself. Then, go from there. 
• Ask: Learn what is meaningful to others. Always lead with kindness and compassion — and how you can help others.
• Do: Create more meaningful relationships by going deeper than surface level. Susan mentions the type of conversation people engage in most often is small talk. Stop talking about the weather and instead, hold yourself accountable to truly listen and respond in a way that lets someone know you saw them or heard them. 

Bottom line: Every single person deserves our curiosity, attention, compassion, and care. Every single one of us is worthy. Take the time to check in with colleagues and neighbors. Commit to being a better connector. There is no better time than now. 

Be sure to watch the full replay of Susan’s talk from FinTech Festival LIVE, along with keynotes from MX Interim CEO and President Shane Evans and Simon Taylor, co-founder and Chief Product Officer at 11:FS.