How and why to grow your LinkedIn network

Bragging to your friends about the dozens of connections you’ve amassed on LinkedIn? Chuck Hester kicks your butt

With 6,000 LinkedIn connections and counting, Chuck Hester, corporate communications director for iContact, has built a massive network of colleagues, business associates and friends that he can call on for anything from prospective hires to the name of a good seafood restaurant in San Francisco.

But, as he’ll hasten to tell you, this is not just a numbers game. Hester views his network on LinkedIn as a valuable resource and actively works to stay in touch (and even meet in person) a healthy number of his 6,000 connections.

If you’ve doubted the merits of adding new names to your network, or you haven’t seen the logic of joining LinkedIn at all, Hester is here to tell you to that LinkedIn can change your life. For one thing, Hester got his current job through LinkedIn. He searched out the CEO of iContact, got another connection to introduce him, and sounded out the exec on a position with the company. Voila—a new gig.