Alex Waters got connected in San Diego by getting sandwiches.

Not metaphorically. He was volunteering at Startup Week when nobody could figure out who was going to feed the volunteers. He raised his hand. Walked down the street. Problem solved.

That's the whole philosophy, and it turns out it works.

Alex is the founder of The Program Labs, a nonprofit that helps organizations build entrepreneurship programs across San Diego. But before that, he spent years becoming one of the most connected people in the city by doing the things nobody else wanted to do. Moving chairs. Checking people in. Showing up every Wednesday to 1 Million Cups for eight months before ever asking for anything.

In this episode: why the most connected people in any ecosystem are almost always the ones who give the most, the difference between transactional networking and actually building community, the yacht theory of social capital, and why consistency is the strategy most people skip.

Connect with Alex: The Program Labs Alex on LinkedIn

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