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CURRENT ISSUE VOLUME 19 NO. 4 JULY/AUGUST 2008
 Do Unto Others
And other trade secrets from Halifax's crown prince of networking.
By Eleanor Beaton
It wasn't until I arrived back at my desk from an afternoon with Matt Whitman, the crown prince of Halifax's under-40 business scene, that I realized I'd been overlapped. It's a technique Whitman uses to forge connections for his legions of invariably less well-connected acquaintances. When he has consecutive meetings with people who might be useful to one another, he carefully allots "overlap" time - a few minutes for casual banter as one "meetee" dons his coat and the other sheds hers.
"It's a way of connecting people in a setting that's comfortable," says Whitman, 35. "What's the point of meeting new people if you don't pass it on?"
And so it was that on Valentines Day, as I sipped cappuccino at an underground coffee shop that doubles as Whitman's second office, I met a marketing executive who pitched me a couple of intriguing story ideas - the lifeblood of all writers. He, in turn, got my business card and the unspoken assurance of a warm inbox for any future story ideas he cares to send.
This is the magic of Matt Whitman. Before I'd even shaken his hand, I had been inducted into his lively, massive network of associates. No wonder people call him the king of networking - the guy's got serious game. Five years ago, Whitman founded Halifax Junior Chamber International and grew it to the largest junior chamber in the country. He's been recognized by the Halifax Chamber of Commerce for bringing in the most new members over a one-year period (he won a trip to Iceland for his troubles). He's founded numerous networking groups such as HFX Lunch and the Greater Halifax Referral Group, sold hundreds of corporate tables, hooked up dozens of people with new jobs, he's even taught sales and networking in China.
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