In person, the most widely practiced self-branding skill was networking. Networking was ever-present during my time in San Francisco; each week brought a flurry of tech industry events with the primary goal of meeting other industry workers. At these events, "everyone talks about work, not personal stuff," I was told at a Lunch 2.0 event. Networking requires comfort with small talk, the ability to chat with anyone, and the talent to connect people with others whom they might want to meet. The typical networking interaction takes place between two people. The opening gambit is often "Who are you with?" meaning "What company do you work for?" This triggers the "pitch," a summary of one's business in thirty seconds or so, which ends with an action item like "we're looking for funding," or PR, or engineers.

Alice E. Marwick, Status Update, loc. 484