Debunking the Six Degrees of Separation
Released: May 21, 2007

Is any person really connected to any other person through no more than six intermediary connections?

The six degrees of separation theory is a myth that stems from several “small world experiments” conducted by Stanley Milgram in the 1960s and ‘70s. Though Milgram’s work was revolutionary, it has unfortunately been romanticized and the mythical version of his findings doesn’t serve anyone well. It gives people a false sense of security and an erroneous understanding of the networking process.

Dr. Misner stresses that there are two reasons why he feels it is important to let businesspeople everywhere know about the inaccuracy of this iconic concept upon which a lot of networking pros hang their hats. First, the myth creates complacency by giving some people a false sense of expectation that connections are bound to happen sooner or later, no matter what they do. Secondly, and most importantly, the studies’ findings clearly indicate that some people are better connected than others. There are roughly only 29% of people who are, in fact, separated from the rest of the world by only six degrees!

READ THE FULL ARTICLE to find out how efficient networking can help you become part of the estimated 29% of people who are really separated from the rest of the world by only six degrees: http://www.entrepreneur.com/marketing/marketingideas/networkingcolumnistivanmisner/article177986.html

To read more articles written by Dr. Misner for Entrepreneur.com, please visit: http://www.entrepreneur.com/columnists/ivanmisner/archive52902.html