King of Networking

Dorothy Hammond is one of the funniest, friendliest people I know - and I've known her for almost 20 years! We both worked at Pepperdine and since then, she's moved on to be an HR executive on the rise - at NBC Universal, then Live Nation, and now four years at a tiny startup called Netflix.Follow Dorothy on LinkedIn at:https://www.linkedin.com/in/dorothy-hammond-392a083/Commercials in this episode include:The Land of The Giants podcast about Amazon (S1) and Netflix (S2): https://www.vox.com/land-of-the-giants-podcastInvest in stocks for free using Robinhood: http://mcnayr.com/robinhood Special thanks to:Jason Crow, editorChris Billings, original music: http://www.christopherbillings.com/Kailey Howell, podcast art Thanks for listening. Follow along at: KingofNetworking.com

Dan Beldy is an investor and venture capitalist, but began his career in the Air Force, flying F-18s off of aircraft carriers.  Forget the Top Gun sequel, you got all the shirtless beach volleyball you need right here.His gutsy early career moves got him roles with leading venture firms during the Dot-Com boom of the 90s and then onto Disney's Steamboat Ventures.We met while I've been serving on the board of Fooji, and I've enjoyed learning from his deep knowledge of assessing startup companies, founders and markets. Dan's a great advisor, friend, mentor and family man. Can't wait to for to you meet him-Follow Dan at:https://airwing.vc/https://www.linkedin.com/in/danbeldy/Commercials in this episode include:The book Angel by Jason Calacanis, available at: http://mcnayr.com/books Special thanks to:Jason Crow, editorChris Billings, original music: http://www.christopherbillings.com/Kailey Howell, podcast art Thanks for listening. Follow along at: KingofNetworking.com

Jay Worth is an Emmy winner, and not for something small that you haven't seen. He led the visual effects for one of the most visually iconic shows ever: Westworld on HBO. And before that, Person of Interest, Fringe, Alias, Altered Carbon, and many, many more.But if you met him, you'd never know it. He is friendly, humble and hard-working. Always connecting people and invested in his community. He's not the self-indulged Hollywood stereotype. You have to learn about his story from Malibu kid to the hardest workin' guy in VFX.Track Jay on IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0941687/Commercials in this episode include:Ola Hard Seltzer, now available in SoCal Whole Foods: http://mcnayr.com/olaSauconys, my favorite shoes of all time: http://mcnayr.com/runforgood Special thanks to:Jason Crow, editorChris Billings, original music: http://www.christopherbillings.com/Kailey Howell, podcast art Thanks for listening. Follow along at: KingofNetworking.com 

Meet Eden Chen, co-founder of creative agency Fishermen Labs and new technology startup Pragma. He's a serial founder, having started multiple projects, companies, organizations and experiments in the seven-ish years I've known him.I've not met anyone with such a variety of passions, combined with the will to start them up. How does he have the stamina and curiosity to do it all?On top of all that, he's a humble, giving person, with a passion to serve the community around him and give back however he can. In short, I'm in awe of the guy, and I hope you will be too.Find him online at:https://twitter.com/edenchenhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/edechen/Commercials in this episode include:NXTLVL, Eden's own non-profit endeavor, which trains under-resourced youth with social media advertising skills and even hooks them up with their first job: http://mcnayr.com/nxtlvlSneaky Sasquatch, one of my favorite games in the Apple Arcade subscription service: https://www.apple.com/apple-arcade/ Special thanks to:Jason Crow, editorChris Billings, original music: http://www.christopherbillings.com/Kailey Howell, podcast art Thanks for listening. Follow along at: KingofNetworking.com

"Here comes the general... the moment you've been waiting for!" Any Hamilton fan will know the reference, and it holds up here. Alan is the model of a modern major-general. He's a business-minded visionary, a deep well of knowledge, an esteemed family man and a kind, giving person.For those that don't know, we started McBeard together in 2008 and guided it together through a massive growth stage, hiring hundreds of employees, to acquisition by Fullscreen in 2015. We split our duties, but not our relationship, to navigate the choppy waters of post-acquisition life within Fullscreen, then Otter Media and WarnerMedia/AT&T. Alan left Fullscreen/Otter in 2019 - a full year ahead of me - and spent his time away from work exploring his interests and next moves. He's certainly one of the best people to help me navigate my "next step."Alan is now a partner with The Seelig Group.Commercials in this episode include:Buy and sell stocks for free using Robinhood: http://mcnayr.com/robinhood Special thanks to:Jason Crow, editorChris Billings, original music: http://www.christopherbillings.com/Kailey Howell, podcast art Thanks for listening. Follow along at: KingofNetworking.com

Every time I talk to Jeremy Adams, he has a new ridiculous TV show idea. He's been cutting his teeth on Lego's DC superhero movies and last year joined the writer's room of Supernatural, after co-writing the uber-popular "Scoobynatural" episode in 2018.Like most people in LA, he's a screenwriter, but he actually writes things! We had a great conversation about perseverance, what it takes to "make it" and the vulnerability necessary to be a "real" artist, even after you've tasted success.Follow him here before he blows up and becomes a household name: https://twitter.com/spacekickerCommercials in this episode include:New mattress company PretzelAn ask in support of the KoN podcast Special thanks to:Jason Crow, editorChris Billings, original music: http://www.christopherbillings.com/Kailey Howell, podcast art Thanks for listening. Follow along at: KingofNetworking.com

"Our blog kinda blew up last week and we want you to represent us." This was our 2009 cold email to Kate McKean, who had shepherded other "blog-to-book" deals. I'm so grateful she replied, because it led to Random House buying and publishing Historical Tweets, which became the foundation of McBeard and everything after.In many ways, Kate is everything you want in a literary agent: smart, funny and very New York. But she's surprising too: from her Southern roots to her unabashed support of aspiring writers through her advice and guidance on Twitter and through her newsletter. She's no gatekeeper. She's a champion of art (and apparently, bad Twitter jokes).Follow her at: https://twitter.com/kate_mckeanand subscribe to her paid newsletter at: https://katemckean.substack.comCommercials in this episode include:Sauconys, my shoe of choice: http://mcnayr.com/runforgoodMy favorite books, available on Bookshop.org: http://mcnayr.com/books Special thanks to:Jason Crow, editorChris Billings, original music: http://www.christopherbillings.com/Kailey Howell, podcast art Thanks for listening. Follow along at: KingofNetworking.com

A follow-up to our conversation about Billy's career and creative pursuits, where we shared our views on and experience with racial inequality - and what we can do to make change. No commercials in this episode but I do mention these resources:13th - a documentary on Netflix by Ava DuVernayJust Mercy - both the book and movie, and Bryan Stevenson's org Equal Justice Initiative: https://eji.org/Revisionist History episode: The Limits of Power - by Malcolm Gladwell: https://apple.co/2CDSgAG Special thanks to:Jason Crow, editorChris Billings, original music: http://www.christopherbillings.com/Kailey Howell, podcast artThanks for listening. Follow along at: KingofNetworking.com

Billy and I met in 2013, during the pre-planning stages of a branded web series that would eventually be known as Summer Break. His uncanny ability to foresee digital consumption trends is unmatched. He later was a peer at Fullscreen, after it acquired my social media agency McBeard.He's been a music video producer, worked in film, worked closely with Peter Chernin, Jesse Jacobs and Sarah Harden at The Chernin Group, advised all kinds of companies and now helps Chernin's newest venture, TCG, develop up-and-coming media and technology businesses. In addition to all that, he's a great family man and a humble-hearted guy who was very open about his bumps along the way. Can't wait for you to hear more.Commercials in this episode include:Creativity, Inc., by Ed Catmull: http://mcnayr.com/booksSonix, an AI-enabled transcription service: http://mcnayr.com/sonixSpecial thanks to:Jason Crow, editor Chris Billings, original music: http://www.christopherbillings.com/Kailey Howell, podcast artThanks for listening. Follow along at: KingofNetworking.com

Jennifer Miles has been working in television and media for over 20 years, at ABC/Disney, then AT&T and now Disney again. I originally met her when she was at AT&T/DirecTV, helping us build creative social media campaigns in support of Fullscreen's video subscription service. She's a total pro, a generous, creative soul and someone who knows everyone.She's also currently the President of the Southern California chapter of Women in Cable Telecommunications (WICT), empowering female careers, networking and advancement in the media industry. Learn more at: SoCalWICT.org/Commercials in this episode include:Bluey on Disney+: https://disneyplus.com/series/bluey/1xy9TAOQ0M3rHarvest Home, a non-profit supporting homeless pregnant women in Los Angeles: https://www.harvesthomela.org/Special thanks to:David Chang, sound engineerKailey Howell, podcast artChris Billings, original music: http://www.christopherbillings.com/Jason Crow, editorThanks for listening. Follow along at: KingofNetworking.com

Join Alec McNayr -- yes that nerd in the podcast artwork -- as he works out his "very reasonable mid-life crisis" by interviewing people in his network: entrepreneurs, artists, creative thinkers and business titans.