Industry Spotlight: Q&A with Community Builder, Ben Keeton
How do you sum up Ben Keeton in one sentence?
Trick question. You can’t!
SVP at RunSwitch PR. Louisville Youth Orchestra Board President. Publisher. Entrepreneur. These are just a few of the many roles he plays. But that is not what defines him.
Ben is one of the most genuinely authentic and compassionate people I know. He has more ideas than I have hairs on my head. He possesses an initiate ability to foster relationships and create connections that solve difficult problems and makes beautiful things happen in this community. He is as interesting, as he is interested in other people’s stories.
We could all take a page out of his book…here are the cliff notes.
JM: Tell me about your background.
BK: I went to Georgia Tech and failed out of mechanical engineering. After I left engineering, I decided that I was going to study international affairs. I love to travel, and I love the international affairs classes, so I made the jump and absolutely fell in love with it.
I graduated from UK with my Masters the December after the tragedies of September 11, so every job offer I had disappeared overnight. So, I came back to Louisville and started trying to figure out what I wanted to do. I knew that I liked people. And I knew that I loved Louisville. How could I bring those things together?
I found an organization called the Health Enterprises Network (HEN). I saw a job posting and reached out to one of the board members I knew. He told me that the organization focused on healthcare and economic development. I didn’t know what either of those things were, but I applied for it. The Executive Director at the time, who is still a dear friend, took a chance on me.
That's really where I fell in love with this idea of connecting the dots - connecting resources together. My job there was to go out and get people engaged in our activities and in the community. Figure out ways to get them out of their offices and working on building a community so that their companies would be more successful and we would attract more companies to Louisville.
It's taken a lot of twists and turns since then, but that's where I cut my teeth. It’s where I learned this kind of work, but also where I learned what I was good at.
JM: You have a unique ability to connect individuals and organizations. Can you share some of the key strategies you use to initiate these connections?
BK: This is just my nature, but be curious. I absolutely love to hear people's stories. I'm genuinely interested in what other people do. What are their struggles? What are they working on? What are they good at? I naturally just ask a lot of questions.
JM: Building connections can feel very transactional. How do maintain that sense of authenticity and sincerity in your networking efforts?
BK: I think there's two things…
I try to show a genuine interest in people and topics. I don't approach things from a transactional mindset. I'm not here trying to get something out of Jenny. I'm here to get to know Jenny a little bit better and to figure out how that can then plug into the rest of the world that I'm working on it.
I never press people to get involved in things that I don't think are a good fit or that aren't of interest to them. I present opportunities to people If they don’t show interest, I drop it. If I can make a connection that does me absolutely no benefit, professionally or financially, I'll still make those connections.
JM: Nurturing relationships is a key aspect of community building. What strategies or practices do you use to maintain and strengthen connections over time?
BK: I'll go back to what I said earlier, just being genuinely interested in people on a human level.
The second is diversifying my interests. If I only did very specific healthcare work, that would get boring really quickly. That's why I'd love to spend time on the Youth Orchestra and in the sailing community. Just finding people who might not normally fall into my orbit, but that may have some sort of interest or connection to other things that I can plug into.
I can't tell you how many times I've run into somebody on a work thing that I've told about the youth orchestra, and all of a sudden now our relationship is solely based on the youth orchestra. Or, I've run into somebody at a sailing event that works in the pharmaceutical sector and so I've found a way to connect with them on a professional level as well. I don't create barriers. I don't work nine to five. My life is my work. My work is my life.
There have been so many people that have crossed my path that I now consider to be dear friends and colleagues. We may have met randomly and now they're an integral part of my life.
JM: Leveraging connections is essential for personal and professional growth. Could you share some insight of how you effectively leveraged your network to achieve your goals or support others or organizations in achieving theirs?
BK: That's the core of what I do.
One of the things that I find most hilarious is nobody knows what I do. It's actually become a running joke. My work is really hard to explain. Not very many people have the luxury and the benefit of working for an organization that embraces the idea of building connections. I get to know other people, I learn what they do, and I figure out how to plug them in. Sometimes that impacts work. Sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes I just plug people in, wherever they can go.
JM: In a digital age where online networking has become increasingly prevalent, do you have any recommendations for effectively blending online and offline networking efforts?
BK: I'm a very analog networker. I need to see you face to face, look you in the eye.
I'm trying to figure out how to do that in a digital world because I do think that is an important component. In the communication space, if you don't tell your story, nobody else will. It's a lot easier and more effective to be able to tell your story to our broader audience in a digital space. For me, the challenge is doing that in a meaningful and impactful way that doesn't seem contrived.
You also can't rely too heavily on it. I did a podcast with a sales guy who was bemoaning the fact that the younger generation thinks that you can have all these tools and that will somehow fill your sales pipeline. It doesn't work like that. You've got to have those tools, but you also have to have the personal connection.
JM: Meaningful connections are not just about networking, but a deeper sense of purpose and shared values. How do you see the interplay between values and networking in your work?
BK: Not every connection that I make is a good one. Sometimes, I'll sit across the table and have a coffee with somebody and they are a perfectly nice human being, but there isn't a deeper connection there. There might not be a space to move beyond that. First of all, that is completely okay. In fact, I would rather know that earlier rather than later.
The world that I live in is one of trust and gut instinct. I need to feel like the person I'm sitting across from, if I'm going to make the effort to connect them into my professional world, is someone I can trust. That’s gut instinct.
I like to be surrounded by other people who are curious, outgoing, and are not going to take advantage of you. They are in the relationship for the better good and not just for a transaction. There's nothing wrong with transactional relationships, it's just not in my DNA.
JM: Can you share any specific tips or best practices for someone who's looking to become more effective at building and nurturing meaningful connections in their professional life?
BK: First and foremost, I think it is incredibly important for people to know who they are and be comfortable in their own skin. You can't begin a meaningful connection with somebody unless you begin to understand who you are.
Secondly, try to connect on a personal level. When I go to an event and meet somebody for the first time, the worst question, in my opinion, is “who do you work for?” Way too often we define people by what they do and who they work for. It drives me crazy because that's not who I am. I try to say something more like, “what do you do for fun?” “Where do you like to eat?” “What are your hobbies?” “Who are your kids?” Something that that people want to talk about.
I always have a couple of questions that help me figure out what my connection is with this person. I try to understand how I might be able to relate to you. I’ll have three or four questions that I can ask that usually will get me to a place where you and I can make a personal connection and not just a business connection.
Also, I hardly ever turn down a meeting recommendation. If I trust you, I will probably take that meeting. It may never go anywhere beyond that, but I almost always take a meeting with somebody just to explore that.
Finally, get out of your bubble. Whatever your networking event is, go to a different one. If you just keep running into the same people all the time, you're not going to be able to expand who you know. Get out of your comfort zone.
We're all human. We all have jobs. We all do things beyond our jobs. There's a way to connect with people.
My wife says I collect people, but the truth is I just genuinely love people and their stories – what they do, how they contribute to the community, and what they're passionate about.
JM: Any parting words of wisdom?
BK: Be curious. Don't let one thing define you. Find a way in the world to pursue your passion and play to your strengths.
