How to Find Your Internet Tribe
The 3 Ps Blueprint to begin your journey sharing online, meeting interesting people, and landing crazy exclusive opportunities
My life changed 180º when I began using the Internet the right way.
Leveraged correctly, the Internet can be a game-changer in forming genuine relationships, which can result in potential business partners, customers, or even IRL friends. It’s funny how we call social media “social” media when the majority of us use it as a mindless cycle for consumption. Delete your feed, and I’ll show you how to actually use the Internet in a productive, life-changing way.
My Story
Have you ever felt like you were misunderstood? Or left out? That you’re on this seemingly different life path, while the rest of the world seems to be going swimmingly on the opposite trajectory? That’s how I felt so much of my life, with all these wild, optimistic, ambitious thoughts swirling on the top of my head, without a community to truly connect with.
While I spent the first 18 or so years of my life feeling completely left out from a majority of social settings, I struck gold when I discovered a really niche side of the Internet: the business/tech space of Twitter. No, not the politics or shit-posting, but a nurturing space of positive-sum games and genuinely amazing people all working on actually dope stuff. That’s my jam. So how did I come across it?
It was the summer of 2021 when I randomly stumbled across a high school girl with her own podcast and Twitter account. Being the same age as me, she was interviewing professors, entrepreneurs, and founders and posting what she was learning on the Internet. While I still wasn’t aware of the value of posting online at the time, I was starry-eyed by the cool stuff she was doing.
Fast forward almost 3 years later to May 2024, when I finally racked up the courage to post my thoughts on the Internet and discovered the power of the Twitter DM. I began connecting with the very people that I would see hop on my favorite podcasts, and that just expanded my view of how crazy this all was. Especially that time when I had dinner with someone IRL simply because of a tweet I put out.
My favorite moment in the early stages of putting myself out there online was when Zach Pogrob, the “obsession” guy, put out a Tweet, challenging people to run a half marathon the next day. Immediately, I was in:
When I completed my half marathon and tagged him after, he followed me back on Twitter. I thought to myself: this super famous creator, with over 1.4 million followers on Instagram, followed a college student like me!? That moment changed everything. If I could connect with my heroes or even just meet like-minded people on the Internet, I imagined all the crazy possibilities or opportunities that it could lead to.
Over the next few months, the crazier the stories got. I went on more IRL meetups with strangers I’d just met over a single Twitter DM and began landing bigger and bigger guests on my podcast. It was a serve-perpetuating feedback loop that all started with simply being authentically myself on the Internet. Of course, not all spaces are like this; I just happened to be on the tech/business side of Twitter.
When used correctly, the Internet can change your life. It’s how I got my first job working for a big creator, landed guests such as Danny Miranda and Nat Eliason on my podcast, and how I DMed my way to an exclusive event in Bel Air. It all starts with posting on the Internet. Heck, I don’t even have many followers. But the opportunities you get simply from posting are exponentially beneficial.
So here’s the question: how do you actually do it, and how can I do it myself? Thankfully, it’s simpler than you think.
The 3 Ps Blueprint
Introducing the 3 Ps Blueprint:
Produce
Position
Pay it Forward
Here’s where the true beauty of the Internet comes into play. When you’re trying to form a network offline, you’re geographically bound by where you are. Sure, you might move around to different cities once in a while, but even then, that’s not infinitely scalable to the global level. The Internet, for the first time, has made this infinite scalability possible. You’re not geographically bound anymore.
Just as the Internet disrupted the archaic education system, it has also disrupted the way how we interact with one another. For example, you could have a fanatic obsession over B2B marketing and by sharing that on the Internet, you’re able to connect with anyone all over the world who has that same niche obsession with you. The Internet is, quite literally, a social heaven for the nerds.
1. Start Producing
“If you can simply post content on the internet under your own name on a consistent basis, you’ve separated yourself from 99% of people.” - Danny Miranda
If you’re reading this blog post, you’re consuming. As the one writing this blog post, I’m producing. You want to be on the producing side of the team. That’s not only how you build wealth (you’re producing value to society at large), but also how you shoot your shot on the Internet. Consuming doesn’t add any value to the world; you’re only extracting. When you’re producing, you’re supplying.
Some common objections I hear are:
What will others think of me if I post online?
Everything has already been said - why me?
Isn’t there a risk to sharing my thoughts online?
What if my content affects future opportunities?
I’m not an expert in anything and don’t want to seem self-promotional.
These are completely valid thoughts. But here’s the catch: you each have something unique to offer to the world and when you continue to lurk in the corner, you miss the opportunity for those who could benefit from your perspective. You’re not being a self-entitled guru by sharing on the Internet, you’re providing a service to the world by opening up about your unique life stories and work.
Here’s the truth: I work through these objections all the time. Even some of the biggest creators you see on the Internet are working through them as well. But by showing up on the Internet authentically and with high integrity, you will find your people on the Internet over a long enough time horizon.
2: Choose a Position
Another common objection I get is: what platform do I choose? In my opinion, I recommend choosing a platform that aligns best with what you want to talk about. Most importantly, choose a platform where you have the highest likelihood of finding your people - those with similar values, interests, and obsessions as you do. Here are my brief thoughts on each:
Twitter/X: A more casual, witty side of business and tech
TikTok: Mostly for trends and creating stuff for pop culture
LinkedIn: A corporate, overly professional side of business and tech
Instagram: Similar to TikTok, but a lot of creatives seem to hang out here
YouTube: You can create anything here, as long as you enjoy long-form
Now that you’ve decided on a niche, the next question is: what in the world do I talk about??? To be honest, that’s something that took me a long time to experiment. I first started talking about generic personal development advice with my blog in 2021, but now focusing on creative entrepreneurship. If there’s something that’s helped, create content around things that bring energy to you. Here are some pointers:
What do you find interesting?
What brings energy/aliveness to you?
What things make me lose track of time?
What do the people I look up to talk about?
What feels like play to me but work to others?
3: Begin Paying it Forward
Now that’ve you picked a platform and experimented with different niches, it’s time to begin to press publish. Of course, while you may get reach from just posting stuff out there, chances are that you’re starting with only a few followers. So pretty much, you’re shooting stuff into the void. That’s when the doubts are going to creep in. Don’t worry, I’ve been there, and I’ll show you how to get out of it.
Here are several ways that have worked very well for me:
Start a podcast inviting people you look up to
Send cold DMs to people you find interesting
Begin genuinely engaging with people’s works
The most important thing to be here is to be genuine. Simply being authentically yourself, sharing genuine thoughts online, and not putting on a social mask can get you far. The worst kind of people on the Internet are those who pretend to be genuine but later exploit you for connections or opportunities in a zero-sum fashion. You can take years to build up your reputation but all it takes is 1-2 sleazy actions to f*ck it up.
Conclusion
There you have it: a no-BS guide to meeting like-minded people on the Internet and exactly how I’ve done it. Note that this is not a guide to grow quickly on the Internet - I’m not in a credible position to speak on that, but what I can talk about is how to make friends on the Internet, since that is what I’ve cracked the code on. To be honest, the best way to grow on the Internet is by making friends on the Internet.
If you have any questions or need help getting started, I’m happy to give a helping hand. Also, if you found this of value, consider sharing this with a friend or family member who might also benefit from this. Let’s have more Internet builders :).
Rooting for you,
Jeston