Now in paperback! Social Chemistry will utterly transform the way you think about "networking." Understanding your social network pattern is essential to making the most of personal relationships, work life, and even your global impact. Are you an Expansionist, a Broker, or a Convener? The answer matters more than you think….

Yale professor Marissa King argues that anyone can build more meaningful and productive relationships based on insights from neuroscience, psychology, and network analytics that put "networking" in a completely new light. Conventional wisdom says it's the size of your network that matters, but social science research has proven otherwise. King explains that the quality and structure of our relationships have the greatest impact on our personal and professional lives. As she shows, there are only three basic types of networks, so readers can see the role they are already playing: Expansionist, Broker or Convener. This network decoder enables readers to harness their network style and modify it for better alignment with their life plans and values.

High-quality connections in your social network strongly predict cognitive functioning, emotional resilience, and satisfaction at work. A well-structured network is likely to boost the quality of your ideas, as well as your pay. Beyond the office, social connections have profound effects on health and happiness. The compiled findings from 70 previous studies found that loneliness increases the likelihood of early death by 26 percent-an effect equivalent to obesity or smoking fifteen cigarettes a day.

Rich stories of expansionists like Vernon Jordan, conveners like Anna Wintour, and brokers like Yo Yo Ma and personal experiences from King's own network make this a warm, engaging, revelatory investigation into some of the most consequential decisions we can make about the trajectory of our lives.