Even before the pandemic gripped the world, we had become a nation engulfed in loneliness. People have hundreds of “friends” on Facebook, and countless “connections” on LinkedIn, yet real connection remains rare and elusive. At a time when we are more physically distant than ever before—how can we reverse the growing trends of disconnection to forge meaningful connections in business and in life? In THE LOST ART OF CONNECTING: The Gather, Ask, Do Method for Building Meaningful Business Relationships (McGraw-Hill; March 23, 2021), serial connector and communications expert Susan McPherson argues that we need to foster value-based connections by going back to basics. Technology she says, is a tool, not a means to an end. To forge lasting relationships, we need to learn to be more intentional and authentic, and reconnect with people as human beings—especially right now.

Journalist and founder of Dot Dot Dot, Laurie Segall, interviews Susan McPherson about her book and what it means to connect in the time of COVID.

This interview was originally aired as a part of DAWN, Reboot’s all-night culture and arts festival celebrating the Jewish calendar’s best-kept secret – Shavuot. DAWN offered 36 hours of music, film, comedy, dance, food and teaching across multiple channels. Find out more at www.Rebooting.com. Reboot produced this year’s “choose-your-own” experiential adventure in partnership with the Jewish Emergent Network and LABA’s Into the Night Tikkun Layle Shavuot.