Five years ago, I moved to Austin, TX from the east coast knowing all of five people in Austin (including my wife). I had no job lined up, and though I knew I wanted to get “into tech,” I wasn’t really sure what that actually meant, let alone how I would do it and what I could do.

I wasn’t worried, though, because I love coffee.

Austin is a tech and startup town, which by natural association makes it a coffee town. Tech people and startup people love coffee. More specifically, they love the ritual of coffee, which is, of course, best experienced in a coffee shop.

Austin is also a friendly town, a place where even the VIPs are generally open to meeting a stranger to chat, assuming the stranger has a decent enough reason. I wanted to learn how entrepreneurs had started businesses, especially in the tech space, and what they looked for in potential employees. I did not have any plans to ask for a job, only to educate myself and connect.

I didn’t have a lot to offer in terms of my network or industry insights. All I had were modest savings and a hunger to learn and connect. I was determined to build my network and educate myself in all things related to the tech industry, and my weapons of choice were the email template above and the offer of a free cup of coffee. The goal wasn’t just a cup of coffee that day, it was the opportunity to start a conversation and to meet with my guests from time to time in the future.

For a month, I sent five emails per day at a minimum, and more often than not, the people on the other end of those emails responded positively to my offer. When we were to meet, I always arrived a few minutes early so I could provide my credit card to the barista and make it clear that, when my guests arrive, the coffee was on me.

Buying the coffee is a sign of respect, both to your guest and for yourself. It is a signal that you have your life in order, at least to the point that you can spend $5–10 on your guest and yourself. And most importantly, it is proof that you are taking the chat seriously, that you value your guest’s time.

It doesn’t matter that your guest’s income may far exceed your own (again, my income when I started this process was a fat zero). You are asking for someone’s most valuable resource: their time. Make it clear you appreciate this.

It is also important to show yourself to be well-informed, both in your introductory outreach and in your meeting. In his Lucky7.io blog, “Steve Jobs on asking for help, and the DNA of 1776 and Israel,” Brett Hurt describes the strategy of his friend, Auren Hoffman. Hoffman was “fearless to reach out to anyone — but he did it in a particular way. Instead of approach them with the typical, ‘I’m a young guy and would like to learn from you,’ he would approach them with a very informed perspective and opinion about their business, something they said, an organization they are involved with, etc. This required more research, but it was very effective. It worked because of Auren’s passion and genuine desire to connect and not waste the other person’s time.”

I wrote this piece because people have asked how I made inroads into the Austin startup and tech communities, as well as those communities in a few other cities. What is the secret sauce to getting time to learn from top entrepreneurs and investors?

My advice is simple.

Always buy the coffee.