Empirically, at least among people I've met, what seems to work best is partnering with another person who does have elite connections. Of course, it's true tha

Empirically, at least among people I've met, what seems to work best is partnering with another person who does have elite connections. Of course, it's true that it might be hard to find such a person. But you only have to find one, rather than already having a whole elite social network.