It’s been said that what we make in annual income is the average of the five people we spend the most time with. Wow! If you spend time with people that make seven figures, you must be doing extremely well financially. Fortunately, or unfortunately, life is not only about money. Life is about being vulnerable, being accountable, encouraging others, and building relationships. Are the people you engage with creative? Do they help you brainstorm new ideas? Do you leave them feeling better than you felt before you saw them? Do they leave you and feel better than before they saw you? Let’s take a break from flooring to see how our network can help our net worth. Even better, let’s see how our network can help our self-worth. Building a great network is very similar to leading a successful business.

Vulnerability builds trust. Over the years, I have seen relationships flourish as we opened up and shared some of the things we are most ashamed of. It releases us if are able to share with a close friend or small group of friends. It takes time. It doesn’t happen overnight. However, if you start to build some bonds, being vulnerable and showing your weaknesses can certainly make your friendships stronger.  

A friend who holds you accountable is a true friend. Accountability is rare. It’s hard to hold yourself accountable and it is even harder to hold your friends accountable. Most people just do not like conflict. My peer group has an agreement that we act in a “carefrontational” way. That is, we have permission to confront each other in a caring way. We try to have the other person’s best interest at heart.  

Have you encouraged someone today? One of the next hardest things to do is to encourage others. We get so wrapped up in our own little world, we sometimes forget to give the encouragement to others that they so desperately need. Encouragement can brighten an otherwise dreary day. Encouragement can do wonders for a person. There is no such thing as a coincidence. I challenge you and myself to encourage at least one person a day and see how that improves your own life as a result.  

New ideas are sparked by your associates. Many of my new ideas and creations come from conversations with close allies. When you have a strong network, ideas tend to lead to ideas. Proverbs says “Iron sharpens iron”. People in your network most likely travel to places familiar and unfamiliar to you and they come back sharing ideas and neat things they saw. This can lead to ideas that will improve your business.   

As always, feel free to email your comments, ideas, and suggestions to me at mketterman@gotyoufloored.com.