When we go through life, every positive situation that happens with individuals or groups of people (AKA Businesses) helps build bridges that connect us together. Social Networkers (among other types of people) know that this connection is extremely powerful and sometimes even leads us to places or people we would never imagine.  We hear about people that burn bridges (sometimes on a weekly or daily basis) and these people are eventually left alone (in every aspect of the word). This brings a question to my mind, What does it take to keep our bridges strong?

Some relationships, business and professional, can be very poisonous to our life and they can actually harm us more than they can help us. In these cases, I completely agree with nuking the bridges and burning all connections to the poisonous people. The majority of the time however, I have noticed that it really pays to invest in people and see how we can help benefit them to help create a solid connection. Maybe that’s the answer for keeping the bridge strong (helping others, without bad intent).

I’ve been working with the company Computer Hardware for the past year as a contract employee. Whenever they needed assistance on random projects, I would help them out and bill them at a rate of $15 an hour. For them, this was a blessing, having extra help when needed but not requiring me to be on the payroll and to be looked at as an employee. Also, I ONLY billed them for the time I actually worked. Probably one of the most efficient business relationships that a business owner can build.

I’ve recently been asked to help Computer Hardware in a way that could dramatically impact their future and my wife’s and my short term life. They’ve asked me to assist them as the Head of the education sales for the state of Nebraska. Why is this such a good opportunity? Several Reasons:

• Because of the money they will be paying me - It is not a huge amount in its own right but it does include 20% commission (of all profits) from  every sale I make.
• Because of what I’ve learned in the last year - I’ve learned to batch my tasks and get a lot more things done in less time.
• Because I make the rules within the education sales - I decide what I focus on, I decide on the hours I work, I decide on the best solutions for the Educators problems.
• Because of the potential for long term reward - I will get rewarded with a part ownership or a percentage of my final results. (an investment of my time and creativity)

What this equals for me is an opportunity that will pay me well (subsidizing the hours I would’ve been working to pay the bills), while putting very little time in (comparatively, it will be between 10-20 hours a week), and giving me the freedom to focus my remaining daily energies on our other businesses that need to have time spent on them in order to grow. Because I’ve kept this business relationship strong, I’ve been given an opportunity that will put me months ahead of schedule of where my businesses would have been (since I can now invest the extra time needed). [Side note: I also have to the responsibility to avoid abusing or damaging any/all of the connections that will come along with this. I will be meeting with hundreds and possibly thousands of educators during this 1 year time period and these connections could very well benefit my own businesses.]

By helping to benefit others, I in turn will be rewarded. It has paid to keep this bridge strong, just think about that the next time you want to avoid helping someone in your life.

Work Hard, Work Smart, Work for Your Future.
Oh ya…Have an Awesome Day!
~Chais Meyer