Networking = Networth

For the longest time I have been an introvert. We could say its because of poor self esteem, or lack of incentive to socialize but all the reasons i can come up with doesn't really mean anything with what I am trying to say. Whatever my reasons were, I have begun to realize that the high school clicks we revered and feared did lay the foundation for us to shape how we get what we want out of life. From the time we wake up to the time we fall asleep everything we do is in an attempt for acceptance, even from ourselves.

I have long said that it's not what you know that dictates your success but who you know. Life is a popularity contest and the more well liked (or feared in some cases) the more you can accomplish. When i was taking marketing classes when i was younger, a professor told me that we are constantly marketing ourselves to others. How we do our hair, what we wear and even how we walk and talk projects an image to everyone around us. Walking down the street, we notice the dirty homeless guy begging for change, he dresses like that not just out of necessity but because that's the image he wants people to see. A businessman walking down the street has chosen what he wears so he can be seen as a man of power. A punk walking down the street dresses to show his nonconformity. Point to all this is get out and mingle.

As I continue in my endeavors to further my investment knowledge, I went to an open house where I met a young man who was selling the home. He spoke of the ways he got started in investing and because of that first meeting, I now have a mentor. Had I not gotten up to go to the open house, I would still be struggling to achieve my goals. I had spent a years trying to market myself from behind closed doors and wondered why nothing panned out for me and the reason was I wasn't out there making myself known and interacting with the ones doing what I wanted to do. We know of Pepsi because of commercials. McDonald's because of commercials. So even though I ran ads and made calls, no one wanted to work with me because they didn't know who I was.

So the point is as I began to network and meet the people doing what I was looking to do, I noticed my self-worth was beginning to blossom. I began to dress better; I began to smile more. I saw value in myself as I reached out and talked with others. No one sees an artist that doesn't display their work. No one hears an ad that isn't played and no one gets married without meeting someone. Think of any dream or goal you have and wonder can it be as simple to achieve as going out and meeting someone.