Here’s food for thought from one of the world’s greatest thinkers. In his essay, The World as I See It, Albert Einstein wrote: (on relativity …without deeper reflection one knows from daily life that one exists for other people — first of all for those upon whose smiles and well-being our own happiness is wholly [...]
I love the lyrics of songs of friendship and love, like “You Needed Me,” and “We All Need Somebody To Lean On.” I think they convey in poetry and music the positive interdependence of social beings. One of my favorites, by the Beatles: Do you need anybody, I just need somebody to love, Could it [...]
Relationship cultivation is like growing a rose garden. And I did “promise you a rose garden!” The relationship must be nurtured or else it will whither. Note the fact that it is no accident that the strength of a friendship or family relationship may increase or decrease over time. It is very sad when “the [...]
Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “Your actions speak so loudly, I can’t hear what you say.” Now that millions of people want to communicate on the internet, what kind of actions are going to be “speaking” for us? Probably the most important action is to reply and respond when someone contacts you, e.g., by Facebook message or comments [...]
If you had unlimited wealth, wouldn’t you like to share some? The good news is that you DO have a virtual fortune in gems that are better than money! Pay attention! Here is the secret of successful leadership…pay attention! Rather invest attention. Attention and recognition are better than money. Psychologists believe that attention and recognition [...]
A “community” is basically a social group sharing an environment. During most of human history, people were born into their community – their physical or social environment, (perhaps their caste or class). More recently membership in a community has become a matter of choice. Many people choose an “intentional community” in the physical world or a “virtual [...]
Lasting friendships usually begin with shared interests. One of the quickest and easiest ways to find friends is to participate in groups and activities in which you are sincerely interested. Conversation is easy and comfortable when you interact with others who are interested in the same things. You can act naturally and be your authentic [...]
Umair Haque wrote a provocative post in his Harvard Business Review Blog. I have quoted it below to start a conversation about how close or deep our online relationships really are, and how we can improve on them. Here is what Umair says: I’d like to advance a hypothesis: Despite all the excitement surrounding social media, the [...]
Virtually every mentor and consultant giving advice about social networking will tell you that the goal is relationships, not just contacts. My mission is to learn how to achieve that goal. Collectively, everybody knows more than anybody, so I hope other successful networkers will contribute posts, comments, and video interviews.
