Last weekend, I attended a Buddhist conference at the Florida Nature & Culture Center. It was fantastic to spend four straight days with like-minded individuals, discuss our daily challenges and encourage each other in our shared beliefs. The time prepared us for going back out into the world and living those beliefs and values, as hard as it can be sometimes.
This morning, I’m volunteering at Fertilab Thinkubator, a non-profit for startups in Eugene, Oregon. It is fascinating sitting here watching all these entrepreneurial men and women strategize with each other. They are shooting thoughts and ideas back and forth. Together, they are using their combined experiences, strategizing how to overcome their operational issues and grow their businesses. The energy is electric!
What do these two experiences have in common? These are “Movers and Shakers” with something in common gathering together to dialogue and collaborate. These people know instinctively that they need each other to keep their determination and find the courage to reach out to their next prospect, make those hard decisions and follow through with a plan of action.
People successful in life, work and career don’t succeed alone. It just isn’t possible. We need each other as barometers and to tap into the collective intelligence. I was once at a meeting where the presenter gave the following paraphrased analogy. “We are like dirty potatoes. When thrown into a barrel and tossed around, the potatoes bump up against each other and knock off all the dirt.” When we gather in like-minded groups, we bounce against each other and come out clean and refreshed.
What’s my point, this Wednesday morning? If there is something you want to change or achieve in your life, find and gather with like-minded people, whether you are trying to find a job, change your career, write a resume, learn a new skill, finish that creative project, finish that book, create a website…the list is endless. If there isn’t a group, start one, whether in-person or online. Put yourself in the way of amazing people and you will see amazing results.
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