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O P I N I O N
A t 63, I can think back over my long life and one of the best aspects of that life is the relationships that I have built over the years. I am so lucky that I have so many friends and acquaintances! Your ability to establish and maintain relationships over time is essential to your personal and business success in the A/E business or any business. Keep your relationships alive and well!
Whenever the house is empty and it’s just me and our 140 pound Great Pyrenees, “Gambino” (I didn’t name him!), there are always a plethora of options of people I can call who would be glad to have a talk where we can catch up with each other. The same thing applies to business. If I need some help with a problem, I know experts who can help me. If I need money for a business, I have many bankers who will be there with it. If I need to sell something, I will likely know someone who could be interested. If I need to fix something, I will have someone to call. If I need help doing a manual labor task, I have people who will assist me. If I want to help someone find a job, I will have options of who I can call. I have done OK in life but am by no means the most successful person out there. That said, the reason I have all of these friends and resources is because I have been able to establish and keep
long-term relationships. Reflecting over my life and WHY I am in that position, and how I can help others get there, many thoughts come to mind. Some of those include: 1)You can’t be transactional. I said to my wife just the other day that one of the best aspects of being a college professor is all of the relationships I have with my students – some of which go back to my very first class I taught at The Walton College nearly 17 years ago. What makes these relationships so special is they are not at all transactional. I can listen, be helpful, do favors for people, direct them to resources, help them find jobs or whatever, and I expect or want absolutely nothing in return. You have to be willing to put out for other people with zero expectations of reciprocity if you want to have long-term relationships! 2)You have to initiate. I spoke last week to an old
Mark Zweig
See MARK ZWEIG, page 10
THE ZWEIG LETTER MAY 17, 2021, ISSUE 1392
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