by Kurtis Bell, Service Master by bell

Three men were laying brick. The first was asked: “What are you doing?” He answered: “Laying some brick.”The second man was asked: “What are you working for?” He answered: “Five dollars a day.” The third man was asked: “What are you doing?” He answered: “I am helping to build a great cathedral.” Which man are you?

These words were once spoken by Charles M. Schwab (No, not the guy that they named that one investment thing after). Charles was a visionary leader that, much like the third man in the above quote, saw the big picture. This vision allowed Schwab to rise rapidly through the Carnegie Steel Company and eventually become a key figure in the negotiations that led to the sale of the Carnegie Company and the formation of  the U.S. Steel Corporation.

As a networker, you can network just to network because it is what you are supposed to do as a professional. This would be the first brick layer. You could network to make a quick sale. This would be brick layer number two. Or, you could be the third brick layer and network to build a group that you can assist as well as call on for assistance throughout your career.

Pick whichever you would like, but hopefully you’ll join Charles M. Schwab and I and work to build a great cathedral brick by brick.

This article was published in the Venango Area Chamber of Commerce’s September 2018 edition of the VenangoWorks! Newsletter.