The Right Frame of Mind (6/25/14)

The facilitators at PSI Seminars have a jargonary full of concepts and words. One of said concepts they try to impart is “Givers Gain”. Simply put those who give unconditionally with altruistic motives will in turn gain from having done so. I try to live by that principle, but with a Machiavellian mind there are times when my motives aren’t remotely altruistic.

However, I believe in the principle because it has actually worked in my life. My 200 or so Twitter followers, 200 or so Facebook friends, and 200 or so LinkedIn connections don’t constitute a real following in the grand scheme of things in the world of social media. I offered to do something for a couple of friends because I had to get it done anyway, and I got an amazing response from them. “That’s cool! I’m going to promote it on my website and social media too. Do you mind if I pass this along to a friend so he can let his followers know about it?”

By coming from a place of giving I gained access to +/- 200,000 of other people’s followers, and that doesn’t take into consideration what might happen if any followers promote the project too. Was the act of giving the only thing that made that happen? No! The reputation I have with my friends, the value of what I was offering them and the potential pay off also played in, but if I didn’t offer to give them something they never would have offered to spread the word for me.