Hanging with A’s
“If you want all A’s you need to study with people who want to get all A’s,” was a quote I heard at a recent speech contest. I have first-hand experience with this quote. During most of my education career I was a mediocre student right through my first years in college. In my sophomore year at Rochester Institute of Technology my high school friend joined me at R.I.T. and became my study partner. He was an A student in junior college with a double major in Electrical and Mechanical Engineering, obtaining Associates Degrees from Ulster County Community College in both majors. As I studied with him my grades went from average to above average, having a 3.6 out of 4.0. Studying with people who want all A’s really works in school. Thus begging the question, “How does this apply to life and business when considering attracting the right prospects and generating more referrals?”
First, I must confess that I find it distasteful to label people as anything other than an A. I want to interact with all A’s. Much of my personal challenge is that I suspect everyone to be an A. It often ends as soon as they share their thoughts. As a younger man I was taught by someone much older and wiser that, “Every person provides value.” From this statement he went on to talk about the relationships that each of us create with family, coworkers, and friends. This lesson has repeated itself many times over the years, that everyone provides value in their own way. As we look at our life and business journey, many come into our lives as A’s and evolve into something different because different is okay. Much of the evolution has to do with our ability to grow and change with time and environment. Change is the common denominator for us all. The key is that we all change and in our own minds we become an A. Each person we meet along the way becomes part of the tapestry of our lives. As they change, so do we.
Life is filled with various examples of this concept. I have been blessed with the good fortune of being surrounded by many A’s. In early life strong faith taught by teachers in public, private, and Hebrew school guided me to a path of A’s as I made life decisions. As I matured, making my own decisions, I was given a plethora of opportunities to choose from and chose wisely at times to interact with A’s. Some decisions might have been better than others along life’s journey. As with all journeys rarely is there a straight line from one place to another. While interacting with less savory collaborators, I was able to correct my path by leaving some of those folks to create a different path than mine. Looking back, the experiences were all good as I was able to learn and apply lessons from those I interacted with along the way.
Business continues to be a fun ride when the desire is to interact with A’s which creates superb learning opportunities. Honesty, strong faith, and integrity seem to be the hallmark of all A’s we enjoy doing business with and socializing. Those people with the highest morals, values, and ethics make up the core of who we stay in contact. As I have gotten older it is easier to discern A’s from the rest of the crowd, finding those to interact with who have common values to ours.
Strong value based principals often surrounded by faith summarize the qualities we find within the people we interact with today in our personal and business life. What I find extremely interesting is that many of those I engage with are already A’s as we seem to find each other. Often I find that we are looking for each other. Please see the quote that starts this article. We have to want A’s to get A’s. We have to want to hang with A’s as we want A results. From our recent move to Arizona I find it pleasing that many A’s have been put in front of us. We have a blossoming social and business life. Our neighbors who we have met have strong yet different faiths. In a short time we have come to be social with them beyond the occasional wave. We have shared similar social interests, enjoyed a meal or two together, and spend time at a number of entertainment venues. Strong faith, high morals, and quality personal principals will allow you to lead a social and business life that will provide you the opportunity to attract the right prospects and generate more referrals.
Gerry Rose runs INTEGRITY Networking Solutions in Marana, AZ. He works with people in business who want to attract the right prospects and generate more referrals. More than 10,000 businesses have been presented the INTEGRITY Networking Solutions system in San Diego, Los Angeles, Riverside, Orange counties, California and now in Arizona.
Gerry’s stimulating presentation Unlimited Prospects, Unlimited Referrals is ideally suited for small business owners, home-based businesses, and independent professionals who want clearer direction and want to attract more prospects, develop dynamic systems, and strengthen their companies’ accountability. Gerry does one on one consulting, conducts a range of keynote speeches from thirty minutes to full-day education workshops. His book series, Unlimited Prospects, Unlimited Referrals, are available on the website, www.integritysd.com.
Gerry has more than 20 years’ experience directing business owners how to grow their businesses. He is a networking dynamo. Those who know him will assure you that he does a great job of bringing people together—which is why he started INTEGRITY.
Involved with networking organizations since 1984, Gerry is a Distinguished Toastmaster, a member of Toastmaster International, and has chaired numerous chambers of commerce and non-profit organizations.
Are you truly committed to attracting the right prospects and generate more referrals? If so then contact INTEGRITY Networking Solutions for availability and information. You can contact Gerry by mail at 5107 W. Wild Burro Spring Drive, Marana, AZ 85658. Direct dial (760) 439-4623; e-mail to gerry@integritysd.com. For more information, go to www.integritysd.com
