Connections

This post is going to be different, though just as important, if not more so than your knowledge of the chemistry of personal care. We all know the saying, it’s not what you know, it’s who you know. While both are critical to any personal and professional endeavor, it’s our connections that bring it all together. Our connection to ourselves, this world, and each other. Knowing the right people in this industry is as crucial as being the right person, at the right time.

How do most people meet their significant others? For most, it’s through friends. A group of friends invite you to a party, they invite other friends, next thing you know, you’re getting to know one of the host’s cute friends from college. The night goes on, you ask her for her number, and if things work out, you’re moving in together 1.5 years later. How do many find their current job? Through a connection at that site, or a friend knows someone there. You do a phone interview with HR, then an onsite interview with the Hiring Manager and some members of the team. If all goes well, with the right word of mouth, you have your next role in a month. How did many come to find their hobbies, passions? Usually through a friend or other half. If your girlfriend loves to dance, chances are she’s going to want to take you to the dance floor. I’ve seen this happen many times in the dance community. If your buddy is into martial arts, he might invite you to his BJJ studio or boxing club. Connections are how we find ourselves with new possibilities for a fulfilling life. People make life worthwhile.

Yes, there is chemistry involved meeting people. Perhaps that will be a post of its own later on. The purpose of this post is to highlight the fact that we all enrich each other’s lives. In a time where people are quarantining, where people feel lost and hopeless, where they’re questioning where is all this going? Those questions can be answered, those problems solved, by connecting with others.

Give it a try. Next time you’re on LinkedIn, comment on someone’s promotion, work anniversary, birthday, accomplishment, and send an invite. Next time you’re in the gym (if yours is still open), strike up a conversation with someone nearby in between sets of heavy squats. You never know where that might lead. He could be your business partner 5 years down the road. She could be your wife 3 years in the future. That’s the thing about connections: we never know how short or enduring they can be. We never know where that bridge will lead. But it’s exhilarating and inspiring to find out.

Hope you’re all well as we head into Fall next month.