A few years ago I met this incredibly powerful person. This individual walked in international circles, and was connected within a diverse crowd of media and business leaders.
We became friends and it was evident that my status as a member of the media was important. This was not merely a business relationship, but I had thought, a friendship. A warning had come from another friend that this person was a good-hearted person, but was alarmingly self serving.
I chose to see the good in this person and all the great work that was being done for others by this individual. Undaunted by the warning, I shared all of my resources; ideas, my own opinions, wisdom on various subjects and some innovative approaches to business. It did not occur to me that this person would incorporate those ideas and suddenly bolt when some of our common business interests put us into what would appear to be a competitive space.
Still, I surrendered to the process of crossing the bridge into that union, even in the face of competition. I’m certainly playing my cards a bit closer to the chest, but I made a decision to operate – NOT from a place of fear or lack – but from a place of abundance in every moment. This is a good person who simply fears that someone else will get ahead and be more successful.
When we give up on the greater “man” inside of others, we enter into the dungeon of separateness. It’s that duality that then reflects our own fears and unworthiness. Being cautious is understandable in competition, but divesting your social and business portfolio of those who you fear only creates barriers and a wall of fear. It speaks little to being a conscious business person interested in fostering success and serenity in their worklife.
Networking with like-minded others in the workplace or throughout your career opens many doors, even amidst competitors. What a shame to lose out on the individual brilliance of another human being and what they have to offer because you fear their power. From a purely business perspective, you never know who that person might be to you years from now.
He/she could be the person on the street who gives you a smile in a time of need, the person who sits in the subway asking for a quarter, or the person who is signing your paycheck.
