One trait that ANY person can possess is the ability to relate to and interact with others in a positive and beneficial manner. Mastery of this trait will greatly help in any endeavor that you choose. The counter to that is if you have difficulty relating to others or are more self-focused, your success WILL be greatly hampered.

Think for a moment, have you ever met somebody that you really just liked? Were you apt to want to help that person in their endeavors? I know that personally, if a good friend of mine started a business, I would do what I could to help them launch that business. I would eat at their restaurant, buy their books you would refer others to them if they had good products and services that they offered, but also because you want to help people you care about become successful.

One person that comes to mind for me is a computer programmer I knew at a firm I worked at several years ago. This guy was a brilliant, hard-working, truly gifted person who was a skilled coding professional. Frequently he would work late in the evenings and early mornings pounding on his keyboard working until he not only accomplished his tasks, but exceeded them. Unfortunately for him, he was also one of the most arrogant, self-centered and rudest individuals I’ve ever met. I honestly believe that he started arguements with people just to show how smart he was. So while he really was extremely good at what he did, he didn’t have too many fans.

A friend of mine who worked with me at this very company indicated he was looking for a programmer at his company and was at his wits end where to find somebody that could finish his project. I reminded him about this individual and that he might be available. He looked at me with a stunned look and said “You can’t be serious! I know he’s great at what he does, but I would NEVER work with him again!”

Think about that for a second, this colleague of mine would rather sacrifice his project by NOT hiring this individual that could help him, than hire somebody who was difficult to work with.

So the lesson is clear, if you polish your ability to interact, and you’re willing to work on becoming a better individual, you will enhance and increase your ability to develop your business. This is NOT to say be a “yes” person or a people-pleaser - THOSE ARE NOT BENEFICIAL TRAITS, but think about the people you enjoy being around, either professionally or socially. What kind of people are they? Are they likeable individuals? Or are they greedy, angry and miserable? I’m guessing not the latter.

Well that’s one for the books, by the way - I hope you have a great day

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