Keith Ferrazzi Quotes

It’s better to give before you receive.

connecting. It’s a constant process of giving and receiving — of asking for and offering help. By putting people in contact with one another, by giving your time and expertise and sharing them freely, the pie gets bigger for everyone. This karma-tinged vision of how things work may sound naïve to those who have grown cynical of the business world. But while the power of generosity is not yet fully appreciated, or applied, in the halls of corporate America, its value in the world of networks is proven.

During those long stretches on the links, as I carried their bags, I watched how the people who had reached professional heights unknown to my father and mother helped one another. They found one another jobs, they invested time and money in one another’s ideas, and they made sure their kids got help getting into the best schools, got the right internships, and ultimately got the best jobs. Before my eyes, I saw proof that success breeds success and, indeed, the rich do get richer. Their web of friends and associates was the most potent club the people I caddied for had in their bags. Poverty, I realized, wasn’t only a lack of financial resources; it was isolation from the kind of people who could help you make more of yourself. I came to believe that in some very specific ways life, like golf, is a game, and that the people who know the rules, and know them well, play it best and succeed. And the rule in life that has unprecedented power is that the individual who knows the right people, for the right reasons, and utilizes the power of these relationships, can become a member of the “club,” whether he started out as a caddie or not.

That isn’t always enough. I had written a piece for the Wall Street Journal’s weekly column called the Manager’s Journal. The editor liked the piece but kept pushing it back so he could publish other pieces that were timelier. So I began to rewrite the intros to my piece each week to relate to something that was in the news at the time. In short order, the article finally saw the light of day.

We let what we know limit what we can imagine; the result, a failure of imagination.

audacity was often the only thing that separated two equally talented men and their job titles.

A network functions precisely because there’s recognition of mutual need. There’s an implicit understanding that investing time and energy in building personal relationships with the right people will pay dividends. The majority of “one percenters” are in that top stratum because they understand this dynamic — because, in fact, they themselves used the power of their network of contacts and friends to arrive at their present station.

Our careers aren't paths so much as landscapes that are navigated.

just want to reiterate my excitement regarding our meeting. I’ve never heard John talk so flatteringly of a business associate. I understand how busy you must be. I haven’t heard from your administrative assistant, but I’m sure I will. See you soon.

Competitive edge in the industrial era was won by constantly reengineering process and systems. Today it’s won by improving relationships.

And when you do finally connect, don’t sabotage your efforts by expressing how annoyed you are that they didn’t get back to you as quickly as you would have liked. Nor should you apologize for your persistence. Just dive in as if you caught him on the first call. Make it comfortable for everyone.

Scrupulously update your lists so that you’re constantly focused on the people who are most important to you, and so that you are able to filter both outbound and inbound messages. You want to be getting everything your “1”s are putting out into their newstreams, daily; “2”s you may want to check in on only once a week or month; “3”s once a month or quarterly. Build these “tours” into your work schedule.

You can’t do meaningful work that makes a difference unless you’re devoted to learning, growing, and stretching your skills. If you want others to redefine what you do and who you are within organizational boundaries, then you have to be able to redefine yourself. That means going above and beyond what’s called for. It means seeing your résumé as a dynamic, changing document every year. It means using your contacts inside and outside your network to deliver each project you’re assigned with inspired performance. Peters calls this the pursuit of WOW in everything you do.

Success in any field, but especially in business is about working with people, not against them.

He thought of relationships as finite, like a pie that can be cut into only so many pieces. Take a piece away, and there was that much less for him. I knew, however, that relationships are more like muscles — the more you work them, the stronger they become.