The Power Of Adding Value To Other People
I have come to understand that a very important secret of living a fulfilled life is by the value you create and add to others. There are more to life than just personal gains, individuals success, and material possession, but there is a place of living for others - which is part of what matters. Your influence in the world is not a function of what you have, but a function of the value you have used what you have to add to others. Adding value to others is not just an act that someone does once-in-a-while, but it is a quality that one needs to form as a lifestyle. As a leader for example, you can only create the required influence if you live for others - that is the true humanity.
It is worthy to note that adding value is not limited to giving someone material or tangible things, but it is making the life of someone else to be better which can be by your actions, you words, your contributions, or even your presence. Trust me, there are some people that just staying around them would bring value to you. I remember some years back, a friend was invited for a very top event of some political office holders and top executives in government parastatals, so he asked me to come with him. I did not have the invite but he did. When we got to the entrance, it happened that the only way to gain entrance was by the invite. Well, he simply told them at the entrance that I was with him, so they allowed both of us to pass. You see, just by his presence alone, value was added.
There are also some other ways to provide value. Like mentoring someone in order to make them better. For example, there may be a skill that you possess that you can also teach someone else, so that they can learn and do well for themself. This is part of adding value. No matter where you are, what you have or do not have, your background, the neighbourhood you live in, there is definitely something that you can use to add value to someone. It can even be some words of encouragement for someone going through tough times, a shoulder to lean on, an advice that you can give them, or even an idea. Just to let you know, even a help you provide to someone in need is a value you have added to them.
To be a value-adder, you have to focus more on what you can give, not what you stand to take away. It is by this that you will unlock unimaginable opportunities even for yourself. This is because you will build good friendship and relationship, trust, and create the kind of influence that you may have never achieved if you were only pursuing after your own needs. A lot of the people who have made some really massive impacts in the world are those who sought to add value even when others are looking for their own personal gains. It is the value that actually brings the gains. Even in the world of business for example, you have to add value first, then you will be paid for the value that you have added, and that is where the profit comes from.
I have also realised that when you add value to others, it will not be difficult to receive value yourself. When you help others, then it is also normal for people to proffer help to you when you need it. As a leader for example, when your team members know that you have their interests at heart and that you will add value to them, they will trust you to lead them, and they will not have difficulty following you. You will also build better network of people around you, which can be seen as "connection" in the future. Remember that when you help someone to grow, you are also growing in the process. This because what you make to happen for others (like adding values to them), will also be made to happen to you.
Thanks for reading
