Rich people build networks, poor people watch TV networks

“Rich people build networks,” my first business mentor used to say. You may of heard it differently, such as, “birds of a feather flock together.” He was full of all these sayings, but this one always stuck with me.

This is bankable. One of the biggest factors in growing your prosperity is the networks in which you associate.

Your networks influence you and shape your goals, expectations, and what you believe is possible. When I started Life Beyond Limits many of my friends thought I was nuts. I left a job where I earned great money to a business that (initially) created no income! Maybe they were right. Though today I’m happier, healthier and wealthier. While the large majority of my old friends are still doing what they always did and are no richer for the experience.

You are as rich as the average of your five closest friends

The average income of your five closest friends is a great predictor of your own salary. Try this experiment. List the five friends or associates that you share most of your time and estimate each one’s annual income. The average of those numbers will likely be your annual income. If you want to make more money, then start thinking about surrounding yourself with people who are closer to your goal salary level. While it might not be everyone’s social choice, it may be a financial one.

Back in my struggling artist days, I flocked with other artists, friends who were just as poor as me. When I turned my art commercial and began earning money, my friends turned on me. Not overtly, just the ever frequent negative comment about me selling out or thinking I was better than them – you know the sort of diatribe.

Rich people build high net worth networks

Former golf champion Jane Blalock was in familiar territory – on the golf course – she worked up the nerve to ask well-known venture capitalist Jean Tempel for advice about expanding her business. While the Jane Blalock Co. was doing well, Blalock realised she needed more capital to grow the company, which runs events for both amateur and professional female golfers from its base in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. When Tempel, a social acquaintance, had invited Blalock out for a friendly round of golf, Blalock knew she had been handed a golden opportunity.

On the tee, Tempel asked for help on her golf swing. Blalock gladly obliged, then turned the tables and tapped Tempel for some business pointers. They agreed to have lunch three days later, when Blalock presented her informal business plan. “I told her, ‘Here’s what I want to do, and here are my other opportunities,'” she recalls. Tempel was impressed – so impressed that she agreed to find a group of women investors so Blalock could expand yet still maintain control of her company. Since finalizing the deal in January 2006 (and changing the company’s name to JBC Golf ), Blalock has increased her firm’s annual revenue by $1 million.¹

Who we associate with is who we become

Rich people condition their mindset to become rich. They create rich neural networks as they network. Who we associate with determines what we talk about, how we dress and conduct ourselves. I hear so many people talk about manifesting abundance and how they conduct themselves is appalling. Hence, they don’t manifest much at all. Treat yourself and others like a million dollars and guess what, you’ll likely manifest much, much more.

Each night, most high net worth individuals will likely network with associates and friends, the large proportion of the population will network with TV. The Time Vampire (TV) wins the ratings again as the masses pay the price for “free-to-air TV.” Rich people have rich behaviour, while poor people seek out what’s free. On researching my book, “ROAR! Courage – From Fear to Fearless” I discovered that one’s TV viewing is in direct proportion of one’s income. The more TV we watch, the lower our income.

1.Linda DiProperzio of Pink Magazine, Your Network Equals Your Net Worth, 25CNBC USA Friday 21/12/2007