Those that know me personally will often hear me talk about the, "Laws of Attraction" which defined in a nutshell is, You get whatever you are focusing on whether its something you want or don't want you will get more of it. I came across this article written by Bob Burg and wanted to share it with you because it speaks to the "Laws of Attraction" focussing on Success in whatever business you are doing. Shifting your focus from getting to giving is not only a nice way to live life, but a very financially profitable way as well. If you are constantly and consistently providing value to the lives of others you are "giving". When you take your focus off yourself and shift it onto how you can be an asset of Value to other people, you will plant seeds of goodwill that will come back to you many times over. "All things being equal, people will do business with, and refer business to, those people they know, like, and trust." That, plus "The 5 Laws of Stratospheric Success." LAW #1: The Law of Value Worth is determined by how much more you give in value than you take in payment. Price is a dollar figure; value is the relative worth or desirability to the end user. Example: You pay an account $500 to do your returns. It saves you $2000. They provided you $2000 in value while charging you a $500 price. They made a profit and you felt great about the transaction. That's the kind of transaction to have with your customers. LAW #2: The Law of Compensation Where LAW 1 tells us to give more in value than we take in payment, LAW #2 tells us that the more people to who we provide that exceptional value, the more money with which we'll be rewarded. In other words, while the frist law focuses on the value itself, the second one looks at the impact, the # of people whose lives you touch with that value. Both are key! LAW #3: The Law of Influence (my favorite) Your influence is determined by how abundantly you place others. Remember, all things being equal, people will do business with, and refer business to, those people they know, like and trust. Always be thinking, "How can I add value to this person? How can I help this person in their life?" LAW #4: The Law of Authenticity The most valuable gift you have to offer is yourself. All the skills in the world, as important as they are, are all for naught if you don't come at it and live life from your true authentic core. People respond very positively to those who are comfortable in their own skin and realize, understand, and embrace the true value they bring to the market. LAW #5: The Law of Receptivity The key to effective giving is to stay open to receiving. Just as you cant breathe in without breathing out, giving and receiving are simply two sides of the very same time and operate in tandem. This Law is about staying open and in the flow of circulation of life itself; it's understanding that, so as long as your focus has been on giving value, you have earned the right to receive and should embrace doing so. In closing ..... Often the most valuable gifts will come to you at a moments and from places you least expect. There's no magic involved; just the profit from persistence and the increase of influence that occurs naturally as we each touch the lives of people who touch the lives of even more people. While you cant always know where these gifts are coming from, you can know this: the more you focus on providing value to others, the more you create a "benevolent context for success" in both your personal and professional lives.