Kindness | CorporateIntel

It has been a harrowing start to 2025.

The change in Presidential administrations has further divided the nation. My own sense of the shared values that I presumed were unquestionable leaves me confused. I can’t make sense of the logic patterns laying the foundation for our future. The disorientation of those with opposing views seems to be intentional, and sadly, effective.

Closer to home, the wildfires in Southern California came about as close to our home as one could imagine. My wife and I are safe and without major damage to our home after a period of evacuation. We are among the lucky ones.

Everyone we know in the Los Angeles County area knows several people who have lost their homes. The damage we’ve observed can’t be described adequately in words. Whenever a natural disaster occurs, we see people on television attempting to find words to describe it. There’s a reason they mostly just cry. Experiencing the loss is not something words are meant to convey. Words fail us for a reason. Words are inadequate to express the true pain of total loss.

My point in writing here is different. It is meant as an expression of gratitude to all of you who contacted us during the fires. There were calls, texts, emails, social media posts — the kindness was endless. To say I was surprised at the expanse of outreach from around the globe would be another failure of words. Your concern wasn’t just heartening. It was rejuvenating. It was uplifting. It was empowering. It was an inspiration.

The words each of you shared meant the world to us, but more than that, the collective of those words enriched our lives with a sense of hope too easily lost in a time of crisis. We knew we had friends and people who cared about us. We had no idea how many of you there were.

Knowing you are there has proven a more powerful force than you can imagine. I tell you this because as the lucky ones, we are driven to pay it forward. One way to do that is to thank you for your graciousness of spirit. Another is to let you know your words matter more to all the people you offer them than you might think. Of course, actions of support matter in concert with words, but the words you choose to share hold a power all their own. When people know you are there, it gives them the strength to rise up.

Alone very little is possible. Together resilience is possible.

In this time of recovery, please know you are part of the solution when you choose to express kindness. It’s more than words. It’s the fuel of reenergizing those who need a boost. Where there is support, we can rekindle our dreams and muster the strength to find a direction forward. You make this possible in the very evidence of expressing care. Our humanity cannot be taken from us if we maintain the good sense to express it lavishly and without expectation.

Caring and the willingness to express it isn’t just how we get through the wildfires. It’s how we remain on course in our humanity no matter the obstacles thrown at us. Obstacles however great can be overcome when authentic charity overpowers the spoils of dislocation. This I believe is what is meant by community.

Knowing you are there has been a revelation that perhaps should have been more obvious. We can’t thank you enough, and we can only hope you continue that kindness to those who need it much more than we do.

Community is amazing. You are amazing. Together we rise.

_______________

Image: Los Angeles County Recovers

Networking Can Be Learned, Once You Dump All Your Bad Habits
by Ken Goldstein
Fourth in a Series of Ten

Networking is of the most misunderstood and underappreciated activities in which we partake. We are taught to begin networking as early as we can, in high school and college, to build our network of contacts so we know important people downstream who can help us improve all our metrics — financial results, recruitment, sales leads, and career development, just to name a few. Yet even though we know we are supposed to network, do we have a clue what effective networking is? How do we calculate an ROI on time spent, and oh how I despise this word, schmoozing?

Let’s start with the basics — schmoozing is not networking. Idle chit chat at industry cocktail parties is not going to help you achieve a record quarter or land the gig of a lifetime. You can point to examples where it worked, but you can also point to people who win the lottery. In my experience, with the exception of sales people, no one really likes schmoozing — it’s weird, it’s thin, it’s shallow, and it’s uncomfortable. To be clear, the best sales people I know only pretend to schmooze, what they are really doing in these circles is selling, because professional sales people are selling all the time. So for everyone who is not in sales, let’s toss out schmoozing as a way to move forward. If you have that kind of time on your hands, spend it with family and friends, you’ll have a much better and more honest day or evening.

Networking is the single best chance we have to make an impression on someone, an impression that lasts, possibly for the rest of the time you are on the planet. What better way is there for you to make a positive impression, to get someone to remember you and care about you and think about taking your call? Help them. Help them any way you can. Answer their email, return their call, listen to their problem or concern, and if you have something relevant to share, share it. You want to know what we really appreciate in life and business? Any simple act of kindness or respect. Do it, do it often, trade your schmoozing time for helping time. Do it now, it doesn’t matter if you are at the top or bottom of your game, if you are busy or bored. Don’t discriminate, you are building a base of support and trust, you have no clue whatsoever where anyone around you will be in several years time. They may be CEO, they may be down and out, they matter equally; in another year’s time, the tables can turn very quickly.

So once you help someone, it’s like The Godfather, right? They owe you a favor? Fuggedaboutit. You give and offer to give because it’s the right thing to do. You do it selflessly and without expectation. You do it because it feels good and right to you. You do not keep score. If you network correctly, you forget every act you ever did to help someone so you never make the awful mistake of reminding them. Let them remember. They will.

Successful networking is like successful investing, it’s long term results that matter. I can’t tell you how immensely consistent a theme this has been in my own life. My contacts list is something I cherish, I can call any one of the people I consider contacts and they will get back to me promptly. Why, because they think I have something for them? No, because we have a human connection. With that human connection comes access and trust. Do not mistake this for friendship, it might be friendship, but that is rare. It is a covenant of interchange, where connection and productivity are rooted in history.

You want history? Start now. Help someone today, then again tomorrow. You will be shocked at just how powerful your network grows in the years to come, and how satisfied you feel to be part of an endlessly winning circle.