This is part of Beyond Networking, a 40-page companion guide to the Community Made podcast by Jayson Gaignard. You can download the full book here.
Invest in People Like You Would in a Business
If there’s a single lesson to be learned from this guide, it’s that you should invest in people like you might invest in a business, because amazing people become increasingly amazing over time.
This is the low-hanging fruit of relationship building, so it’s baffling that no one talks about it.
Think of yourself as a talent scout. The earlier you invest in someone, the more valuable that investment is to them, and the more impact you have in their life. Plus, like any good investor knows, an early investment in a successful company provides the highest returns.
Collect Relationship Intelligence
If you’re going to invest in people, you must do so by adding value. This requires knowing where someone is at and determining what they may need.
You do this by capturing relationship intelligence, which includes anything and everything unique to the people you want to connect with. You might capture dreams, quirks, goals, obstacles, strengths, areas of expertise, and even information on who and what they care about.
Collecting this information makes investment opportunities clear.
The more you know about someone, the easier it is to create highly personalized touchpoints, showing them they are seen, valued, and appreciated.
If you start paying attention, you’ll realize people constantly share relationship intelligence. In fact, people share so much information that it’s impossible to hold all the details in your head.
To combat this, the best relationship-builders create PRMs—CRMs for personal relationships—to store and organize all this information. These systems make investing in relationships easier. It may be worthwhile to start your own.
The 6 Ways to Invest in Relationships
Now that you’re collecting relationship intelligence, it’s time to use that intel for good.
Here are six ways you can invest in your relationships.
Investment #1: Provide Resources
The most obvious way to invest in someone is to provide resources.
Whether you recommend articles, make introductions, or provide capital, your goal should be to help them get where they want to go faster.
Developing a personal balance sheet featuring your strengths, weaknesses, and areas of expertise may reveal unique resources you can provide.
And don’t underestimate the power of being resourceful. A willingness to figure things out can unlock many doors, especially if you’re young and eager to learn.
Investment #2: Be Their Biggest Fan!
The most successful people constantly push to the edge of their comfort zones. This is courageous, but also deeply vulnerable. Helping in those fragile moments can be very impactful.
If you know someone’s goals, consider their potential fears. Then try to find ways to curb their risks, worries, and doubts.
Sometimes investing at the right time is more valuable than investing a huge amount.
Investment #3: Thoughtful Gifting
If you’re capturing relationship intelligence, you may find opportunities to give a thoughtful gift.
Done well, this can be very impactful. But be careful! Poor gift-giving has negative outcomes. As Jayson frequently reminds people, “You’re actually better off giving no gift than a poor one.”
If you want to learn more about gift-giving, listen to Jayson’s full episode on the topic: “Corporate Gift Giving: 3 Reasons You’re Doing It Wrong.”
Investment #4: Gratitude
Writer William Arthur Ward once said, “Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.” Anytime you feel thankful for someone, share your gratitude.
Everyone has a deep desire to feel significant and be reminded that what they do matters. Gratitude provides opportunities to show this.
Expressing gratitude can be especially meaningful for authors. They often spend countless hours building a book but rarely hear from people who have benefited and achieved results. If you’ve been impact by a writer, reach out, tell your story, and express thanks!
Investment #5: Invest Indirectly Through Their Inner Circle
Tony Robbins says, “If you want to influence someone, figure out who already influences them.”
This same idea can be applied to relationship-building: If you want to care for someone, figure out who and what they already care about.
Thoughtful investments in someone’s inner circle can show extreme care.
Investment #6: The Follow-Up
People often get this investment wrong because they don’t take the time to personalize it.
If you meet someone and want to pursue deeper relationship, see if you can provide support with your follow up. The best way is to help with their specific needs, using the above strategies.
When doing this, you’ll want to avoid asking “How can I help you?” because, while well-intentioned, it creates more work for them. Suddenly they have to figure out how you can help.
Even if you’re ever at an absolute loss for how to help, say “if there’s any way I can support you, please let me know.” This offers your help without requiring them to find something.
And no matter what kind of follow-up you send, don’t send the message if its content wouldn’t be worth a phone call. Meaningless messages hurt relationships more than they help them.
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