I like to think of life in chapters.

A series of small but impactful vignettes.

Like your favorite book, you get to turn the page and start a new piece of the story that can have an entirely different purpose than the last.

Right now in my business, I’m steadily marching towards the next chapter that’s fixin’ to be bigger and better than anything I’ve done before.

Hell – who am I kidding…

My entire LIFE is getting ready to slap a big ole’ ornate heading on a fresh new page, and throw back the curtain to reveal a magnificent plot twist in all its glorious regalia.

So as I’m ruminating on “what’s next” – I’ve been taking stock of what I’ve learned, and the assets I’ve invested in.

Most importantly – the relationships I’ve built, and the social capital I’ve cultivated over the past 10 years of my career.

When you shift gears or start something new, it always helps to have a cushion to fall back on. A safety net.

For me – that’s always been the people I have the pleasure of calling friends and colleagues.

The Network.

I know you’ve heard it six ways from sideways…

“Your network is your net worth.”

“Who you know is more important than what you know.”

Networking and building strong relationships with smart, talented, well-connected people is Business 101.

Of course the “how” of building that network is subjective, and something that doesn’t come naturally to everyone.

And there’s plenty of resources out there showing you where to start.

But you know what people rarely talk about?

How to spend the social capital that you gain when building your network.

Personally, I think social capital is a limited resource.

I’m sure lots of people disagree with me…

And I’m not talking about your life partner, or your bestie best BFF who are there to support you no matter what.

I’m talking about professional connections who consider you a mutually-beneficial member of THEIR network…

And value their own hard-earned time, knowledge, resources, and connections JUST as highly as you do.

I like to think of social capital as an emergency supply of food…

Or a cache of seeds…

Or those six, 33oz jars of marinated artichokes from Costco that you just HAD to have because you’d “definitely use them.”

It’s smart to start a collection and keep extras on hand.

And your supply will last a long time if you treat it right…

But it DOES go stale after awhile.

It WILL expire eventually if you don’t continually refresh it.

And once you use it up – it’s gone.

You have to go out and source some fresh supplies if you want to keep your stockpile topped up.

This ‘aint Don Corleone keeping a ledger of who owes who what…

Signed in blood and parmesan-encrusted loyalty.

Relationships are living, breathing things.

You’ve got to nurture them.
Water them.
Keep them fresh and top of mind.

And most importantly…

You’ve got to spend the social capital you build wisely.

It’s something I’ve seen people burn through like wildfire by asking for small-ass favors, or wasting their “chit” on menial things.

If you’ve ever heard the term “askhole”…

A synonym can be found under “he who bothers people asking for things he doesn’t really need”.

Remember – cashing in your social capital means asking someone to spend THEIR valuable time…

Or share their hard-earned knowledge…

And may even put them in an awkward or uncomfortable position.

Because nothing is free.

And no resource is infinite.

And people work hard for what they have.

So treat your social capital like a precious resource.

One that eventually breaks down if you don’t maintain it…

But is more valuable than gold.

Spend it wisely.

When you’re ready, here are 3 ways I can help you.

#1 – Learn how I build (semi) passive income offers.
Grab my new quick-start guide and learn how your income WITHOUT trading “dollars for hours” or taking on additional client work.

#2 – Learn how to convert more cold traffic and lower your traffic costs
Having trouble scaling your offer to cold traffic? You can get get cold or skeptical leads in the right mindset to buy BEFORE you send them to your sales page. My Advertorial 101 Training program teaches you how to use pre-sale pages to convert more cold traffic and lower your traffic costs. Check it out here.

#3 – Rent my brain for your business
If you need help streamlining or scaling your business, then book a call to tap into my 10 years of “in the trenches” experience. We can jump on a live Zoom call and work through your toughest challenges together. Book in a consulting call here.