Typically, people are so consumed with various aspects of their own lives that they do not pay the necessary attention to truly see what is going on in the lives of others. It’s not that folks do not care – it’s purely a time management issue. If you are going to invest time to really get to know someone, there usually has to be a desired outcome. And even then, most people cut corners to get what they want from a relationship.
The fact of the matter is, you never know which relationship is going to be “The One” to make improvements to your existence, especially in the beginning of a relationship. Quite often, the more appealing relationships are those of a more lofty nature. The belief is that the more status a person has, the more potential exists for a rewarding relationship. The reality is that just because a person has more stature and could do more for you than another, doesn’t mean they will do more.
My grandfather used to always say to me, “Janitors and Kings”. He would never go into detail, just say, “Janitors and Kings.” What he was pointing out to me was that no matter what someone’s status is in the community, you have to treat everyone with the same respect. You have to genuinely invest in all types of people no matter what their position, abilities or how they’re perceived. To be a great Relationship Architect you cannot be proficient in building certain relationships, you have to excel at building all relationships because you never know which ones will enrich your life.
In order to be a true Relationship Architect you must have range. To do so, you cannot write off certain people at the onset of the relationship because of perceived value. Investing in a relationship is the only true way to know if it will be “The One” to make a difference. So there are no cutting corners and no magic wand to select the right relationships. The effort needs to be all around. Janitors and Kings.
