Bruce Kasanoff* says consistently engaging in the simple act of helping and serving others is the best way of presenting yourself to the world.
The philosophy that underlies everything I do in business is ‘serve, don’t sell’.
This means that you simply try to be of service to other people. You use your talents — what you do best — to serve other people.
If you do this, you don’t have to worry about marketing or sales, you don’t have to worry about how you present yourself to the world.
If you use your best skills to serve other people, people will seek you out. They’ll come to you.
‘Serve, don’t sell’ works for individuals. It works for organisations. Stick to it and make sure you do it every day.
Many professionals move through life trying to sell something: I want a job; I want a better job; I want you to pay me more because, well, I want more.
No one likes to be sold. No one wants to be a funding source for what you want.
No one wants to help in your job search and then have you forget them.
However, people do want connection. We want to find others whom we like and respect, and who feel the same way about us.
For example, if you are trying to ‘network your way’ into a job at an organisation, are you genuinely interested in building relationships with the people you meet along the way?
In many cases, job candidates treat such new connections as little more than stepping stones to what they want (i.e., a better job and more money).
This is no way to run a career.
‘Serve, don’t sell’ is a simple philosophy, but it takes years to deeply integrate it into your career and life.
Every single day, you encounter opportunities to serve others. The more of these opportunities you embrace, the more you will build and nurture true human connections.
No single one of these good deeds may result in more money or a new job for you, but collectively, they will lead to a rich and rewarding career.
‘Serve, don’t sell’ also works for employee engagement. It works for client engagement. It works with anything and everything that includes people.
Using your unique talent and expertise in a genuine effort to help others is by fastest way to strengthen your relationships — and cultivate valuable new ones.
One last point: The harsher and more strident our world becomes, the more welcome it is to come across a person who is genuinely interested in helping others.
Let that person be you.
*Bruce Kasanoff is the founder of The Journey, a newsletter for positive, uplifting and accomplished professionals. He is also an executive coach and social media ghostwriter for entrepreneurs. He can be contacted at kasanoff.com.
This article first appeared at kasanoff.com.
