Who do you know?

I’ve noticed that our society is changing. I’m sure you've noticed it too. We are a more social group than in the past. Just think, 125 years ago, we had just family, a small school and a church, and that was about it. Maybe a small town with some local stores, but our “community” was small and our “friends” were likely 50 or less. Even 10 years ago, we could count our friends much easier than now.

Today it’s’ hard to count who we know...

Now we have online communities galore and our friends are counted in the thousands, not including our “contacts” in life - we likely have 10,000+ people that we “know”, and depending on our jobs, that number could be much larger. 

I’m in sales and have literally been to at least 8,000 - 10,000 different business locations over the last 14 years, in multiple cities and states. If I met just 3 people at each stop, that means I’ve connected to between 24,000 and 30,000 people, just in prospecting and serving my customers. That doesn’t include the companies that I’ve worked for (one company had 3,000, one 33,000, and one over 90,000), or the other people I’ve met in travel, on vacation with my family, know on the mission field, in churches I attended in the past, or have spoken at, in my own church, through blogging, social networks, in the three colleges I attended (at least 2,500 different people there), in my K-12 education (over 2,500 in the schools I attended and it changed each year). I could have connected with well over 100,000 people in my little lifetime alone. And I’m just an average guy...

We also know people all over the world now, and know about people all over the world, not just within 50 miles only, anymore. 

I’m not knocking this at all - I like the connections and I think that we have an opportunity to influence more people than ever now. It’s truly amazing how we’ve changed over the last few years, and it’s absolutely cool to think that I can communicate instantly with people all over the world.  

Here’s what I have as a concern nowadays though…

What are we doing with our contacts?

How are we influencing the vast numbers of people we know?

Are we choosing to influence lives?

Are we enriching those around us?

Are we considering the testimony we have?

Do we consciously realize how many people see us?

Have we focused intently on the way we do the things we do?

Have others been encouraged because we are alive?

What do we do with those we know?

How can the connections be used for an even better purpose?

Lessons Learned: There’s a lot to consider in our connected world and we better be sure to influence correctly with what we are doing socially or we’re wasting a precious opportunity to impact.

Thoughts: Who do you know?

#failalot