There is a common misconception that to be successful, all you need is to be skilled in your field.
Real success does not come from a focus on what you can do to improve your life, but from an outward effort to create value in the lives of those around you. Personal talent will not just magically create value. The real value comes from the interaction of your abilities with those from the unique array of people that surround you.
When one person attempts to tackle a big project, no matter how talented they are, they will hit a point of diminishing returns. Individuals can push past this point, however, by working in tandem. Take a piece of software for example. Many methods and objects need to be created and updated with a meticulous level of detail. This is more easily handled by a team of people that can specialize in certain areas and check each other’s work for mistakes and improvements.
Also, to complete complex projects you need to have a wide array of skills, not just be talented in one area. Many of these skills are based on context or cannot be learned in the time needed. This is why It’s essential to have a broad network of relationships so that you can outsource to people who already have the skillset or context required to help solve problems.
Overall, when you interact with someone, you should attempt to do something valuable for them so that you build up your relationships. You never know how helping someone out now might benefit you in the future.
