Breaking the Law for Instagram #Fame

I love buildings. I also love pictures. So, it should come as no surprise that I also love pictures of buildings. This is a story that starts with pictures of buildings, but really it is a story about relationships.

This morning I woke up to see yet another photo posted on a big Instagram feed featuring a masked high school student hundreds of feet up on a construction crane overlooking the city. The photo was — as stated by the photographer — taken during a night time break-in of the job site. This stunt was not only personally dangerous to the student(s), but also poses a threat to project team who might be blamed if there was an accident. I am very concerned for this person’s safety and the safety of those working on the project, but also very upset because there is a much better way than breaking and entering to get what you want!

I used to think there was only two ways of getting what you want, but this incident reminded me that sadly there is a third way. We all seem to have one illegal, and two legal options.

#1 The illegal option: AKA Lying/Cheating/Stealing (not worth further discussion here)

#2 Get what you want yourself (legally)

#3 Build a relationship with someone who has what you want

Option #1 is out. As a lifelong learner and doer, option #2 is something I focus on daily. That said, we can only live one day at a time, so I find the biggest growth opportunities are found in option #3.

I will use last week as an example of what can be accomplished in a short time leveraging the power of relationships. In the span of 5 days, I was able to:

• Hear about a job opportunity with Kane Realty to share with my newsletter (The Acorn) community
• Gain access to years of experience conserving land and non-profit fundraising with Triangle Land Conservancy
• Discover the wonders of Third Wave Coffee and learn all about opening a small business and social media with the team behind Heirloom Brewshop
• Have my work bio edited and published by the communications wiz, Monica Talgo
• Learn what it is like to start a new career in brokerage with McKenzie Wilson of Grubb Ventures
• Hear a million-and-one great ideas for Mission Driven impact from the ULI Triangle Young Leaders Steering Committee

If I added all the years required for the folks I met with to gain the know how required to share their gifts with me, I am certain it would be more than a 100 years of experience. And I gained access to it in 1 week. Now THAT is leveraging time through the power of relationships!

You may be thinking. Isn’t it selfish to constantly lean on others for their time, talents, and treasures? And you would be correct. Taking value from others is extremely selfish, which is why I also try to provide as much value to others as I can. That is not as easy to do as you might imagine. Therefore, if you are reading this article, and there is anything I can do to bring value to your life, please ask! I often find that asking for value from others is the most surefire way to open an opportunity for you to provide value to them. It is a win-win.

Sorry for the clickbait title, but if you have made it this far, you should know that the point of this article isn’t really discussing illegal Instagram photographs.

“None of us is as smart as all of us” — Kenneth Blanchard

The moral of the story, to paraphrase the quote above, is that “none of us is as valuable as all of us”! Assuming you want to stay in the bounds of the law, every day — in parallel with gaining your own time, talents, and treasures — you should build and lean on the relationships you form with those around you. I promise you, you will be better off for it (and so will they)!

Now I want to hear from you! What gains have you made through building relationships?

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This post originally appeared on Medium.