By Lydia Davey
Special to In Military Education – Military1.com
The right group of people can inspire you, support and nourish your best ideas, shoot down your worst ones, and help you take the breathless leap from what is to what can be.
American entrepreneur Seth Godin said, “A group needs only two things to be a tribe: a shared interest and a way to communicate.”
The framework for successful communication is already built into the veteran community. Casting a vision and creating shared interest is up to you.
Here are four reasons to build a tribe full of veterans:
We Know How to Motivate
Recently, as I was reeling from the loss of a significant contract, a Marine buddy of mine said, “Look, you took the initiative and used your bare hands to forge something that didn’t exist – a business. You’re in a tough spot, and you just haven’t fought your way out yet.” The encouragement rallied me, and less than a week later, I landed a new contract nearly double the size of the one I lost.
The best motivators speak from a belief that you are capable of accomplishing more than your current vision or reality seems to allow. Who better to call out your finest traits than brothers and sisters who truly understand your capability to endure difficulty and embrace challenge?
We Give Honest Assessments
This trait is particularly helpful if you have a terrible idea. Or a brilliant one. Building the right tribe of veteran peers and mentors gives you access to trusted sources of well-developed judgment. The last thing you need when you’re engaged in the serious work of building a career or a business are folks who don’t understand straight talk. Run your ideas through the gauntlet, and see what survives. It will probably be great
Confidence in Collaboration
As an entrepreneur, I regularly find myself collaborating with other veterans – as clients, sub-contractors and business partners. A certain level of trust is inherent to those interactions. I believe that deliverables will be provided on time and on budget, that payments will be made promptly, and that strategy suggestions will be helpful. I’m rarely disappointed.
When you work with other vets, you’re essentially buying a product from an incredible brand. You may get the odd defective piece, but you can generally have a high level of confidence that your purchase will be rugged, reliable and resilient.
Strong Tribe = Amazing Opportunites
Court success by nurturing relationships with people you admire. Ultimately, as LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman points out, “People control resources, opportunities and information.” Spend time with people who intimidate you and whose very presence inspires you to think bigger and be better. These people won’t always be veterans, but I count my veteran mentors among my most valuable for the reasons outlined above.
Whether you’re growing a career, business or a personal brand, your chances of success are higher with a powerful, understanding, inspirational tribe.
About the Author
Lydia Davey is an entrepreneur, published author, speaker and media relations pro. She is the Founder/CEO of Moriah Creatives PR, a fee-only public relations firm that pairs her team’s extensive journalistic experience with a strong understanding of the digital landscape to provide small businesses with fresh, intelligent ways to connect with their clients. Lydia served as a Marine sergeant for eight years. She deployed to Afghanistan in 2006, and has worked extensively throughout Africa, Asia and Europe. She applies leadership lessons learned in the service to today’s dynamic small-business terrain.
About Military1
Military1 is a comprehensive military website that provides access to essential resources online for military personnel. Military1 features the most current news and analysis from experts in the military space, as well as providing members with resources for career progression, education, military benefits, off-duty information, product research and more.
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