Everyone should keep a professional network. I will go further and say that you should meet face to face on a regular basis.  I will even go further and say that you should even consort with the enemy, your competition. It does not matter how many of these people you carouse with.  Start off with one that you can stand. Just get off Facebook and Twitter. I know they are essential but human contact is something that is not simulated. I can hear my dad saying “The telephone is no place to do business” let alone SMS or the dinosaur e-mail, we won’t even mention the USPS.

I have been meeting with a guy named Jesse Segna randomly since we had a common client Pure Imagination Chocolatier. Jesse does some web design but he is famous for his branding and logo design. He has names like Chris Perry Golf and Wendy’s Old Fashioned Hamburgers under his belt and anyone from the Buckeye Nation will recognize these names:)

What I am getting at is that you should always play with people you admire and respect; even if it is the competition. The only way to get better is to be jealous of others talents. I don’t mean this in terms of obsession or some religious theme.  All I am saying is that you should surround yourself with talent and with your drive/determination you can become as good or better than your competition.

Jesse and I have been sharing clients for years now and as we continue to meet-up and share ideas we both get better and ultimately we end up sharing more clients. I wish I had more friendships that were professional because no one steps on your toes and the result is more fun, more clients, and we both get better at what we do.

Wil Schroter, a friend and serial entrepreneur, once said in a famous blog post, at least to me, that …If you are unwilling to share your ideas with the masses, then your ideas are worth nothing…  Basically if you don’t believe in the execution of your idea it is a commodity and you are better off selling gasoline at at a BP.

CONCLUSION:
Share your ideas in person! Everyone will reap the benefits. Go Capitalism!!!