BENEFITS ACCRUED TO YOU BY INVESTING IN SOCIAL CAPITAL

Robin S Sharma said , "I believe we can accelerate our acumen , performance and success by leveraging our association and spending time with better people better than us ". I totally agree with him just as I agree with with King Solomon who said , "keep company with the wise and you will become wise ". 

Charles Darwin said, "A man's friendship are one of the best measures of his worth". Simply profound , and the questions to ask includes but not limited to , "what is your worth , what is your social capital? Are you a people person? Who is in your cycle ? What phone contacts are in your phone ? What contacts are in your email address book?

In, 2009, when i graduated from the University , a friend who was coming from Corporate world told me to take my CV to a named  reputable Bank because he had  heard his friend who was the Head of Human Resources saying they needed a fresh, energetic and focused graduate to work on certain Bank project.He advised me drop my CV, dropped my CV at Reception and left. After two weeks, i was called by the same Bank for interviews and later on was hired after second phase of interviews. From this short true story, i would say, i got my first Banking job using my social capital-networking with people who can influence and recommend you .Many people can share similar stories.The point is, it pays well to choose wisely the people you associate your self with.

Social Capital is defined as , "the sum of the actual and potential resources embedded within, available through, and derived from the network of relationships possessed by an individual or social unit. Social capital thus comprises both the network and the assets that may be mobilized through that network’ (Nahapiet and Ghoshal).

Another author Pennar also defined social capital as ,"the web of social relationships that influences individual behavior and thereby affects economic growth". Thus, it comprises of social relations and networks which are valuable for success at individual and organisational levels.

Thus, Social Capital is the stocks and flows of knowledge drived from from networks of relationships within and outside the organisation. It includes the use of communication, involvement and other initiatives to facilitate the exchange of knowledge.

When you network with people who have a wining mentality you are likely to have a winning mentality too. Equally when your network is full of people who like complaining, you will eventually become the Chief Complaining Officer (CCO) at work which is not good for your career progression. Some people are just toxic, always using the blame games, whining and whining on anything. Does the blame game change your position or improve your life? Such kind of social capital is not worth investing your time and efforts in. Remember, bad company corrupt good morals and iron sharpens 
iron, so a friend sharpens a friend .

Some Benefits accrued from Investing in Social Capital:

1. Business and Career opportunities

It is said, “It’s not WHAT you know, but WHO you know”. This is so true in  the current business world. If you want a really successful business, then you need to have a great source of relevant connections in your network that you can call on when you need them. It’s not just about who you are networking with directly either – that person will already have a network you can tap into as well. In the words of an accomplished Zambian motivational speaker Felix Banda-Galamukani, says, "if there is anything that I have graciously benefited is knowing this guy who knows  the other guy.You can't achieve much when you don't   earn to be a people person.We become by having good networks".

2. Positive Influence

The people that you hang around with and talk to do influence who you are and what you do, so it is important to be surrounding yourself with positive, uplifting people that help you to grow and thrive as a business owner, worker or student. Two mature friends of mine were always talking about building and investing in real estate, they would take me to their buildings and encourage me to do so when i have an opportunity. With this positive influence from them, I made a resolve to build and eventually after few years, I bought land and my house is under construction. I was positively influenced by him and others who i associate with.

3. Increased confidence

By regularly networking, and pushing yourself to talk to people you don’t know, you will get increased confidence the more you do this. Networking is great for people that aren’t confident as it really pushes them to grow and learn how to make conversations and lasting connections with people they don’t know.

4. Satisfaction from helping others

It is nice to help others, and networking is a fantastic way that allows us to do this easily and there is great satisfaction from helping someone to solve a problem they have and get a fantastic result from it.In the words of John C, Maxwell, "you cant light another's path without casting light on your own". When we help each other in the network, we are helping ourselves and by so doing we become stronger and stronger.

5.   Friendship

Many friendships form as a result of investing in your social capital because (mostly) you are all like-minded business owners that want to grow your businesses, and you meet and help each other regularly,so naturally strong friendships tend to form. 

“... Social capital provides the glue which facilitates co-operation, exchange and innovation.” The New Economy: Beyond the Hype

6. Happiness

When Sigmund Freud was asked for the secret of happiness, he replied: “Work and love. Based on twenty-five years of psychological research on happiness, he finds that two factors matter more than anything else—meaningful work and the quality of relationships with others.

Developing social networks leads to happiness, growth, satisfaction, and a meaningful life. The grand purpose of building social networks, then, is to enhance our participation in relationships with others and to make our contributions to the world.

7. Health

People with good networks enjoy better mental and physical health. The health-enhancing effects of relationships have been documented in a host of studies, ranging from reduced risk of serious illnesses to freedom from the common cold. Among people who become ill, those with solid support networks recover faster, compared with others who are isolated or alone.  Studies also indicates that couples who treat each other with respect are less likely to suffer from infectious illnesses; conversely, unhappy marriages increase the risk of illness by 35 percent and shorten life expectancy by four years.

Conclusion:

Social capital refers to the many resources available to us in and through our personal and business networks. These resources include information, ideas, leads, business opportunities, financial capital, power, emotional support, goodwill, trust, and cooperation. Without well-built and well managed networks, however, these resources remain hidden. They also remain hidden if we take refuge in the myth of individualism, pretending that relationships really don’t matter. Even natural talent, intelligence, education, effort, and luck are not individual attributes at all; they are developed, shaped, and expressed by and through relationships with others.

God bless!