“It's easy to make a buck. It's a lot tougher to make a difference.” – Tom Brokaw



After all, wasn't it your knowledge, your toil and your money that helped them come to the place where they knew enough to enable them to create a business of their own?

“You can't lead anyone else further than you have gone yourself.” – Gene Mauch

You know, it just doesn't seem fair, does it?

“Go the extra mile. It's never crowded.” – Author Unknown

What if you created a somewhat regular revolving door of employees? Would that change your perspective?

“The great use of life is to spend it for something that outlasts it.” – William James

I hope I haven't lost you. Let me see if I can explain.

Life success may have more to do with what you do for others than how much money you earn. More about helping someone up than putting them down.

“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” – Winston Churchill

When you come to a an elevated position in business you can either help bring somebody up from below and urge them higher or you can try to make those below you subservient to your needs. When you chose someone to assist you should always make sure they are interested in climbing.

“There is no use whatever trying to help people who do not help themselves. You cannot push anyone up a ladder unless he is willing to climb himself.” – Andrew Carnegie

Surround yourself with team members who are willing to walk with you up the ladder of success and cheer them on when they want to spread their wings – or find their own ladder. When you cheer their successes you both win.

“There are two ways of spreading light - to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it.” – Edith Wharton

When everyone wants to be served and no one is willing to serve there is a collapse in society and in business or as one children's show put it, “When everyone hides and nobody seeks it's no longer the fun game you thought it was.” When those in business understand they have a platform to assist the next generation by serving them as mentors there can be a whole new purpose in personal outlook.

“Everybody can be great. Because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and your verb agree to serve.... You don't have to know the second theory of thermodynamics in physics to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.” –Martin Luther King, Jr.

How are you making the future better through your business? What team member success stories do you have that have gone on to exceed their mentor? How does that make you feel? Were you one that exceeded your mentor? Have you thanked them?