“You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.”

– Steve Jobs 

I have always believed in paying it forward. Early in my career, I met two mentors who showed me the way. They shared with me, “give before you get and you will get more than you could ever imagine.”

This is one of my rules that continues to serve me well.

I can connect my dots back to decisions I made to follow their guidance and honor the advice they instilled in me.  I may not have known it then but I was seeding a lot of people who wanted me to be successful.

I have had many occasions in the last two years where people I have helped 10-15 years ago for no other reason than paying it forward, have come back and offer to support me in a meaningful way.

When you plant those seedlings, the roots form, and over many years, one tree turns into two, and as you continue to water ten. At some point, a forest that bathes with the nurturing and support you need to achieve your dreams may appear.

Defeating Average.

Colin