Why I’m redesigning my network and why you should too
For years I believed that my technical skills spoke for themselves. That I could achieve the life I wanted through sheer hard work.
Keep pushing. Get the next cert.
More certs = more money = success.
I spent years pushing myself to be more technical. Thinking I'd waste my "skills" if I stopped.
But in reality, I was burying more impactful skills underneath all that, and honestly, those I was more passionate about.
Yeah, I'm pretty good technically. I like to think I can figure anything out, and with the right support network, I can. But I've lost count how many times someone has told me that I am good at talking to people and how rare that is amongst technical folk.
Which is why I've been on a transformation for the past year or so.
They say you're the average of the top 5 people you surround yourself with. And (maybe naively) I used to think that meant replacing those around me.
I didn't want to change who I was surrounded by, they were my friends!
But that's not the point! You can keep your friends!
What I realised is I need to find a mix of people. Some that are "ahead" of me, some should be "behind", and others should be in the same place.
I recently learned this framework has a name, called the ‘Plus Minus Equals’ framework.
The goal is to surround yourself with people who challenge, support, and teach you.
And to do the same for others.
This can be formal or informal, and I wanted to share my experience with this framework, even though I didn’t know at the time that I was following it.
Plus
I joined a mentorship program at work and was lucky enough to be matched with the Managing Director. We met regularly, and he helped me map out what I wanted from my career. Even after leaving the company and the formal program was over, he offered to keep talking; I still see him a few times a year and can drop him a message whenever I need advice.
Having this level of access to a person who has been (in my eyes) very successful, and being able to learn from their experience is hugely underrated.
But it’s not just formal programs, finding others that complement your skills in the everyday mundane stuff is equally powerful. I met a sales guy at a run club, and he has changed my perspective on sales entirely.
One area where I lack confidence is selling, but when you spend time with someone who is really good at selling, you start to learn through osmosis, you get to know the person behind the sales pitch and at least for me, it removes the "used car salesman" persona from your mind. And I'm slowly getting more comfortable "selling".
The point I’m making is that the 'Plus' or mentor does not have to be someone super successful, running their own company or a paid coach. They can be an everyday person who happens to be slightly ahead of you in whatever it is you’re trying to get better at.
In fact, this person is sometimes better because they can remember what it’s like to be in your shoes. If your mentor is a Level 10 and you’re a Level 1, they might not be able to remember how it feels to be a Level 1.
So we’ve got people to learn from, but what about those we can teach.
Minus
You've probably heard that teaching something means you learn and remember the topic. Well this doesn't just apply to technical topics. Mentoring in anything, helps you improve. It could be technical, but it could also be things like presentation skills or career growth tips.
Passing on your knowledge not only helps solidify your own understanding but there’s a true satisfaction in knowing you are helping others succeed.
A few years ago, I had the pleasure of mentoring a junior engineer through to a promotion into my team. He was a smart kid fresh out of school and working on the helpdesk at our company. He expressed his interest in network engineering and we got to work.
There’s something so humbling about teaching others. Some of the questions he used to ask me really challenged me, even some basic technical networking stuff that I knew but had never needed to say out loud made me doubt my own knowledge.
Teaching really pushes you to break down topics into bite-sized chunks and make them easy to understand. Once you can do that, you know you understand a topic fully.
Finding a mentee not only helps you grow more quickly, but you also now have the opportunity to give back, just as your mentors did for you.
Next time you see or hear someone ask a question that you can answer, reach out and answer it, offer to help them more, and see how it goes.
Teaching others and having mentors in your corner is great, but you need people to spar with, to practice with, that’s where the “equals” comes in.
Equals
Equals is having someone to grow alongside you, someone to challenge your perspective and to support you whilst you support them. They’re in the trenches with you, facing similar frustrations. They push you to be better, and maybe even spark a little bit of competition.
Another massive benefit to having people around you at this level is that you can share knowledge, mistakes and breakthroughs, all of which help you grow much faster.
Okay, but how do you find these people?
They are everywhere, you can look at your immediate colleagues, join communities (online or offline!) or like me, find them at a run club or a gym.
One of the most surprising communities I’ve found was through content creation on LinkedIn. Through this, I’ve connected with 16 other content creators, some ahead of me, others alongside me in the journey. But this group is honestly the best, there’s such a diverse mix of knowledge, and we’re supporting each other to grow in our content journey. And I haven’t even met any of them in person.
The reason I’m telling you this is because it really proves that these people are literally anywhere, and you can help others even virtually.
One final thought and some actions for YOU 🫵
Reading through content like this is a great first step, but development will only happen if you start taking action. So here’s some easy things you can do this week to get going.
Join a community related to your field, find a question you can answer, and answer it.
Reflect on your colleagues or friends, is there anyone you see as a mentor or a counterpart? Go talk to them, bring up a problem you’re experiencing and ask for their advice.
Think about the 5 types of people you want to surround yourself with. You don’t have to go find them straight away, but think about it.
We grow fastest when we stop trying to do it all alone. If you enjoyed this content, let me know and let’s grow together. And don’t forget to hit the subscribe button. 👇