"We've got to grow together..." the quote of the evening!

Last Tuesday, I had a great dinner with a new friend just outside of Boston, founder of Elite Leadership Solutions: Bob Maitland. During our conversation, he told me about the business incubator program at Hannah Grimes, here in Keene, NH. One visit to the website, www.HannahGrimes.com, and I realized that Hannah Grimes is not just a person (born in 1776), but an idea. The more I learned, I knew I had to meet the woman behind this effort: Mary Ann.

So (and yeah, this is just how I am) I sent an email and asked if anyone from the center would like to meet while I'm in town for 96 hours! She said yes...

Of course during dinner, I had to ask: Who WAS Hannah Grimes. With a big smile (and more story than we had time for at this one dinner), Mary Ann shared an incredible philosophy. Hannah Grimes grew up in the house that Mary Ann now lives in...over 200 years ago! At that time, everything was local. With today's movement to "think global and act local," or to work and live as a "local-vore," it is interesting to think that in those days way back then, EVERYone supported local - local government, local education, local markets...

I had one other question for Mary Ann: I said, "I emailed you Tuesday night, and by Wednesday afternoon you had agreed to meet for dinner. Thanks for takin' a risk to meet a new friend, but I gotta ask: Why?"

For the next 45 minutes, the conversation turned in to a deep discussion about how important is for people "like us" to grow together... it left a lasting impression on me.

Question for you today: "Who could YOU spend time with today to grow together?"

Comments

[BrettRWilkes]

This is a great dose of perspective. Sometimes you need to step out and spend time with someone you may have wanted to but never felt like there was a good rationale to give them. Well, it's a good enough reason just to want to spend time with someone, right? Maybe someone who has a different background, or someone you just think you could learn from, since we all have different viewpoints and understandings. And plus, having someone to just chat with-it's always great to have a new voice, even if it's not about a serious topic, or if it's just temporary.