My buddy Darin posted a great reminder regarding the importance of taking care of your home turf (aka your backyard) when it comes to sphere building. Go read it.

Sphere building is something I’ve spent a lot, and I mean a lot, of time thinking about. Similar to most real estate agents, sphere building is something I spend a lot of time on. Darin is right; the focus of sphere building should be primarily about maintaining existing relationships and allowing your network to grow organically. Way too many people spend an inordinate amount of time trying to build new connections with strangers when, in reality, they should be spending valuable time with their existing network. Strengthening existing relationships will lead to new ones in time — I can assure you of that (if you’re doing it right).

It’s not rocket science. Who do I help the most in life? My closest friends and business connections; not random strangers who reach out to me once or twice.

As Darin says, when it comes to sphere building, take care of your home turf first.