I’m an Infantryman in the United States Army.  In the army we have what we call battle buddies.

If I get pinned down in a fire fight, I need someone to yell to me what they see, to provide cover fire for me, and to throw grenades for me from their position…and I strive to provide the same for them.

In my line of work, this relationship is absolutely vital.  In some circumstance not only my success but also my life may even depend on it.

A Powerful Alliance That I Will Never Forget

Alliances are started by being there for others.

When I first arrived in Basic Training for the United States Army, I met another soldier named Sean Callahan. He was assigned to sleep on the bunk beneath mine and was therefore my battle buddy for the duration of basic training. Wherever one of us went, the other was there.

Only a week into basic training and my battle buddy, Callahan, found himself in the cross-hairs of our Drill Sergant. Within moments, the Drill Sergeants had something special for us in the form of push-ups, flutter kicks and other gut-wrenching exercises.

The whole time that we were being punished for his infraction, Callahan kept looking at me and telling me how sorry he was that I was being punished for his mistake. I smiled back at him and I assured him that I didn’t mind. I reminded him that this is all part of the training, that this is what being a battle buddy was all about, and that I knew he would readily bear the same burden for me.

He thanked me and we finished our session of punishment together.  Less than a week later, Callahan would have his chance to pay me back.

Alliances Result In Others Being There For You

I sat my weapon down and walked away.  I only left it for just a moment.  I stepped away to ask another soldier a question about something and rather than take my M16 with me, I sat it down and walked to the other end of the barracks without it.

When I returned to what I had been working on, it was gone. I knew immediately that I had done wrong.  We had been instructed never to leave our rifles more than an arms distance away from us.  If we could not reach out and grab it from right where we are standing, we are too far away from it.  I had been much too far away from it.

Immediately I went to the drill Sergeants office.  Knock.  Knock.  Knock.

“What?”  I heard from inside.

“Drill Sergeant, Private Cardot requests permission to speak,”  I said.

“Speak,”  I heard.

So I continued, “Drill Sergeant, Private Cardot requests permission to enter.”

“Enter,” he replied.

I stepped into his office and began to tell him the situation.  As I spoke, I saw the rifle sitting right next to his desk.  I knew that I had something special coming for my lack of discipline.  He told me to go back to the barracks.  He would be out in a minute to take care of the situation.

A minute later he stepped out of his office and began yelling, “Toe the line!”  We knew what to do.  We all lined up at the position of attention standing right in front of our bunks.

“Cardot”  he bellowed.

“Yes, Drill Sergeant!”  I shouted back.

“Who is your battle buddy?”

“I am” without hesitation Callahan shouted and stepped forward. He was willing and ready to have my back and to dredge through the ensuing punishment with me. I had been there for him without complaint and now he was actually eager to be there for me.

What About Online Alliances?

When did we forget that Social Media is about being social?

You can’t buy relationships like that at the supermarket. You don’t find them laying around on the side of the street. They’re earned through hard work and sacrifice. But once they are built they are one of the most powerful assets you can have.

Too many people are knocking down the walls of social media trying to promote their blogs and websites and by doing so they’re completely missing the point. Social media is…well…about being social. It’s about building genuine relationships that result in the type of blogging alliances that are so vital to our success. It’s not about plastering Twitter and Facebook with links. It’s not about spamming 20,000 twitter followers with useless junk. It’s not about trying to make yourself look like your the man or the woman with all the answers.

It’s about building relationships.

Now I understand that you can’t build relationships like the one Callahan and I shared simply by tweeting. But we can tweet with that in mind. We can add value to people. We can be personal with people.  We can get involved. And we can use social media as a bridge to connect with people more personally like via Skype, Google Talk or other instant messengers.

We can look for those people who have similar goals and work to connect with them. We can grow those connections working to communicate, collaborate and help with those we interact with. We can get to know people. We can be there for them. We can exchange ideas and information.

We need these blogging alliances to make it big online. You need them. I need them. So connect with me and let’s be there for each other.

Want more information?

Check out these articles that a couple of friends wrote today also with the same title. We have each approached this subject from a completely different point-of-view.

• How to Build a Powerful Blogging Alliance by Jordan Cooper
• How to Build a Powerful Blogging Alliance by Rob Ramuny
• How to Build a Powerful Blogging Alliance by Mikkel Juhl