You’re at a party. You’re handed several presents. You don’t have anything to give in return. How do you feel? A little less than wonderful, right? It’s human nature to want to give a gift in return.

The same holds true in networking circles. When you give something to a network associate — a business referral, assistance with tax returns, emotional support — she will want to give you something in return. Perhaps you won’t get a return gift immediately. However, the more you give to your networking partners, the more inclined they are to reciprocate.

A true gift is an unconditional gift; you give without expecting anything in return. However, you usually get something back anyway.

— Don Morgan, from Masters of Networking

Is there anything more maddening than someone doing something for you, with the unspoken (and sometimes actually spoken) implication, “Now what are you going to do for me?” That isn’t networking — it is trading. It is no more than keeping a running tally of who owes what to whom. …

Do something for somebody without the goal being a payback, and you’ll usually be paid back anyway. Again and again and again.

— Bob Burg, in Endless Referrals