Depending on when in the past three decades you’d met Ray Dib, you might’ve thought he worked in insurance, finance, hospitality, rugby league or some other industry.

But Ray, the 183rd person I’ve met on my quest to have lunch with 500 strangers, explained his diverse and successful career to me in different terms: “I’m in the people business.”

The reason Ray has run thriving companies, held multiple directorships and served as chairman of the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs is primarily because of his people skills. Ray is charming, a great conversationalist and extremely generous.

The result? Over the years, Ray has had doors open for him that would otherwise have been closed and been presented with opportunities he would otherwise never have known about.

Ray’s people skills were honed in his early twenties, when he sold insurance door-to-door. That taught him some valuable lessons – resilience, building rapport and asking for the sale.

About a year ago, Ray co-founded an innovative business called MyBond, which helps cash-strapped tenants cover the bond. The tenant pays the equivalent of one week’s rent to MyBond; in return, MyBond pays the bond (which is generally equivalent to four weeks’ rent) on the tenant’s behalf, and then reclaims the bond when the tenant vacates the property.

As Ray grows this exciting new business, he’s busy meeting funders, partners and regulators. That’s because it’s not enough just to have a great idea – you also need the people skills to implement it.