Before the days of standardized currency, economies were based on barter systems. One cow might have been exchanged for three sheep, and one sheep for three geese—meaning that a cow could be exchanged for three sheep, nine geese, or some other combination of the two. When people would “sell” things to each other, they were really just trading one thing for another. Each side would give something up, but each side would also get something in return. Thus, the value of something was defined by what it could be traded for.

The development of currency meant that these trades no longer had to be direct. Rather than trading a cow for some other item of approximately equal worth, a farmer could store the value of that cow in the form of currency for days, weeks, months, or even years at a time. Currency also enabled people to compare the values of different objects using a universal standard. Rather than explicitly stating that the worth of a cow in terms of sheep or geese, a farmer could simply assign prices to each of his wares.

Most currencies are controlled exclusively by countries or groups of countries (in the case of the European Union, for instance). However, the Internet has led to the development of other currencies, such as the Linden Dollar in the Internet-based virtual world Second Life. The Linden Dollar can be used to buy virtual property, such as virtual land and virtual cars, but it can also be exchanged for real-world currencies—meaning that people can earn real money by selling virtual things.

Similarly, the virtual gold in massive multiplayer online role-playing games such as World of Warcraft has become valuable enough that companies called “gold farms” can make a profit by paying employees to obtain it in the game and then selling it to wealthier gamers. As strange as it may seem to those of us who are not familiar with the intricacies of Second Life or World of Warcraft, the fact that people are willing to pay money for these virtual objects shows that they have real value.

All of these scenarios, from the barter system to the World of Warcraft gold farm, involve exchanges of “something for something.” This is the meaning of the Latin phrase quid pro quo, an idea that underlies all business transactions (and many other exchanges as well—for example, in a romantic relationship, love is—or should be!—both given and received by both partners). Businesses provide goods or services in return for some form of payment from their clients. Ideally, neither side benefits more than the other during this transaction: what each side gives and what each side receives are worth approximately the same amount.

As a business, Zhang & Associates is no exception to this rule. Like any other business, we engage in a quid pro quo relationship with our clients, where we provide legal services in exchange for payment. However, the nature of our business at Zhang & Associates does set us apart from other businesses, and effectively expands the scope of the quid pro quo relationship that we engage in with our clients.

Namely, the fact that we focus on immigration law means that our work directly affects the lives of all of our clients. There are few other businesses whose work can have such a dramatic impact on their clients’ futures. Based on our efforts, clients can move thousands of miles from their countries of origin. Many aspects of their lives can be completely altered depending on the results of their cases that our firm handles.

This is the unusual nature of our business. When other businesses’ efforts are successful, it typically means that more of some product or service is sold or provided. When our efforts are successful, it means that our clients’ dreams of living in the United States can come true. This means that our clients have to trust us to an extent that goes beyond a typical business-client relationship. Since they are entrusting us with their futures, it is only fair that we give them something in return for this trust.

In fact, we try to provide several things in return for this trust. Primarily, we try our best to ensure the optimal results for every case. One of our companies mottoes is to “always deliver the best.” We try to provide a high quality of work, which is reflected in our high approval rates for our clients’ cases.

We also try to give our clients a degree of personal attention, empathy, and responsiveness in exchange for the trust the place in our firm. Our entire team of professionals is committed to serving our clients. The feedback we have received from our clients suggests that not just our attorneys, but other members of our team as well, are instrumental in our clients’ positive experiences.

Of course, there is an additional aspect of our quid pro quo relationship with our clients, which is the satisfaction that we feel when our clients’ cases are successful. Because we work hard on our clients’ cases and give them individual attention, we become invested in their results, so we are always happy to learn that a case has been approved—especially when clients tell us how happy they are with our work.

But even more rewarding than knowing we have done our job well is knowing that our efforts have helped someone to achieve a major personal goal. We are happy to work in this field for this very reason—and in turn, it motivates us to work hard for future clients. So in the end, our quid pro quo relationship with our clients results in a happy ending in most cases indeed.

–
Founded in 1996, Zhang & Associates, P.C. offers legal services to clients nationwide in all aspects of U.S immigration law. We have successfully handled thousands of immigration cases.
At Zhang & Associates, P.C., our attorneys and supporting professionals are committed to providing high-quality immigration and non-immigration visa services. We specialize in NIW, EB-1, PERM, and I-485 cases. In the past twelve years, we have successfully helped thousands of clients get green cards. If you plan to apply for a green card, please send your CV to Attorney Jerry Zhang (info@hooyou.com) for a free evaluation.
Zhang & Associates, PC.
Houston ∙ New York ∙ Chicago ∙ Austin
Tel：1-800-230-7040, 713-771-8433
Email: @hooyou.com">info@hooyou.com
website：http://www.hooyou.com