If you research link-building elsewhere, you will find an engaging debate on whether or not it's advantageous to increase the number of links pointing to your website by the "you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours" method. Typically, the practice involves creating a "resources" webpage where you place links to other websites in exchange for them doing the same for you. These are called "reciprocal links."
To make a long story short: don't do it – except in the few cases where the external website offers a particularly valuable resource for your readers.
Be warned: As your website grows in popularity, an outbound link from your websites grows in value proportionately. As a result, you will receive an increasing number of link-exchange requests and may even start getting offered "donations" in exchange for links. Even so, be picky about who you link to from your website. Your search engine rankings will be impacted by the relevance and selectivity of your outbound links.
