Who you spend time with has a significant impact on you.
This works both ways. If you spend time around people who are negative or complacent, it will drag you down. If you are around people who are positive and motivated, it will lift you up. Which would you prefer?
Often people are not aware of how much this matters. They don’t consider the influence of the people they spend the most time with. In many cases, its simply a mater of not knowing. They have never been introduced to the idea that the people in their proximity are nudging them subtly.
In the workplace, if you work for someone else, you have little control over who you have to spend your time with. But outside of work you do. If you work for yourself, you can have a much better level of control over who gets to spend time around you. It is crucial…and I mean crucial, that we spend time around the influences we would want.
We need to be purposeful about this. I will give you an example I am living right now.
I am currently at LPU (Lifeplus University), where I have the privelege of giving leadership instruction to a large group of emerging leaders in life. If you think about the population as a whole, and this is true of all populations, about 20 percent are the doers, and 20% of THEM are the major doers. LPU is a group of people of all backgrounds, from plumbers and butchers, to therapists and Corporate executives, who have chosen to develop a business that centers on success through helping others, and leads to an amazing and unique quality of life.
As such, they are flying in the face of the conventional, and doing what others dream of, and could do, if they would decide to and then do it. These are the 20% of the 20%. The cool part is that it is simply a decision. They decided, that instead of being ducks and quacking about what they’d like in life, they will be eagles, and learn to fly and soar.
It is an honor to spend two weeks in the company of eagles. It is also rejuvinating and invigorating.
Think about the people you spend your time with. Are they eagles or ducks? What about you? I assume you have eagle in you or you wouldn’t spend your time reading a blog like mine…..so…given that assumption…take a look at who you spend your time with. If they are ducks…minimize your exposure…if they are eagles…this is good. Now find some more eagles to hang out with. Oh…and its okay to ask your Duck friends if they would like to learn how to fly:-)
