Who Are You Choosing To Associate And Network With?

Copyright © Jeremy Sandy
TrueWealthStrategy.com

If one bad apple spoils the whole bunch, what will 10 bad apples do for you?

Take a good look at your life right now. Where are you? Where are you going? What are your goals? Everyone has room for improvement, and most of us are striving for something better. But the question that remains, will you get there from here?

We all have aspirations to accomplish goals. Perhaps you want to buy your first house or afford to send your children to college or even start that career you have always wanted. Maybe even a house or a vacation? Whatever they are, we all have them. Some of those goals you will accomplish and some of them you won't. But have you ever thought that your surroundings may be playing a factor in the outcome?

Now take a look at your closest friends and family. Who are you spending your time with? More than likely, these people are very similar to you in many ways. Their education is similar. Their employment is similar. Their family, their house, their income, and their toys, are all very similar to what you have. Is this a coincidence? Usually not.

Your surroundings depict a certain comfort level in your life. You become like the people who are closest to you. Is that hard for you to believe? Let me give you an example of what I am talking about.

When I started a job as an auto mechanic, I was fairly clean cut and well spoken. But the more time I spent at my job, the more I became like my coworkers. The changes took place everyday, and were so small, that I didn't even notice them - but my wife did. After working there for a few months, she asked me why I was using vulgar language quite regularly. I was dumbfounded by the question. What on earth was she talking about? I wasn't using such language - was I?

The more I thought about it, the more she was right. My surroundings had taken a toll on the way I was living. I had developed the same language as my coworkers. (I guess the potty mouth stereotype of auto mechanics may be correct) The biggest problem here was that I failed to recognize it and fell victim to it. Then I had to make a conscience effort to correct the situation.

This type of activity can happen to anyone in any walk of life. You will become like the people you surround yourself with, whether you like it or not. Now I am not saying that you need to ditch all of your friends and go find new ones, but you do need to make a conscience effort to recognize your surroundings and take appropriate action. If you want to be a successful auto mechanic, then you need to start spending time around successful auto mechanics. If you want to be a professional football player, then you need to start spending time with football players. Want to be a chef, a dancer, or a broker? You guessed it. The earlier you start, the earlier you will achieve your goals.

Don't let your surroundings dictate your future. Take control of your surroundings and mold your own future.