If you show me who you associate yourself with, I’ll show you who you are. Believe it or not, your social relationships have a lot of influence in your life, which is why you need to choose your friends carefully.
Like attracts like. What do I mean by that? It’s this simple. If you choose to hang out with people who get into trouble, you’re very likely to get yourself into trouble too. If you choose to hang out with people who are ambitious, then you’re probably an ambitious person too. There’s much to be said for the saying, “birds of a feather flock together.” It’s true.
The qualities that my friends possess are very similar to qualities that I possess – both the qualities I like in my friends and the qualities that I don’t like so much. If you pay attention to your likes and dislikes in your relationships with your friends and family, realize that somewhere within yourself you have that quality as well. That’s why you notice those qualities in others.
Many of my closest friends are driven in their careers. We strive for the very best because that’s what we were taught to do in the environment in which we grew up. We’re adventurous, like to have fun, and expect the best out of life.
While MOST of my friends are like what I described above, I do have some childhood friends who complain alot. It gets under my skin. Sometimes I’ve asked myself, “Sheesh…can’t (so and so) ever be happy about something?” Then I realized something about myself. When I get in a cranky mood, I find myself complaining too. And when I’ve gotten in these moods, I’ve tended to call my complainer friends because I know they’ll jump right into complaint mode with me.
What did I learn from this? I’ve learned that complaining never helps me out when I’m in a difficult situation. And while I never realized I can sometimes get into a complaining mood, it’s never ever helped me get out of a difficult situation. In fact, it’s when I’m able to lift my positivity level up that I’m on top of the world.
Like Albert Einstein said, “You can never solve a problem on the level on which it was created.” This statement means a lot of things to me. One of them is if a problem arised out of negativity, I surely can’t fix it from a negative mindframe or out of a complaint.
As a result, I choose to spend most of my time around positive people. They inspire me, and I inspire them.
So be sure, to pick your friends wisely and carefully because they truly do influence you, whether you realize it or not. Remember that none of us are perfect. We are all human beings. Yet, choose friends that embrace not only who you are now but who you strive to be.
My Network Profiles