Can you judge a man by his friends....

I think... YES!

Last evening, I was a listener…. I spent about three and one half hours in a bar and just listened to someone who has so many wonderful opportunities, recognizes them but then just falls short. Now before you go anticipating, my bar tab was $8.50… Soup and several diet cokes. I know… I’ve become a lightweight.

I listened (even through the groans of another Bulls loss) and learned a lot. In front of me, was a very bright person, who is intelligent, charismatic and could have his industry by the short hairs, but for some reason, just can’t seem to get over the hump.

His business ventures start off well (for a while), additional opportunities appear - financially not so bad and then, the bottom just seems to fall out, right before he can make that “big score”.

I think we all know people like that – they go through life, and then all the sudden, they hit one of life’s speed bumps and just completely derailed.

When I listened to my friend, I realized that he gets the ball rolling down the right hill, starts to build momentum but then the business starts to flounder. Why?

His people and support system… You see they don’t share the same vision. They don’t buy into the notion of the opportunities in front of them and tend to look at things half empty. In a sense they are dream stealers instead of dream makers.

I don’t think that anyone would disagree that it’s important to acknowledge the power of positive thinking. This goes not only for yourself, but also for the people you surround yourself with.

Attitudes are catchy. Whether they're positive or negative, they're rubbing off on you. If you're around people who complain, judge, spread negative gossip, blame others, and play victim roles, chances are you do, too.

Who are you around most? Are they achieving their dreams or complaining about their circumstances? Do they look up to others who are go-getters and high achievers or do they make fun of them and roll their eyes? How do they treat you? If you're spending time with people who don't support your dreams and goals, it's seriously time to look at whom you call your friends!

Successful people surround themselves with successful people. They want to be around others who're achieving goals and making things happen. They want to know their secrets and strategies for winning. They're not embarrassed to be hanging out with people who are studying for success and making good money.

We all need to surround ourselves with positive influences. Join the clubs that other successful people are in, learn what they're learning. It doesn't matter from what walk of life you are coming from. Show up and transform youself into an achiever! Success isn't just for those who have had it easy, who came from supportive homes or had expensive educations. They’re so many successful people who rose up from very poor conditions and overcame obstacles to achieve the goals they set their sights on.

But they didn't get there by hanging out with negative energy-drainers!

The New Year is just around the corner, start fresh and ask yourself this question. Have you been limiting your success by letting yourself be influenced by other people's negative energy?

Why not make a list of all the people you spend time with and make a note of the kind of personality they have. How many negative people are you around every day? How many people on your list are achieving their dreams and supporting yours. How many take responsibility for their lives? In the long run you will be better off spending time alone than with people who hold them selves back with a victim mentality.

Simply stop spending time with the negative people on your list. Join the clubs or organizations that will put you in with a positive circle of friends. Don't be afraid to set a new standard for yourself and don't allow yourself to become friends with people who fall below that standard.
Invite your old friends to come with you. You'll soon find out who has potential and want to grow and who will stop being around entirely.

This is one area in your life that you can take full responsibility. Look around you at the people you call friends. Does it make you proud or are you selling yourself short? Keeping successful people around you will help you to become more successful! Being around people who can accomplish their goals will allow you to accomplish yours!

As always, the choice is yours to make.

Til next time…