Jim Rohn famously said, “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” Throughout his career, Rohn wrote many books on success and stressed the importance of your friend circle.
However, his famous quote is likely what he is most known for. This is for a good reason! Of all the things Rohn has said in his career, this has withstood the test of time.
The truth that Rohn spoke lives on and rings still true today. Your friends truly determine your future. So how can you make sure you choose your friends correctly?
How Your Friend Circle Impacts Your Future
Have you ever wondered how you picked up certain habits? Have you ever noticed yourself gravitating towards the same things that your friends like?
This is no coincidence! In life, we are all creatures of habit.
When we are put in an environment with our friend circle, we mimic the actions, mindset, and goals of other people.
Think about the people you hang out with. Do you have similar music taste? Are you in similar fields of work? Do you all go to the gym together? Or even like similar foods?
All of these things you probably have in common with them. That’s because as humans we gravitate towards people who are like us.
Furthermore, we become like those who we hang out with. We take on their mannerisms, the way they speak, and even possibly a career path.
Many times we often have a similar income as our friend circle. We truly rise or fall to the level of our friends.
So, how can you go about making sure you choose your friend circle wisely?
How to Choose Your Friend Circle
Now, before you start thinking that it is wrong to choose your friends, many of us do this naturally. While it might sound a bit harsh to intentionally choose your friends based on where you want to go in life, it is necessary!
When choosing your career path you have to make a choice. Your friend circle should be no different.
Without a plan and clear criteria as to what you want out of your friends, you will likely drift into them without noticing. If you want intentional results, you have to take intentional actions.
So, when choosing your friend circle you need to make sure you have your criteria set up.
What types of things do you want to do with your friends? Do you want to spend time partying or do you want to spend time working on business?
Do you want to spend time talking about developmental books and budgets? Or do you want your friend group to be a place of pure relaxation?
Either one of these paths, and possibly multiple paths are perfectly fine. However, you need to recognize that your choice down this path will directly affect where your life goes.
Making the Difficult Choice
If your friends are constantly uplifting you and talking about the things successful people talk about, you will likely be successful. On the other hand, if they are constantly drinking an excessive amount of alcohol or talking only about the latest drama or negative news stories, you might be headed down a path you don’t want to go down.
Making sure you have intentional criteria for your friend circle is paramount. When you have established the criteria for yourself, you can now determine if you want to spend more or less time with somebody.
Furthermore, you should not feel bad about this. After all, this is your life you are talking about! You should have a choice in who is in your friend circle and how much time you spend with them.
Now, this is not always the easiest choice to make. If you have been friends with somebody for years, but they are going down a different path than you want to go down, you might have to make a hard choice.
However, making this choice could change your life. After all, you only get one chance at this!
You have one chance to chase your dreams and one chance to live your life.
If you have ever felt bad about cutting somebody out of your friend circle, it is perfectly okay. As priorities shift and you begin to tackle larger goals you need to be surrounded by people who will support you.
Friends Change – And That’s Okay!
Many times, people are friends with the same group of individuals for life. While for some this is awesome, for others there needs to be change.
It is rare that you will have the same friends that you did in high school or college all the way through the rest of your life. While lifelong friends are one of the true joys of life, change is okay.
As we grow older, our friend circle changes. It is perfectly natural to have some friends from the past and new friends as well.
These new friends can lift you to heights that you never thought were possible. They can bring new ideas and perspectives into your life that help you grow.
When we have new perspectives and different opinions that come into our lives, we can only get better.
Friends That You Admire
Allow the beauty of new friends to enter your friend circle. New friends can expand your mind, change your opinions, and make sure that your “average” is always rising.
Seek out people who you admire, befriend them, and watch how your life changes. Find those who have a positive mindset and watch your happiness increase. Try if for yourself and you will be amazed!
Because you truly are the average of the five people that you spend the most time with.
Finally, make sure you choose your five wisely. Have criteria for them to enter that special circle and do not be afraid to allow somebody new, and different, to become that fifth person.
Put these actions into practice and you will be amazed at how much a difference surrounding yourself with those who you want to be like will make in your life!
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