Surround yourself with inspiration, not limitation
Let’s start this post off by asking a simple, yet important question that many of us neglect to consider:
Do the people around you lift you and inspire you, or do they hold you back and limit your potential?
If you haven’t spent time in your life pondering this question periodically, then you should, and here’s why.
The people we choose to surround ourselves with can have a profound impact on our lives, influencing our decisions, our mindset, and ultimately, our destiny. When we fill our lives with those who inspire us, we open doors to growth, creativity, and success. Conversely, when we allow ourselves to be surrounded by negativity and limitations, we stifle our potential and hinder our progress.
Lets explore how to cultivate a supportive social environment that encourages a growth mindset and helps us achieve a future self we are inspired by.
The Influence of Our Social Circle
Our social environment is a powerful force in shaping our thoughts and behaviors. It can either elevate us or hold us back.
Lets uncover how:
Encouragement vs. Discouragement: Inspirational people believe in our potential and cheer us on, providing the encouragement we need to pursue our dreams. Negative influences can fill us with doubt and fear, causing us to second-guess our abilities and ambitions. Consider times in life when you encountered team challenges that initially felt daunting. If you had supportive teammates that encouraged you along the way it gave you the courage to push further than you initially thought you could. On the opposite end of that thought consider times when you took on tasks with people who kicked you when you were struggling or openly doubted your ability. It most likely caused you to consider quitting… filling your mind with thoughts of doubt and negativity. The influence of each group has a profound impact on your ability to thrive or fall flat.
Support vs. Sabotage: Supportive friends and mentors offer constructive feedback, celebrate our successes, and stand by us during setbacks. On the other hand, toxic relationships can undermine our efforts through criticism, jealousy, or lack of support, sabotaging our progress.
Inspiration vs. Limitation: Surrounding ourselves with passionate, driven, and successful individuals can inspire us to aim higher and work harder. They serve as role models, showing us what’s possible. Conversely, being around those who settle for mediocrity can limit our vision and dampen our aspirations.
Pursuing Passions with the Right People
The company we keep significantly impacts our ability to pursue our passions. Jim Rohn famously says, “You’re the average of the five people you spend the most time with.”
Lets expand on how the right and wrong people can influence our journey:
Nurturing Growth: Positive influences create an environment that nurtures growth. They understand our dreams and encourage us to pursue them, even when the path is challenging. This support boosts our confidence and resilience, making staying committed to our growth easier. Growth inevitably comes with growing pains. Having the right people in your corner helps alleviate the growing pains.
Fueling Doubts: Negative influences can fuel self-doubt and fear. Their skepticism and lack of support can make us question our choices and abilities, leading us to abandon our passions and settle for less. If your journey to get to where you want to be is like an engine, then we can all agree that putting the proper fuel in the tank is essential for our engine to run efficiently. Spending time around people that are pessimistic about our goals is the equivalent of putting mud in our gas tank. It will cause our engine to sputter unnecessarily stifling our progress.
Creating Opportunities: Being around driven and successful individuals can open doors to new opportunities. Their networks, knowledge, and experiences can provide valuable insights and resources that help us advance in our pursuits. For many of us to create new opportunities we want to be influenced by what is possible. If we have a network of high achievers who are always pushing the bounds of what is possible it encourages us to reach for bigger and better in our own life.
Stifling Potential: Conversely, being surrounded by those who discourage growth or foster negativity can stifle our potential. Their lack of ambition can be contagious, leading us to mirror their complacency and miss out on opportunities for advancement.
Cultivating a Positive Social Environment
To harness the power of a supportive social environment, consider the following strategies:
Choose Wisely: Be selective about who you spend your time with. Seek out individuals who inspire you, believe in you, and challenge you to grow. Distance yourself from those who bring negativity and doubt. The people we choose to keep around us are a choice. Kicking the people who are toxic to our growth is a choice. Sometimes it’s a hard choice, but for growth, it is a necessary choice that we cannot afford to be complacent about.
Build a Support Network: Cultivate relationships with mentors, coaches, and like-minded peers who can provide guidance, support, and encouragement. A strong support network can be a valuable resource on your journey. Big thinkers surround themselves with other big thinkers… This isn’t by mistake. These are people who want more for their lives and realize what it takes to accomplish the dreams they set out to achieve.
Set Boundaries: Protect your mindset by setting boundaries with negative influences. Limit interactions with those who drain your energy or undermine your efforts. If we need to cut off prior best friends, then do it… If we need to cut off a relationship, then do it… If we need to cut out family members, then do it. Sometimes by making these radical changes, we not only influence our trajectory but also the trajectory of those around us.
Be a Positive Influence: Strive to be a source of support and inspiration for others. Encouraging and uplifting those around you not only strengthens your relationships but also reinforces your own positive mindset. There’s no lack of abundance. Someone else’s success doesn’t detract from your ability to succeed. Providing a hand when another is in need can lead to you having a hand held out in your direction when you inevitably find yourself in need.
“Doing the right thing is always a good thing. Even when no one is watching.”
Reflect and Adjust: Regularly assess your social environment and its impact on your mindset and goals. Make adjustments as needed to ensure you are surrounded by people who align with your values and aspirations. We are evolving, and the world around us is constantly evolving. With this evolution, it is imperative that we remain cognizant of what does and doesn’t serve us. What served our past self might no longer serve our present self. It is up to us to understand when that shift occurs and adjust accordingly.
Final Thoughts
By understanding the monumental impact our social circle has on our mindset and decisions, we can take proactive steps to cultivate a positive environment that supports our growth and passions. Surround yourself with those who uplift and inspire you, and watch how your life transforms in ways you never thought possible. Remember, the key to unlocking your potential lies in the company you keep. Choose inspiration over limitation, and let your growth journey accelerate faster than you imagined possible.
“Keep away from those who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you believe that you too can become great.” - Mark Twain
- Mark Twain
