The Average of the Five Around You

Do you ever feel like you say a word or phrase more often because of someone you’re frequently around? Or maybe you start watching a show or reading a book because your friend is doing the same?

We are undoubtedly influenced by who we spend the most time with. If that’s true, then we should consider what type of people we should spend our time with.

John Maxwell offers a perspective in The 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth when he says we should spend time with “...people with integrity. People who are positive. People who are ahead of us professionally. People who lift us up instead of knocking us down. People who take the high road, never the low. And above all, people who are growing.”

Our environment can either provide the space for us to continue growing or it can hold us back. It is important to assess where we currently are and where we want to be.

Is your current environment indicative of where you want to be?

Sometimes, in reflecting on this, we realize that change is needed if we want to get to where we want to be. We often don’t realize how much influence our current environment has on us until we step back and look at things carefully.

If you need to make changes in yourself and your environment, don’t dwell on your past. You can’t change it. Don’t worry about your future. You can’t control it. Focus on the current moment and what you can do now.

John Maxwell, The 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth

So, here are a few questions to ask yourself:

1. What is my vision for my life?
2. What is my vision for my work?
3. What is my vision for the relationships in my life?

Take some time today to consider who you spend the most time with. How does your answer align with or support your answers to the three questions above?

Significant growth will not occur in your life until you are continually challenged in your environment.

John Maxwell