You Are the Company You Keep So Surround Yourself with Smart People

Success breeds success so be picky about who you spend time with

As you get older and see the ups and downs of life, you begin to realize the importance of true friends. During difficult and confusing times in your 20s and 30s, you realize that friends you once counted on are no longer the people you thought they were.

You realize you are only as a good as the company you keep.

You probably have heard the saying “birds of a feather flock together” that similar people gravitate to each other. When you surround yourself with smart people, you’ll expand your knowledge, you’ll have a support community that will push you to become a better version of you, and you’ll become a more well-rounded person. You’ll soak up their interests, goals, and expertise. Success breeds more success.

“As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” — Proverbs

Successful people learn from successful people. When you are successful, you become more optimistic, confident, and valuable. Successful people like to associate themselves with other successful people.

On the other hand, if you surround yourself with people who weigh you down, it’s like an anchor on a boat. You won’t be going anywhere. They will be holding you back, not pushing you forward.

The people who surround you speak to your values, beliefs, and goals. In other words, you are guilty by association. It’s very important to choose the right group of friends and confidants. A group that challenges you. A group that makes good decisions. A group that brings the best out of each other.

“You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” ― Jim Rohn, an American entrepreneur, author, and motivational speaker

The people you spend the most time with shape who you are. They determine what conversations and ideas dominate your attention. The activities you do or don’t do. It’s important to be picky about who you decide to spend time with on a daily basis.

People outside your inner circle perceive you based on the actions of the people you surround yourself with. They make assumptions about you based on the company you keep. Have you chosen your neighbors, friends, and colleagues wisely? Or have they chosen you?

With something like the company that you keep having such a profound impact on your life, why are you leaving it to chance?

The importance of your inner circle

Those in your inner circle are the most trusted people in your life. They may include your family members, friends, neighbors, and professional colleagues. They impact your attitudes and behaviors.

Eventually, you’ll think like they think and behave like they behave. When it comes to relationships, we are greatly influenced — whether we like it or not — by those closest to us.

“A mirror reflects a man’s face, but what he is really like is shown by the kind of friends he chooses.” — Colin Powell, an American politician, diplomat and retired four-star general

Our relationships impact how we think, our self-esteem, and our decisions. Every person is their own person and makes their own decisions, however, research shows we’re more affected by our environment than we think.

Look at the people you now surround yourself with:

• Do they help you reach your goals?
• Do they have a desire to see you be successful?
• Are they also successful?
• Are they on a similar journey as yours?

The majority of your time should be spent with your inner circle. Those you “let in” to your close circle of confidants should be by design. It shouldn't be random or happen by accident.

When you surround yourself with smart people, you gain the following benefits.

1. You’ll stimulate your intellect

A muscle only grows when it’s under stress. The same applies to learning. When you put your knowledge to the test, you’ll learn more. You’ll also learn more when you teach others about what you know.

If you surround yourself with people who challenge you and ask you thought-provoking questions, you’ll grow. To live up to your full potential, you should surround yourself with others that will hold you accountable and make you better.

“The key is to keep company only with people who uplift you, whose presence calls forth your best.” — Epictetus, a Greek philosopher

2. You’ll develop better habits

Research shows about 40% of people’s daily activities are performed each day in almost the same situations. Our lives are a series of habits formed over our lifetime. Habits are hard to change because we are on autopilot. We don’t even realize some of the things we do every day. Habits are hard to control but they are important to our success. Is your inner circle improving your habits and pointing out your bad ones?

3. You’ll become a better person

When you surround yourself with people you want to be like, you’ll more likely become like them. If you surround yourself with people with qualities you hold in high regard and who’s willing to discuss them, you’ll start to develop those qualities on your own.

“Tell me with whom you associate, and I will tell you who you are.” — Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, a German writer

Are you hanging out with people you admire? To become a better person, you have to be willing to change. Your inner circle will help you highlight your progress and help you grow into a better person.

4. You’ll develop mental toughness

The more successful you become, the more criticism you’ll face. Criticism makes you stronger. To overcome criticism, you’ll need mental toughness. To increase your mental toughness and better manage your stress, you should focus on having a positive mindset every day.

What you believe affects what you achieve. Mental toughness happens with small wins. It’s your daily choices that build your mental toughness. Your inner circle should help you celebrate those small wins.

Bringing it all together

If you surround yourself with people who value the same things you do, you’ll grow together. If you are not surrounding yourself with smart people, it’s time to reevaluate. Be critical of yourself and your associations. Are your actions aligning with your goals? Are you consulting with your inner circle one on one and asking for honest feedback? We dress, think, talk, and act like the people we surround ourselves with. You are only as a good as the company you keep.

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