{"id":687,"date":"2022-05-01T17:55:34","date_gmt":"2022-05-01T17:55:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.ims-online.com\/?p=687"},"modified":"2022-05-01T17:56:52","modified_gmt":"2022-05-01T17:56:52","slug":"does-it-matter-the-people-you-surround-yourself-with","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.ims-online.com\/index.php\/2022\/05\/01\/does-it-matter-the-people-you-surround-yourself-with\/","title":{"rendered":"DOES IT MATTER THE PEOPLE YOU SURROUND YOURSELF WITH?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Everyone wants a great life! But how often do individuals look at how their social networks and relations are negatively affecting them? This may seem disconcerting to some of you, especially those introverts who get anxiety when you think of networking functions and expanding your social network. Many of us are familiar with the following statement, \u201cYou\u2019re the average of the five people you spend the most time with,\u201d a quote attributed most often to motivational speaker Jim Rohn. There is also the \u201cshow me your friends and I\u2019ll show you your future\u201d derivative. How really how much does it matter the people you surround yourself with?\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jon Levy<\/a>, best-selling author of You\u2019re Invited<\/em><\/a>, provides some interesting facts that strengthen this conclusion. One study he cites is that if you have an obese friend, your chance of obesity increases by 45%. Even if your friends don\u2019t know this person, their chance of obesity increases by 20%. And their friends\u2019 chances of obesity go up by 5%. He concludes that, on average, we influence others that goes three degrees out. We see similar trends in other areas as well, such as in divorce rates, smoking, etc.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your friends can have profound effects not only on your lifestyle choices but also on your attitudes and your habits. James Clear<\/a>, best-selling author of Atomic Habits<\/a><\/em>, states one of the best ways to build better habits is guess what? Connect with a community of people where your desired behavior is the normal behavior.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But how do we build our networks and make connections with people we admire? Jon Levy identifies four qualities to cultivate that will increase our success in connecting with the people we admire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GENEROSITY<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Adam Grant<\/a>, best-selling author of Think Again<\/a><\/em>, states, \u201cgenerosity isn\u2019t sacrificing yourself\u2013it\u2019s helping others without harming yourself. You need to prioritize your needs along with theirs. Don\u2019t confuse generosity with gifting. Levy states to focus on the type of generosity that gives people the opportunity to invest joint effort, feel included, and create connection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n