Who are You Hanging Out With?
By: Dr. Peggy Malone
Who are the 5 people that you spend the most time with? Who are you hanging out with? They say that you are the average of these 5 people. This makes it extremely important to choose them carefully.
The people that you surround yourself with can have an extremely important impact on your long term success for life in general but also on your health and wellness journey.
Now let’s be clear. When I say ‘hang out with’, I mean the people who you see everyday like your family, your friends and your co-workers.
But I also mean the teachers, coaches, and mentors that you may have.
I also mean the important influences that you spend time with online, on social media, in forums or support groups.
I also mean an accountability partner that you communicate with online or on the phone or even in person.
I also mean the people who share information on TV, on their websites or through books that you are reading or courses that you may be taking.
So who are your 5 people? What are they like? What qualities do they possess? What kind of life do they lead?
Let me ask you another question:
What kind of person do you want to be? What qualities would you possess and what would your life be like in your ideal vision of yourself?
It really is true that you are influenced by the people you spend the most time with.
For example, if you hang out with people who are positive and caring and excited about life… that becomes contagious and you will find yourself in a similar frame of mind.
If you hang out with successful business people, chances are you will find that you will learn some of the things that you need to know to create success in your own business.
If you hang out with people who make healthy choices, who exercise regularly, who care about their health… it’s likely that you will be influenced by them to care more about your own health choices.
This influence can be negative as well as positive. If you surround yourself with people who are extremely negative and who think that the world is out to get them and that everything is terrible all the time… it won’t be long before you will be sucked down into that negativity.
If you are working hard to make positive changes for your own health and your closest influences eat terribly and don’t exercise and don’t care to get healthier, you’ll need to rely on your willpower to stay focused on your health goals and you may find that it is easier to slip back into old habits and behaviours.
Do the 5 people that you spend the most time with currently match who you want to become in the future?
The beautiful thing about all of this is that once you know how important it is to surround yourself with people who match what you want to do and be… you can choose your 5 people.
When you choose to make a change in your life or in your health, you may find that some people will no longer fit the ideal qualities that are important for your success.
You may choose to spend less time with certain people and you may choose to transition away from and leave certain people behind all together.
When I share this with my clients or patients, they’ll often say: “Well, I can’t just leave my spouse/mother/father-in-law behind… they are part of my family and I spend lots of time with them”
This may be true and this is where it can get tricky. If someone in your family that you know you will be spending a significant amount of time with doesn’t match the qualities that you are looking for in your 5 people… that’s ok. It’s not always necessary to transition away from these relationships completely (although it might be.)
Spend time with them for the qualities that you do enjoy about them and choose to focus on others to get the support that you need to achieve your goals.
If the 5 people that you currently spend time with do not have the qualities that you are looking for in your future ideal version of yourself, name 5 people that do have those qualities.
These may be people in your personal circle or they may be total strangers that you don't personally know.
Some of my clients say to me: “Nobody in my circle ‘gets’ me or what I’m trying to do so how do I find these people that will get me closer to that vision of my ideal self?”
Remember… someone can be a great influence in your journey even if you watch them on TV, read their books or their newsletter or follow their recipes.
If they have qualities that you would like to see in your future self, then they are a good fit for your 5 people. This is relevant when you are trying to make changes in personal growth, in business and in health and wellness!
Who you hang out with and surround yourself with is so important in achieving long term success in all areas of life… so choose carefully!
Live Well,
Dr. Peggy Malone is a Chiropractor and an Athlete who helps other athletes to overcome injury and get back to their sport. Her weekly Television Series 'Living Well" inspires people from all walks of life to take control of their health to be as happy and as healthy as they can be.
A former varsity Basketball and Rugby player, she has since entered the world of endurance athletics where she has completed 2 Ironman Triathlons, 3 Marathons, several Half Marathons and many other Triathlons, Road Races and Off-Road Adventure races of varying distances.
Her own athletic endeavors and injuries have given her valuable insight into working with athletes in her practice for both the care of injuries as well as for the improvement of athletic performance.
