Questions to Ask Yourself...Who Is In Your Pack?

This weekend I started volunteering at a Wolf Sanctuary. One of the things I found to be interesting was in almost every enclosure there was a pair and in almost every case, one was an outgoing friendly animal who would come right up excited to see you and the other would watch you from the hills. Wolves are also social animals and tend to live in packs, so it got me thinking about people and who we pair and surround ourselves with. 

You may have heard the reference “You are a reflection of the company you keep” or maybe “You’re the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” Studies have started to show that it’s much bigger than the five closest people, that even friends of friends and the wide networks of people that one comes in contact with can change someone. The way we live our life, our thoughts, actions, and decisions are influenced by those around us.

Life is full of struggles but one thing you can do to be more successful is to evaluate the people around you. Start asking yourself questions like, who do you spend the most time with? (family, friends, coworkers?) Who are they? What kind of person are they? How successful/optimistic/ambitious are they? What are they doing with their life? Is that the way you want to be/act? Do they push and support you? Don’t be afraid to let some relationships fade and work to build new ones. People change, sometimes you find that you’ve grown and old relationships may no longer serve you. I believe that all human beings should be respected and you may still deeply care for someone but they just may not fit into your life anymore. How much easier do you think it would be to achieve your big dreams if you surrounded yourself with people that inspire and push you?

“Surround yourself with the dreamers and the doers, the believers and thinkers, but most all, surround yourself with those who see greatness within you, even when you don’t see it yourself.” -Edmund Lee

So who do you want to be? What do YOU want to accomplish in this lifetime? Who will you surround yourself with to get there? I encourage you to choose your pack wisely.