When I was growing up, my parents used to always tell me “You are the people you surround yourself with.” As a growing teenager I really had no idea what that meant. I just assumed my parents didn’t like my friends. Little did I realize, that advice would become a huge part of becoming a successful entrepreneur.
Do Your Friends Motivate You?
As you navigate through the journey of entrepreneurship you will find yourself needing support and searching for guidance. You may also find yourself questioning the relationships that you are keeping. Are the people around you as driven and motivated as you?
Do You Get The Support You Need?
We all know that when running our own businesses we are often required to work long hours, which greatly limits the time we have to spend socializing with friends and family. Do the people you associate with understand and support your lifestyle?
No More Negativity
Another reason why you need to evaluate the company that you keep is negativity. If you have a friend or family member that has ever used the phrase “if it were that easy, everyone would do it,” they’re probably too negative to be part of your inner-circle.
If you’re new to this lifestyle or are thinking about getting started you’ve probably experienced a friend or family member giving you a hard time about your dream. It might be your parents telling you to “just get a job,” or a friend that would rather you spend your time socializing. Either way you have to take a step back and really consider what’s important to you. If you’re serious about pursuing a life as a successful entrepreneur you need to ditch the negativity. Yes, you heard me right, if that’s your mom, you have to tell her to cut the shit.
I don’t want you to misunderstand what I’m trying to say, though. Don’t turn into a loner and focus on nothing but your business. What you need to do is change the type of people you hang out with. In order to succeed in this world you need support and encouragement. In order to get that you need to surround yourself with like minded, hard working, successful and intelligent people. These are the people that will inspire you, make you think and keep you on track. If you look around and you’re the smartest person in the room, you’re in the wrong room. Nothing is more satisfying to me than spending a night out with friends and coming home feeling like I can take on the world.
Surround Yourself with Successful Entrepreneurs
My group of friends since college has completely changed. In fact, besides my wife and small handful of others, I don’t even hear from most of them… and that’s okay. The friends that I have now have the same drive and motivation as I do. They understand that it might take me a couple weeks to return their phone call in the middle of tax season. They get it when I text them at 5 am because I just had a great idea I wanted to bounce off of them. They’re also empathetic when I call them and say that I need to meet them for cigars and a drink because I need the love and support that we offer each other.
If you don’t have that friend, find them.
Becoming a successful entrepreneur is a long and sometimes lonely road full of sleepless nights and stress. It’s also the most rewarding journey you could ever take.
I feel really strongly about this topic so I searched the web for other successful entrepreneurs that are living this life and spreading this word. If you don’t believe me, listen to them… (Some explicit language in these videos)
