As Jim Rohn says, “You’re the average of the top 5 people you hang out with.”

 

It’s a fact of life. You are greatly influenced by the people in your life. There are people in life that hold you back and others who propel you forward.

 

Who you are around, determines the course of what you are thinking, valuing and doing.

 

As Darren Hardy writes in The Compound Effect: “According to research by social psychologist Dr. David McClelland of Harvard, [the people you habitually associate with] determine as much as 95 percent of your success or failure in life.” That’s huge.

 

Take time to assess who you are spending time with. Ask hard questions about the people you hang with.

 

Work on spending less time with people who keep you down or who pop your balloon.

 

Yes, it’s true sometimes you don’t always choose the people in your life but it’s also true you have a choice of how much time you spend with them and in what capacity they play in your life.

 

Do you hear negative voices from certain people? How can you work on letting that go?

 

The people and media you surround yourself with affect your behavior and the joy and fun in your life.

 

If you listen to nonstop news that highlights the negative and worst in life, that’s how your life will feel and be.

 

You can’t spend time with negative people and think your life will be healthy and positive.

 

How can you spend more time with people who are building you up and who are supporting you in your journey?

 

I’ve taken up Pickleball. It’s a version of tennis and table tennis. It is so fun. The ladies I play with are in their 60s and 70s and in great shape. So inspiring and such a different image of what you think people in their 70s are doing. It fulfills many parts of what’s important to me – uplifting people and people who like to be physically healthy.

 

My friends are people who have supported me and encouraged me through all my victories and challenges. Having kids, traveling, educational accomplishments, going through a divorce and being a single mom, attending late night board meetings, running for office and the day to day love we share for each other. They have been there for me through thick and thin.

 

Beyond the inspiring people in my life, I also add structures to my life to help me live inspired.

 

I receive email inspirations from people I admire and who are uplifting – Maria Shriver’s Sunday Papers, Mike Dooley’s Notes from the Universe, Positively Positive newsletter and Chopra Center’s newsletter on healthy behaviors.   Great mental reminders of the direction I want my life to go.

 

I work out each morning at 5:30. It’s so inspiring to me. The teachers are dedicated, committed and inspiring us to push to be the best you can.  Being part of a group ups my image of what’s possible.

                      

I have Abraham-Hicks daily inspirational calendar along with Louise Hay’s.

 

You can’t have too many inspiring people or too much inspiring media around you because the world can be negative and disheartening.

 

It’s up to you to decide how you can be inspired and who you want in your life.

 

Who is helping you be inspired and be all you were created to be?

 

It’s important to recognize why the people in your life matter to you. What do they represent for you and your life?   Is it love, as an inspiring example, as an accountability partner, just convenient, connected from the past, or part of your family?

 

As Maria Shriver said in this week’s Sunday Papers, “It is up to you to make yourself something that makes you feel good.”

 

Think about who are the top five (5) people you need in your life today to help you create the life of more love and joy. Reach out to them. Spend more time with them.

 

What’s one step you can take today to add someone more inspiring to your life?

 

Share with me on Facebook or at dottie@dottiehager.com who that is for you and what you are doing to live a more inspired life.