Surround Yourself With Forward-Thinking People
Isn’t it great to be around positive, optimistic, kind and forward-thinking people? I mean, who wants to be surrounded with negative, pessimistic, backwards-thinking whiny, little bitches?
Obvious, I know. Or, is it?
One of my favorite Instagram posts of late comes from a longtime friend, Don R. Campbell:
Simple, yes. But super cool. And viscerally memorable.
My wife-equivalent, Tammy and I spent several days contemplating this quote. The reason we like it is two-fold. First, we wouldn’t be at all surprised if those were actually Don & Connie’s hens. Secondly, the age-old axiom is true: Birds of a feather flock together.
Yes, Don’s a super-smart dude, who loves living off the land, striking a good real estate deal, and is easily one of the smartest and most optimistic people I know. I mean, after hanging out with him, you just feeeeeel gooooood.
Don is most known for his insights on Canadian Real Estate, Business, Economics and Life. And to be completely descriptive, thanks to solid info on his website, Don is a Canadian-based real estate investor, researcher, author, educator and Founding Partner of the Real Estate Investment Network™ (REIN), and Cutting Edge Research Inc. who, along with his experienced research team, leads the way in providing Canada’s most current real estate investment education programs and economic research materials.
Mostly? Don is a guy who Gets It. And Gets It Good.
YOU WILL EVENTUALLY END UP WITH INCOME, NET WORTH AND ATTITUDE THAT MATCHES THE FLOCK YOU HANG OUT WITH.
So, CHOOSE WISELY, he says.
Don called me this past Wednesday to get caught up on life; something we don’t do nearly enough. I’m going to change that paradigm because I realize, as I’ve shared with Tammy, “I just feel better about life when I’ve talked to Don.” We spent about thirty minutes talking about farming, music, his wife’s birthday party (Tam & I are so sad we’re missing), along with some pop-philosophy, pseudo-psychology, and pontificated voraciously on (a) his being “Superman,” (b) my suffering vertigo (for nearly a month), and © what we can do together in the future to create super-cool video stuff for his farm. See? Just good old forward-thinking STUFF.
How does Don do it? What’s his secret sauce? How did he “figure it out?”
Something tells me Don has always known that, besides being acutely aware of the flock with whom one gathers, it’s best to be FORWARD THINKING. And THAT is one of the reasons I love this man. He’s a Forward Thinker. He doesn’t concentrate on the past. He doesn’t look over his shoulder at his failures. He doesn’t cry over the spilt milk of yesteryear. Inside voice: Did I really just say that? Sounds like something my grandmother would say. But you get my meaning, right? That’s how I choose to live my life: Looking ahead, not behind.
In Luke 9:62, it reads:
But Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is good enough [fit] for the kingdom of God.
Now, while I grew up a God-fearing man, attending Church every Sunday morning, night and occasional Wednesday nights, I doubt very seriously, that you (taking this literally) won’t get into heaven if you’re a farmer and look over your shoulder while tilling the soil.
Okay, so you’re not a farmer. But if you’ve ever just MOWED a yard, you’ll catch my drift. You know what I’m saying. You’re out mowing perfect lines, when you look over your shoulder to see the progress that’s behind you (is that an oxymoron?), and guess what; as you turn around, you’ve done funked it up, creating a wobbly line. Okay. Moving on.
I find myself being drawn to people who start their day seeing the glass half full. They’ve learned that you can’t spend your life wondering “What If?”
This is the lesson Tammy and I have learned:
YOUR CHALLENGE SHOULD BE TO CONSTANTLY TWEAK, REFINE & REDEFINE WHAT MAKES “LIVING A LIFE BY DESIGN” THE LIFE YOU WANT TO LIVE.
It’s not that hard. But you must concentrate. It’s not that challenging. But you must stay the course. It’s not that daunting. But you must focus.
My challenge to you today is to FIND THE PILLARS upon which you want to build your present and your future. Hang your hat with them. Surround yourself with those type of people. Be sure they are welcome in your world. Be sure to drip-feed (Tam’s word) your life with constantly-growing, ever-evolving, always-challenging people who want to make seismic shifts in their realities. And those realities will be with you through the years…and alongside the group with whom you associate.
ASK YOURSELF: WHERE DO I WANT TO BE IN 10 YEARS?
Then, be sure you’re making the strategic steps to see that come to fruition. Rid yourself of the “energy vampires” who steal your physical and psychic energy. Pass on the people who enjoy complaining more drama and creating less forward momentum. Look for the UP-LIFTERS and turn your back to the DOWN-PULLERS. Say Goodbye to people who don’t see the best in you and encourage the same.
I LOVE the quote the late Wayne Dyer cherished in several of his books. It’s so powerful in its simplicity.
Today, while clearing your path to be in the space of love, integrity and forward momentum, show your authentic self; people will be drawn to it.
#itellstories
