Surround Yourself with Who You Want to Be

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Jun 18 Surround Yourself with Who You Want to Be

Posted at 15:05h in Career Acceleration, Career Success, Leadership, Teams by

 

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One of the simplest but most often overlooked leadership success strategies is to surround yourself with winners. As Joel Osteen said, you cannot hang out with chickens and expect to soar with the eagles.

Choose Wisely to Gain Wisdom

Life is a team sport, and choosing the right people to spend your precious time with will make the difference between perennial mediocrity and sustained success.

I am not suggesting, however, that you hang out with so-called “yes men” who never challenge you or your ideas. You want to be among energetic people who support you, for sure.

But you’ll experience the greatest benefit and positive transformation when you constantly interact with people who challenge your status quo and comfort zone.

Be Super Selective

Look at where you want to be in your career five years from today. Visualize it in vivid details that bring it into focus and capture your imagination to tap into your subconscious power.

Who are the colleagues, friends, and mentors whose traits and skills will rub off on you to make that happen? Who do you want in your inner circle to facilitate your upward momentum?

Make them a major part of your life and your life will naturally begin to reflect the intention and desire all of you share together.

Observe Healthy Boundaries

As my career began to flourish at Macy’s, many of my friends did not applaud my success. They tended to be negative or jealous.

When the opportunity came for me to move out of state for an important leadership position they discouraged me from stretching in a new direction. But to grow and expand our horizons we need to invest our energy in people who celebrate our success and are happy for what we are capable of becoming.

The right people are waiting to be invited into your life to ensure that you to experience the fullness of your destiny in healthy, exciting ways.

Follow the Law of Group

Law of Group is a term that psychologists use to describe how we tend to associate with people we see as being like ourselves. Birds of a feather flock together, and successful people find other people who are successful.

The quality of your friends will always be more valuable than the quantity of friends you have. Take time to cultivate relationships that carry you onward and upward in the meaningful ways that really count.

Take Away Exercise

  • Sit down and make a simple chart – similar to the ones people use to trace their genealogy. Put yourself in the center with spokes leading out to those who form your inner circle.
  • Are there any weaknesses there – people who could be holding you back? What about people outside that circle who have the potential to propel you forward?
  • Adjust your circle for maximum strength and positivity, remembering the verse I love from Proverbs which says, “As iron sharpens iron, friends sharpen one another.”

As a pioneering and visionary innovator, Sarah is a certified image master (CIM) and brand strategist, speaker, trainer and author. Her company, Illustra Consulting, provides leading-edge image and brand management strategies for top leaders and high achievers who wish to take their career to the next level. She also delivers innovative and inspiring corporate workshops to assist large organizations in strengthening their corporate brand.

Illustra Consulting
Copyright © 2015, Sarah Hathorn, AICI CIM, CPBS 1-800-267-3245, [email protected]

This article may be reproduced only in it’s entirety, including the above bio.

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