You Are Just Like Your Friends

"You are who you surround yourself with."

You may have heard this before. Perhaps multiple times. Perhaps so many times that it's becoming annoying and you just tune it out.

But have you really internalized it?

Have you really dug in to see if this is true. Look at the people you hang out with most. What is the average income? What are their personal habits like? What is most important to them? How do they treat people? How do they treat their spouses (or are they single)? How do they treat themselves? What is the average weight? What do they eat?

Are you similar?

When I was 19 I remember a co-worker saying "It's not my fault! I'm a product of my environment!"

At the time, I thought it was funny. In reality there was a lot of truth behind this statement. In the context it was said though, it was a way of not taking responsibility. A way of relinquishing control.

When I used this line on my girlfriend at the time, she quickly put me in my place. She knew this was a cop out and that I was smarter than that... So I married her :)