Don't judge me yet, I am aware that the header I used might give a negative judgment up front. I encourage you to keep on reading. How many times have you heard the person who cares about you saying: be mindful of the people you are hanging out with? Probably a lot and most of the time, we normally skip this advice thinking it's another cliché that we used to hear many times, we just don't care and we are happy with our friends. Do you agree with the quote below?

https://i.imgur.com/vOsaT6q.png

^{image source: qph.fs.quoracdn.net}

I have to agree to this, even though half of my heart is saying no, here's why. I was a being raised from a poor family; with the poor mentality and environment, we normally tag someone who is trying to socialize and copy the actions of the person with higher social status as a "social climber" which is a no doubt a negative noun especially in our country (Philippines). We are also being taught to be happy and be satisfied with what we have which is good but somehow, this kind of upbringing affects our unconscious mind to think that aiming high is not a good thing. Being in a developing country, this is just one thing our parents can do for their children not to feel bad for something they can't provide. So that being said I'm quite hesitant to do this piece of advice from many great thinkers in the past because I am afraid to be judged by the people in this society.

To be honest, I hate the idea of diverting much of my time with other people rather than most people I used to hang out with all the time, I love these people and I hate to lose my relationship with them. but if you're like me who are being surrounded mostly with people whom you love but people who don't seem to want their lives to improve, I think it is time to decrease our interaction with them now.

https://media.giphy.com/media/6bWNHVAoj7tNS/giphy.gif

^{image source: media.giphy.com}

This is sad but it's true; people are naturally like a sponge, we simply draw everything around us just like during our childhood, our unconscious mind will just absorb everything we hear and everything we see, we will learn to mimic all of them eventually. Now that we are older we are unconsciously being influenced by the people who are around us too. So be mindful of this: The people in your life will either inspire you or drain you. Stay away from those people who are always finding ways why things can't be done. Negativity is a virus; you will be easily affected by just simply hanging out with these people who are already infected by it.

Do not be afraid to be tag as a social climber, sometimes people who are close to you are just afraid to see you strive because your success will just simply destroy their excuses on why they are still remaining the same. Improve your life so you can eventually influence them. Imagine this: we used to hate wealthy people, we see them as greedy and evil individuals but in the back of our minds we are also dreaming of obtaining that kind of wealth and easy life too, this is a perfect example of a cognitive dissonance that most of us will be guilty.

Get yourself surrounded by those who have the things you desire like success, happiness, wealth, fitness, relationship or the life you've been dreaming of, soon their standards will become yours too. It's time for us to Adapt this now, don't hesitate to find a way on how you can get an access to the circle of people who are successful and happy. Start allocating your time to the type of people who are already obtaining the kind of achievements you want to possess. Don't feel bad, again you are not going to dump those people you used to hang out with totally, you will just temporarily going to lessen your time with them.

I just want to greet everybody who will reach this post and take this opportunity to quickly share a little bit about myself. How are you, how's your week? Mine is good, I hope yours too. I am the guy who made so many mistakes in the past that brought me into a deep hole, so now; I'm continuously finding an antidote to cure my life. Steemit is a great community of people who love sharing valuable knowledge back and forth. Every week, I made a devotion to discover and share what I am learning in my journey. Last week I explored the importance of our thoughts [HERE](https://steemit.com/selfhelp/@gavinci13/start-your-week-right-be-careful-of-your-thoughts) If you are looking for some dose of positivity and encouragement, stick with me and let's do this together. We may not become a whale on this platform but we can be a whale in real life.

^{Disclaimer: I am not an expert when it comes to this subject, I am just basically sharing what I think is valuable and I am open to any criticism or any comments to my words. Like I said Steemit is a great platform to exchange ideas, beliefs, and knowledge back and forth so feel free to leave your comment.} ^{Images which I didn't indicate their source is mine, it's my own photography.}

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