No New Friends

Contrary to popular belief the thought of no new friends is not a novel idea created by Drake. 19th century English author and lecturor Edwin Paxton Hood said,"Be as careful of the books you read, as the company you keep, for your habits and character will be as much influenced by the former as the latter." However, 130 years after the death of Mr. Hood many people still encounter their greatest stumbling blocks in the people that they choose to surround themselves with. For this reason it is quite essential to constantly assess and be open to making changes in one's power team (those that you surround yourself with and draw inspiration from) in order to ensure that a problem that has existed as long as mankind (I mean Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, need I go on??). Here are a couple factors that I use to assess my power team:

What they instill in you- A person in your life should add something to you. Even if it is just positive energy from a great attitude, it is essential anyone that you seek advice and inspiration from has something about them that can make you better as a person. Put a list of your power team to paper and you should be able to list positive things that each person has that can potentially make you better. If you can't do this, then made you should consider editing your team.

What they bring out of you- A friend should bring positive things out of you. After all some say that iron should sharpen iron, so why shouldn't you draw inspiration from those that sharpen you. This is different from the last category because there is a difference between someone giving you positive energy to improve your day and someone using their positive energy to cause you to bring positive energy out of you. Put a list of your power team to paper and you should be able to list positive things that the people on your team bring out of you.

What they bring to the table- A friendship is give and take. Generally people enter your life for a reason. Just be sure that the people in your power team don't come to your table to eat up with no intention or ability to replinish. Ideally the people on your team should be putting more into the friendship than they are taking out. If you can't go down your list and say that everyone in your power team is contributing to your life as much as they are taking from it, you have a problem on your hands.

What you instill in them- As prevously stated a friendship is about give and take. You should also have something to offer the people in your power team and that you bring to the table. If you don't, they should probably take my advice and reassess whether you should be on their team. It is enriching and character-building in nature to contribute to something great. Also understand that people will generally give more to those that are adding value to them. Go down the list of your power and team and answer the question of what you add to the people in your power team. If you can't answer this, you're the problem.

What you bring out of them- Friendship operates at optimum capacity when the parties therin bring out the best in each other, and people outside of the friendship can even receive residual benefits as a result. Look to assess the strengths and weaknesses of your power team. After you've made that assessment think about how you can sharpen the people in your power team. This contribution will improve the team members as individuals and the team overall.