Who's in your circle?

An African Proverb states “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”

I would also add,

“give some consideration to whom is a part of your journey.”

Naturally, the first people that come to my mind when thinking of my journey thus far are my dear family, my closest friends, and my many business acquaintances. But I’ve recognized the importance of reinforcing my circle with individuals that provide value such as bringing industry experience, spiritual guidance, insightful perspective or business acumen while also seeking to bring out the best in me.

In order for this to happen, I’ve had to let some connections go at times. In other cases, I look to cultivate relationships that would continuously allow me to build my personal or professional network.

Taking stock of who is in your circle sometimes brings you to the realization that some people’s time in your life has expired - be ok with this. Spending time trying to analyze or rationalize why that person has been placed in this category could be easily summed up in the fact they were actually taking more from you than you were rewarding from it in return and it just wasn’t a mutually beneficial relationship any longer. The positives about letting some people go mean there is now space to make new connections. Seeking out people that will add value to your circle will ensure you have a stronger network to bounce ideas off of, to gain encouragement from and to glean from their respective industry expertise.

You may also find currently you may not need to eliminate anyone within your circle, but instead, you may desire to add more diversity. This could be in order to benefit from the professional or personal perspective of someone different than yourself and those you’re already connected to. There could be any number of reasons to do this: to broaden your knowledge about another ethnicity, industry or religion, or even someone of a different generation than you.

It’s amazing the things we can learn from others if we open our minds and hearts.

Giving yourself the chance to create a solid core group of people around you will ensure mutual support, unlimited growth potential and the acquiring of a wealth of knowledge that you can tap into. That’s what we call making your circle count!