Who do you hang out with? Do they make you feel like you have what it takes to reach your goals? Do you feel energized after spending time with them? Do they make you feel better when things get rough? If you believe the people you hang out with impact you–for better or for worse–consider these five types of people you want to keep around.
Truth-tellers
Truth-tellers, who tell you the truth even when it hurts, keep you grounded. You depend on them to “give it to you straight” because you can then move forward, grounded in reality.
Transformers
When you connect with transformers, they listen to what you say and what you leave out and then frame what you’ve said in new ways. You might say, “Here’s where I messed up,” and a transformer asks, “Did you do the best you could?” When you say “Yes,” she says, “Your best is pretty good, and you couldn’t have done better. So what did you learn?”
You’re shocked. You’ve told her the worst, and she hears what you’ve said, but doesn’t see it as a game-ender. Instead, she sees it as a game changer and pushes you to see it in the same light – how will you use what you’ve learned to become a better you?
The ones who will make you laugh.
You’ve utterly lost your sense of humor given what your boss, your coworker or your significant other has done. You feel cross and you call her to tell the story. And she laughs. You do too, and all of a sudden you see the humor in what you’ve earlier seen as a black hole.
Mentors
If you’re lucky, you’ll find a mentor or coach. Someone who’s interested in developing you to be the best you can be. How do you find a mentor? Seek out someone you admire and ask, “Could I turn to you for occasional coaching, when I have questions or face a challenge?” If the person you’ve chosen says yes, consider yourself lucky. If you’ve located a coach who’ll push you further than you can imagine going, consider yourself very lucky.
The ones who are there for you.
The most priceless person we can have in our life is the person who’s always there for us – when we call, she picks up or calls us back in 24 hours. She shields us from feeling like we’re alone in the world.
