The Growth Of Your Company Is The Result Of The Company You Keep

The people in your life have an amazing power to influence your destiny. Everything
you have learned in the past was someone’s interpretation of what they learned
before you. The friends you grew up with and met over the years influenced many
decisions that are still a part of the way you live today. Some were good, some were
bad. Along the way you decided who you wanted to associate with for whatever
reason, and which influences to keep and which to discard.

Building a successful home-based business requires a mindset that reflects a desire
to improve yourself in all aspects, including who you associate with. I am the last
person who would ever think that one person is better than another. We all have
certain qualities that we excel at in one form or another. Some people are great
conversationalists but they might not want to advance beyond where they are.
Some are smart but no fun to be around.

In network marketing, it’s important to surround yourself with those who have the
same goals and qualities you are striving to achieve for yourself. Some of your
friends from the past may not share that vision that gets you excited about being
a better person. Some of them might even go out of their way to hold you back so
you don’t succeed and grow out of the comfort zone they share with you. Whatever
the case may be, you are usually only as successful as the company you keep.

With that in mind, you might want to ask yourself some tough questions to figure out
if your associations with other people are contributing to your stagnant business.
Who are you around? What affect are they having on you? What have they got you
saying and thinking? What places do they have you going to? What do they have
you becoming? Are the answers to your questions really OK? Who are they OK for…
You or them?

Be willing to answer these questions honestly. A person who wants to achieve
success has to determine what kind of influence each person has on them, and how
to approach that relationship. It might be difficult to imagine someone you care
about dragging you down, but it happens. Simply place every person on your list
into one of three categories: Disassociation, Limited Association and Expanded
Association.

Stop associating with those who you know are deliberately keeping you from your
dreams and goals. You will know who these people are. Network Marketers like to
refer to them as “Dream Stealers.” They will go out of their way to stop you out of
jealousy or fear that you will leave them behind. You won’t have any problem
disassociating yourself from them, but you might find that some people you care
about are on this list. This is why it’s important to be honest with yourself.

After those people are categorized, then you want to limit your association with the
next group of people. They might not be dragging you down or stopping you, but
they certainly are doing anything to help you out. They have their own thing and
you have yours, but you like them enough to still share some time. Not everything
has to be about business, right? Be thankful they are giving you the freedom to
make things happen for yourself without judging you.

Stopping your time with some people and limiting it with others leaves you more
time to spend with people who share your vision and goals in business. These are
the people that give you inspiration to keep going and you want to focus on building
solid relationships with them. Spend more time with them and help each other out.
If they are successful at certain things you wish to be successful at, copy what
they are doing. Absorb their way of life.

Be aware though, that not everyone who shares your vision is going to be someone
you will get along with. No matter who you decide to be with, always be ethical and
take the high road. If they are cheating or stepping on toes to achieve their goals,
do not follow their lead. You want to earn success the right way. And you don’t
want to become a snob when you start making more money. Being successful is not
about being better than anyone else.

Successful people live constant to the values and skills they wish to acquire.
Whatever you become, you will attract people just like you. If you want to associate
with powerful people, become powerful yourself. Show ambition, and the people you
wish to associate with will begin to notice you. We all have the freedom to determine
who we associate with, and that has a big impact on how well our businesses grow.

Once you categorize your associations you will automatically inspire other people
how to do the same. Network marketing is about building relationships and you want
your organization to see you as a leader. This mindset comes from learning proper
marketing techniques and you will probably not find that kind of training in most
companies. People in other companies want to succeed as much as you, so don’t
limit your associations to just a small inner circle of people selling the same products
as you are.

The basics principals of marketing are universal. Seek guaranteed education that
focuses on this instead of just learning how to distribute one product. There are a
lot of people out there willing to help you achieve your goals. All you have to do is
extend your association with them.