This past weekend at our team camp, I give a Champion's Concept lecture to each team talking about various things that I think are important in our quest to the best that we can be. One of the things that we believe strongly in is that champions understand the importance of their associations. We speak to them about creating a circle of influence -- a group of people that you choose because they know they will hold you accountable and help you to grow and work towards your goals.
Darren Hardy in his book "The Compound Effect" refers to it as finding a peak-performance partner. Here is what he has to say:
"Another way to increase your exposure to expanded associations is by teaming up with a peak performance partner, someone as equally committed to study and personal growth as you. This person should be someone you trust, someone bold enough to tell you what they really thing about you, your attitudes, and performance. It could be that this person is a longtime friend, but he or she may be someone who doesn't know you well at all. The point is to get (and give) an unbiased, honest, outside perspective."
Want to be more enthusiastic?
Surround yourself with enthusiastic people.
Want to be a hard worker?
Surround yourself with those that work hard.
Want to be a winner?
Surround yourself with winners!
We constantly speak of the power of relationships. As coach, I have always had my own "Circle of Influence" -- people who believe in me and are there to help me grow. I think it is important for our student- athletes to also understand the importance of who they associate with and how it makes a tremendous difference in who they are and who they become.
The following comes from "Talent Is Never Enough" by John Maxwell:
1. Identify the Most Important People in Your Life
Who are the significant people in your life, the people you spend the most time with, the people whose opinions mean the most to you! Those people are your greatest influences. You need to identify who they are before you can access how they are influencing your talent.
2. Assess Whether They are Influencing You in the Right Direction
Once you have identified the people who are influencing you, you would be wise to discern how they are influencing you. Key questions include:
What does he think of me? Novelist Mark Twain advised "Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambition."
How does he or she behave toward me in difficult times? There's an old saying, "In prosperity our friends know us. In adversity we know our friends."
What does he bring out of me? British prime minister Benjamin Disraeli observed, "The greatest good you can do for another is not just to share your riches but reveal to him his own."
3. If Your Friends Aren't Friends, Then Make New Friends
If the people close to you are dragging you down, then it may be time to make some changes. Speaker Joe Larson remarked, "My friends didn't believe that I could be come a successful speaker. So I did something about it. I went out and found me some new friends."
