"Show me your friends, and I'll show you your future"

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It is akin to the saying 'If you are the smartest person in the room, you are in the wrong room". I totally agree with it.

Damn, my friends need new friends.

Can’t speak for career but as a musician, this is an extremely important piece of advice. There are many, many talented people out there who know how to play an instrument. There are only a few who are mature and professional in their craft.

By cultivating relationships with the right people around six years ago and moving on from relationships with the wrong people, I went from a person with musical talent who plays in his bedroom to someone who makes ~$750/month with his hobby.

I understand the meaning of this but it's quite elitist and materialist.

Are you saying someone who works for a non-profit at a homeless shelter where they're around homeless people all day is going to be reduced to the behaviors and intellect of homeless people?

Are teachers at inner city schools who spend most of their days teaching troubled youths doomed to be like said troubled youths?

This mentality cuts against reaching a hand out to the downtrodden. It seems to push you towards only associating with those above you while giving a middle finger to those "beneath" you.

Should no one ever associate with people of lower class/wealth/status? Taking this literally seems to indicate yes.

quote:

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I understand the meaning of this but it's quite elitist and materialist.

Are you saying someone who works for a non-profit at a homeless shelter where they're around homeless people all day is going to be reduced to the behaviors and intellect of homeless people?

Are teachers at inner city schools who spend most of their days teaching troubled youths doomed to be like said troubled youths?

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Agree that it's a ridiculously reductive statement. Many of us live around, work with, and have family/friends that run the gamut of social status, academic accomplishment, and material success. Perhaps if you are merely a nakedly ambitious, success/career driven person, this philosophy works for you....but what a sad, one-dimensional life.

Isn't a much better approach to see people for what they are? Enjoy your soccer buddies for the pickup games, but don't necessarily build a whole life around that. Know that your friends from high school still make you laugh until you cry, but they're not the people to give you career advice. Stay in touch with your crazy-arse Pentecostal backwoods cousins, who can find deer on a foggy morning, but don't get caught up in their End Times worldview that precludes saving for retirement.

In short, strive to be a well-rounded person who thoughtfully considers everyone he/she encounters....who is smart enough to ignore reductive advice dispensed by so-called gurus.

Also, many of the ills of contemporary America are caused by lack of empathy/understanding/no common ground. If you surround yourself with "just" the right sort of person, what hope do you have of understanding and appreciating the breadth of people in our 21st century USA? Pay attention to the people NOT like you, you might actually learn something useful.

I think the premise of the statement makes sense and gets people to think about how they are spending their time. Surround yourself with people and activities that make you better, regardless of what that is. I've made some tough choices on friendships in recent years after having a revelation that I was spinning my tires with those that didn't challenge me to become greater. It's tough when you've been so close to some of these people, but over time I've realized it's been one of the best decisions I've ever had to make for myself. Since then, I've noticed such a better path of decisions on all aspects of my life between business, marriage, and overall health. Much clearer on where I am going and want to be moving forward.

/rant

Lol, so what if dropping all your friends in exchange for 'better' ones doesnt make you a better person/more successful? Then youre still a loser but with no friends?