We are business owners.  Entrepreneurs.  Solopreneurs.  And with it comes a lot of rewards.  The joy of doing something you love. Something you’re passionate about.  And on the other side, a lot of extra balls to juggle working on the business and in the business.

So just how safe is your mindset?  Your peer group – your closest friends, colleagues and business associates – have an incredible impact on your state of mind.  And they can be toxic for your business.

After all, we are people first – which is why it’s important to start with mindset first, the business second.  Success is an INSIDE job.  Mindset is king.  Get that right and the business will follow.  Get it wrong and the best business idea will flounder.

You’ve probably heard that you are the average of the five people you spend the most time with – a quote made famous by Jim Rohn.  His theory is based on the law of averages.  Essentially, we are influenced – whether we like it or not – by those closest to us.

It suggests that being with high quality people will raise and keep your standards high (and cause them to keep getting higher).

Alternatively, hang out with people who are negative, pessimistic and prone to be unresourceful and … well, over time, you are likely to find that you start portraying some of those traits.  And dropping your standards in the process.  Or at the very least expending energy you can’t afford to waste.

You become who you drink coffee with. Associate only with positive, focused people who you can learn from and who will not drain your valuable energy with complaining and uninspiring attitudes. By developing relationships with those committed to constant improvement and the pursuit of the best that life has to offer, you will have plenty of company on your path to the top of whatever mountain you seek to climb. - Robin Sharma

So whom we hang out with affects our thinking, our self-esteem and our decisions.  Personal decisions.  Business decisions.  That’s major.

But why you might ask – I’m not a negative person, I'm my own person, with my own thoughts …?

The reason is because of the two universal fears – that we won’t be loved and that we won’t be enough. And subconsciously we start to modify our behaviour to make sure we continue to be accepted by those around us … and to fit in, that often means modelling their unresourceful behaviour.  One small thing at first.  Then another.  And then it becomes habit.  It’s insidious and we don’t realise we’re doing it.  It’s one of the reasons we procrastinate.  The reason we say we want to do something and then … don’t.  It’s that roadblock.  The thing that stops us taking that risk we know we need to take.

To find out if those around you are good or bad for your mindset – and your business - ask these questions on a regular basis (adapted from Jim Rohn).

•   Who am I around?

•   What am I allowing them to do to me?

•   What have they encouraged me to read?

•   What have they encouraged me to say?

•   Where am I going as a result?

•   What am I now thinking?

•   And most importantly, what am I becoming?

Then ask yourself the big question: “Is that okay?”  

If it’s not … do something about it.  There’s no time to waste.  The success of your business is at stake.