The flip of the calendar can inspire reflection and anticipation; a ready-made reason to make any change we want. With good reason, we often use this time to focus on our achievements and to motivate ourselves for continued success.
One thing we often overlook while we are mapping out bigger, hairier goals and visualizing amazing accomplishments is how we can improve our ability to face challenges. And a great way to stay focused is to create an expert entourage to help us maintain our perspective when we face those inevitable obstacles in our path.
Hello, my name is…
When considering candidates for our coterie, it helps to go straight to our colleagues in the field. When we find someone that does what we do at the level at which we do it, we create a safe zone within which we can easily talk about work challenges.
There is no learning curve in the conversation, we can quickly call for a reality check or go for a long lunch to talk things out. Either way, this colleague has gone or at the very least can understand the challenge we are facing.
She can provide insight, remind us we are not alone and talk about other ways to cope, conquer or cure whatever currently vexes us.
Awesome sauce
On the flip side, it is equally important to include someone in our entourage that exists in a completely different sphere than we do. This could be a sister, friend from long ago, hairstylist or even our children.
In other words, they are people who operate on a plane so different from ours that they could or would or should not even try to understand what we are going through. This is not because they are incapable of understanding, but because there is no reason for them to have to understand it.
Our obstacles have no bearing on their daily lives. Because of this, whether they intend to or not, they are the people that remind us beyond all doubt that the things we are going through really are not the whole world. They also provide a great counterbalance to our similarly situated colleagues noted above.
Pinch me!
To round out the team, we need to include a few inspiring people. This group keeps us focused forward. They remind us our dreams are possible because they are advancing their dreams.
They bring positivity into our world via their actions which also reminds us that there are positive things happening in the world that have nothing to do with the obstacles trying to stop us. They can also prompt us to refocus, to remember our side hustle, to dust off almost forgotten dreams, or to re-embrace good habits.
In short, they keep our reservoirs full, so we are not drained by our challenges.
Jim Rohn famously said that we are the average of the five people with whom we spend the most time. To ensure we not only exceed our goals but excel when faced with challenges, create an entourage of experts that will seamlessly support our success and keep us focused on our goals.
