Not Where You Want to Be? Take a Look Around…

As a fitness expert and author, I have come to enjoy the tremendous benefits of living in Boulder, Colorado, not only because it’s considered by Outdoor Magazine to be THE fittest place to live in the U.S., but also because of the diverse number of outdoor activities available, along with great weather and the stunning terrain of the Rockies. What many might not know is that Boulder is also one of the smartest communities in the states. With more people with their Master’s degree per capita than other towns, the community is packed with an abundance of innovative thinkers with a burning passion to help reshape their community.

Living here, I have been fortunate to be surrounded by many of those great minds, which include several amazing authors I now call friends.

I recently spoke with my friend Brian Schwartz, the award-winning author of 50 Interviews: Entrepreneurs Thriving in Uncertain Times, the first in a series of books that taps into lessons of those who have successfully gone before you. Revealing new truths and exploding myths, the series features “in their own words” interviews with role models who inspire us by proving that anything is possible and that we all have the ability to make a unique difference in the world. We discussed some of the distinctions of an entrepreneur mindset. This is what Brian had to say:

What is reality? Reality is based on our beliefs, which are most heavily influenced by others and our environment… If you were to analyze your closest relationships, I’d bet you’d find a set of similar beliefs and a common financial worth (if you took an average). For better or worse, we tend to mirror those we associate most with! If you are currently unemployed, and you surround yourself with others that are unemployed, there’s a decent chance you’re still unemployed. You can find instances of the impact of “shared beliefs” in many areas of life: welfare, military, education, politics, etc.

My point is that if you feel “stuck” where you are, it’s largely due to the beliefs you have adopted from those around you. Nothing will likely change until you change your beliefs. And your beliefs aren’t likely to change until you get away from the people and places that influence those beliefs. So if you aren’t somewhere you want to be, take a look around you. Spend less time with those you are normally with and more time with those who are where you want to be! The more you associate with those you aspire to be, the more your reality will begin to reflect your wishes.

Most of us remember being told this lesson from our parents many years ago, “If you hang out with the kids that get into trouble…”

I have definitely experienced this in my life, and for some reason or another, certain life lessons not only needed to be hammered into my numb skull at times, but the skull needed to be fractured a bit, fractured in a way that allowed a different way of thinking to take the place of stupidity, (or maybe it was arrogance), some sort of belief I held on to that really wasn’t serving me, or others around me, very well. Now this sure didn’t happen in every area of my life, nor the majority. However, I have found that, at times, I’ve complained about aspects of my life not working rather than taking the “necessary level of responsibility” for doing something about it to achieve a different outcome, or should I say, moved myself to a more conducive environment for creating the change that I desired. I’m sure I’ve probably worn out more than a few patient ears of friends and family over the years. But I guess that’s the way my learning curve has tended to be at times. I used to think this was a strength of mine, my ability to endure things in my life that I just didn’t enjoy, until I finally woke up and realized that I was truly the one who was manifesting this dissatisfaction in my life.

If you are feeling a little stuck where you are in life and would like to receive more tips and words of wisdom and inspiration from Brian on how you, too, can adopt the mindset of an entrepreneur to not only survive, but thrive in these tough economic times, I strongly recommend you click here for more details.