I live by this quote.
Like, literally I do.
In fact, let’s read it again for good measure…
“You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.”
It’s one of the opening slides of every Connection Workshop we do (as it was last night) and I like to publish the above image every time we open up our Connect with Anyone community. It’s a quote I read almost daily.
I believe there is no more powerful life hack in the history of the world than the people you choose to surround yourself with. Start a business, change careers, lose 50 pounds, run an ultramarathon. No matter what you’re looking to do, the people change everything.
And what’s every crazier is the impact community can have on your health (or lack thereof).
Last week my good friend Lissa Rankin sent me a quote that she said I could share with you all. Lissa is an MD who recently wrote the runaway NYT bestselling book Mind Over Medicine. In it she digs deep into peer-reviewed medical research from the most reputable establishments on the planet in an effort to discover what really causes and/or prevents disease.
The results will blow your mind. She basically found that whatever triggers the stress response most in your body, is the most deadly. That led hear to say the following…
“Copious scientific data proves that loneliness is a greater risk to your health than smoking or lack of exercise, and finding your tribe is better than any vitamin, diet, or exercise regimen.”
– Lissa Rankin, M.D.
Scary? Um, yeah.
Then I came across this one from Albert Einstein from decades before the term ‘social media’ was first uttered…
Seeing both these messages in the same week, from people I deeply respect, brought a totally new meaning to the community work we’re doing at Live Your Legend, Connect with Anyone and Live Your Legend LOCAL.
You see, I believe we’re in the middle of a global connection crisis. While technology has the potential to bring us closer together, for the most part things like Facebook friends are being used as a replacement for real relationships and it’s destroying our potential for genuine connection. We’re left lonely, uninspired and as it turns out, anything but healthy.
This frightens me.
But the good news?
The beauty of all this is…
Who we choose to hang out with (or choose not to) is 100% in our control.
That is why my team and I have poured our heart and soul into creating and constantly improving How to Connect with Anyone – a course and tight-knit community dedicated to surrounding yourself with the people who refuse to let you fail. We even hand place you into your own mastermind & accountability teams with other like-minded members, so you have a new support team from day one.
As of 9am PST this morning, we’ve opened the course to its next crop of students (I like to call them family members). And this time around we’ve totally revamped the course based on alumni feedback. That’s how we roll :). I cannot wait to see what you all think of it! You can check out the details here.
This community is small and intimate by design.
We only take a max of 250 members each opening, and as of writing this it looks like there are about 198 left (the folks on our Insider’s wait list always get a chance to join early).
I’ve never been more proud of a project I’ve worked on (or the results it’s gotten for its members). If you think a more empowering environment (of people who actually believe in your wild and crazy ideas) would help you make your impact on the world, I encourage you to check it out. It has sold out the last three times we’ve opened it, and either way, we’ll close the doors next Tuesday at midnight so we can all dig into the material as a team together.
Also, to celebrate the opening, I thought it’d be fun to give away a few things directly related to building world-class connections.
So, if you are one of the first few to join:
First 10 to join get a print copy of How to Win Friends and Influence People - my absolute favorite book for building genuine connections!
First 48 people can get access to hand-ons private coaching from me and our team throughout the whole course (more on that option below)
Every member gets a free copy of our Live Off Your Passion “Lite” career course – since ‘leading with passion’ is the foundation for genuine connection.
If you already know this is something you want to do, you might as well grab a spot sooner rather than later so you can get in on the bonuses. But only if feels like the right fit for your big plans.
Speaking of coaching, here’s what I’m even more excited about this time around…
Far and away the #1 new feature readers and past members have asked for is: “More hands-on accountability and access to Scott and his team”. And when our members speak, we listen!
For CWA3 we added a totally new level of accountability and intimacy that ended up completely transforming the results members got. It was incredible to see. And because it’s so hands-on, we can only offer it to the first 60 members (12 of those spots have already been taken). You can learn more about the coaching package under Option 2 on the course description page.
We have hundreds of alumni from 33 countries excited to welcome in our members (the forums are already buzzing with activity), and our alumni have also offered to answer any questions for you guys if you have them. Just let us know using the green help button on the left of this page.
Also be sure to check out all our member stories. Here’s one of my favorites – I love how Gregory’s story shows the type of possibility that a supportive and inspiring team of peers and mentors can create…
I completed a third of the course and it changed my life. Ever since I joined your course, I designed my own website, I wrote and published my own book, I moved to Italy, I met an awesome girl and I won that Toastmasters contest!
- Gregory B., Rome, Italy
Step #1: Find One Person Who Inspires You – and hang out with them!
And just to get those of you new around here up to speed…
Because I believe the topic of environment is so important, over the next week I’ll be sharing some directly actionable things you can do on your own to start transforming your surroundings. I also know that at max only 250 of you will be joining the course, plus it might not make sense for some of you at your current stage. You know better than I do and that’s totally fine. But either way I still want to help you make some positive change.
So… Step #1 is to find one person who inspires you.
Meeting and interacting with inspiring people was the single biggest factor that allowed me to find and do work I love. I’ve always kept a journal of everyone I come across who does something I admire. Over time I built up an unbelievable list of possibilities. That lead to more experiments, and those experiments eventually lead me to Live Your Legend.
The tragedy is that with over 80% of people are not happy with the work they do. That means most of the people around us do anything but inspire possibility. So we have to take conscious steps to move away from them and towards those who support and encourage our big ideas. The best way to kick a bad habit, is to replace it with a new healthier one. Same with people.
I know that can be a big process. As always, the key is to start small – with one person:
Think about the people in your life. Who do you look up to? Who do you admire, or maybe even envy (in a healthy, excited way)? We all have at least one person – a friend, colleague, family member. Or maybe a friend of a friend through someone else in your life.
Pick one of those people and make a conscious effort this week to hang out with him or her – invite them to a lunch or a workout or just give them a call. Maybe even tell them your plan to transform your surroundings and that they’re high on the list. That can be the ultimate compliment.
Can’t think of someone? First try harder. If that doesn’t work, then go to where the inspiring people hang out. Find an event in town, join a group on Meetup.com or check out craigslist and LYL Local. Every town, big or small, has a ton of options.
And to start even smaller, watch a video or TED talk – the easiest way on the planet to surround yourself with inspiration!
Reserve an hour this week to find that one person and spend a little time with them. See what happens.
It’s sometimes hard to believe how simple this stuff is, and how world-changing it can be.
I know it has been for me.
Remember, environment is everything. And it’s 100% in your control.
You don’t have to take a course to transform your surroundings, but if you’d like some specific guidance, I have a feeling our Connect with Anyone family could help. There’s never any pressure to buy anything we create, and please only consider joining if you really plan to use the course and participate in the community, and if it makes financial sense. But my guess is you already know the answer to all that.
So…are you proud of your average 5?
-Scott
P.S. Whether you’re interested in the course or not, I think you’ll have fun checking out some of our member success stories. Also a pretty easy way to surround yourself with inspiration! They’re spread throughout this page.
Oh and congrats to Oksana and David for winning our second two scholarship spots! Oksana plans to build a school for gifted kids and David will be using the course to make the connections necessary to inspire more of the world through his gift for music. Well done. You two will fit in just fine ;).