{"id":69166,"date":"2022-06-12T21:25:00","date_gmt":"2022-06-13T01:25:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=69166"},"modified":"2025-10-03T10:52:37","modified_gmt":"2025-10-03T14:52:37","slug":"choose-your-friends-wisely","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/choose-your-friends-wisely\/","title":{"rendered":"Choose Your Friends Wisely: Skills for Life"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

How do friends influence your life? Do your friends encourage and support you in your endeavors? Or do they judge and bring you down? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a famous quote says, you are the sum of the five people whom you spend the most time with. Being friends with toxic people<\/a> who always complain or bring you down will rub off you. Therefore, you must choose your friends wisely. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here is how your closest relationships influence your success and wellbeing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Editor\u2019s note: This article is part of\u00a0Shortform\u2019s guide to friendships<\/a>. If you like what you read here, there\u2019s plenty more to check out in the guide!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nurture Important Relationships<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

No matter how independent and skilled you are, you will not achieve success on your own. You need allies. But don\u2019t waste your time on low-quality relationships\u2014choose your friends wisely. Only invest your time and energy in people who help you the most and make you happy<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In your personal life, Koch recommends that you only devote time to people who help you and bring you joy. Reduce\u2014or ideally eliminate\u2014the time you spend with people who take more than they give. For example, if you routinely spend time with a friend who complains about everything and never offers anything positive or motivating, it\u2019s in your interests<\/a> to end that relationship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: Research supports Koch\u2019s claim that spending time with people who make us happy improves the quality of our lives. Studies show that spending time with family and friends helps us cope with stress and boosts our happiness<\/a>, even more so than increased income. Further, spending time with supportive family and friends gives us a stronger sense of purpose in life<\/a> and can even benefit our physical health by lowering our blood pressure and pulse, thereby reducing our risk for cardiovascular disease.) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Koch provides guidelines for how to choose professional allies who can help advance your career interests. Build a network of six or seven top performers<\/strong> who you trust and respect, broken down as follows: <\/p>\n\n\n\n