Socializing with Family and Friends to Recharge from the Battle of Life

Lake Michigan-Stonington

Balancing out your life with friends and family helps to reduce stress, improve your social connections, and put you in contact with a wider world. We Americans have a problem with focusing on our careers  to the point that it damages our social networks and leaves us isolated. As we bounce around in a fast paced world, many of those generational interactions start to dissipate and we find without support. We don't have to do this if we balance our need for friend and family with our need to succeed.

Success is not something that occurs in isolation. According to the book Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell those who are most likely to succeed don't live in isolation but spend a great proportion of their time in practice as well within a supportive network. The process of achieving requires having a brain and body in balance and this rests heavily on the quality of friends and family.

Good relationships will recharge you from the battle of life while poor relationships will take away from you. Make sure that you are developing quality relationships and friendships that lead to higher quality life and greater outcomes in other areas of your life.

A few tips for balancing your life for greater success:

1. Reduce stress by engaging with family and friends.
2. Improve your motivation by recharging your batteries with socializing "down time"
3. Spend time with others in quality activities versus energy draining activities.
4. Ensure friends and family are supportive. If they are not supportive it is beneficial to reduce contact with negative members.
5. Know which family and friends are for what activities. Some are for deeper connection others are for traveling, dancing, etc...
6. Try and focus most of the week on your goals but spend at least 2-3X a week a few hours with friends.