Your phone buzzes and you see a notification pop up that says “xxx has messaged you”. How does that message make you feel?
Do you get excited and want to open it right away? Or do you cringe and feel a knot in your gut? The emotions you feel when this happens is the indication that someone is either giving spirit or taking spirit.
You are the average of the five people that you hang around the most. And there are two camps of people – Spirit Givers and Spirit Takers.
We know that for some people (those that dislike their job or have a rough home life) the hour they come to the gym may be the best hour of their day. This is one of the reasons that we put so much emphasis on attracting the right type of person to join our gym community. We want everyone’s hour at the gym to be full of awesomeness, laughter, good vibes, and positivity!
Over the next week, audit your relationship circles and listen to your gut. When you see someone, does it make you smile or do your shoulders slump a bit?
Then, subtract the negative and add some positive.
This sounds simple, but it’s really difficult. Sometimes it’s the people that are closest to you that you need to let go of. Sometimes, it’s even an immediate family member. That doesn’t mean you never see them again. But, it does mean that you take control and dictate the interactions. You choose how much spirit you give them.
In the case of a co-worker, you likely can’t simply cut them from your life, You should acknowledge that they are taking more than they are giving and make choices to avoid them socially. You certainly need to keep a professional work environment and do your job, but you also need to make sure you protect and enhance your positive spirit.
The fun part of all of this is adding new awesome people! This has been very simple for me personally. Everyone in the community at Recursive is spirit giving (and that’s not be coincidence…)
Other ways you can surround yourself with cool people is to be more social and actively participate in groups. Full of amazing people, you can learn so much from being around them. You can also volunteer your time, which doubles as a way to give back to the community. It’s a win-win!
So, if you are feeling mentally drained at the end of each day, take a look at those that you spend the most time with. Trust your gut. Subtract the people that suck your energy. Add more people that give you spirit!