I realize that I have been choosing to surround…
Page 107 I realize that I have been choosing to surround myself with unsupportive people, and I was trying very hard to get them to support me and that was never going to happen. This was a humbling moment
— from Friends, Community & Society (Relationships/Community/Society)
In the book
And learn to bring the best out of the people around you — through what one writer calls extreme listening, through coaching rather than talking, and through simple fairness; nurture, deliberately, your relationships with supportive friends, family, and mentors. So choose your circle with care. I once realized, to my own embarrassment, that I had surrounded myself with unsupportive people and was working terribly hard to win a support they were never going to give — a humbling thing to admit. Do not do that. […] Tend the emotional bank account. Make deposits — understand the person, keep your commitments, attend to the little things, and apologize quickly when you make a withdrawal; and remember that broken relationships almost always begin with a broken agreement. Choose your circle. Run, do not walk, from toxic people; stop trying to win over the unsupportive; and for the people who matter, ask whether you like, trust, and respect them. Keep the good ones. Stay curious about them; play win-win, wanting them to win as much as you do; and keep a few friends honest enough to challenge your thinking. — Friends, Community & Society (Relationships/Community/Society)