My New York City Favorites
You Are The Company You Keep, Especially In Your 20s
Your early 20s are beautiful, exciting, sad, fun, scary, adventurous and everything that you would least it expect them to be. And as I continue to live this early adulthood life of mine, the more I appreciate and understand the need for surrounding myself with people that empower me to be a better me.
This applies to friends, relationships, the workplace and more. Most people fail to realize that the old saying “You become who you hangout with” is not only true, but can be death sentence for your dreams if you don’t choose wisely.
Not only does your circle impact how you behave, but also how you think, feel and dream- and this backed by science.
Stop and ask yourself: What are the 5 closest people to me actually like?
What are their goals? Are they ambitious? Do they constantly looks for ways to improve their lives? Are they positive? Do they complain about simple things? Do they admit their mistakes and improve? Are they open to change if it means for the better?
If things aren’t adding up in your life, it might be time to subtract.
And I mean this in the best possible way. I do believe that some people are in your life for just a season and that’s perfectly ok.
What most fail to realize is that you naturally pick up the behaviors of others the more you surround yourself with them. Birds of a feather flock together. If you are constantly hanging out with negative, unmotivated people – you will become a negative, unmotivated person.
Align yourself with people who have already achieved the success you want
If you want to grow and achieve certain goals, align yourself with people who have already reached them. Talk to them, listen to them, learn from them. You will be surprised at how much your life can be changed by surrounding yourself with powerful people.
I am blessed to have driven, positive people around me daily that empower me to be a better person each day and I can’t wait to see the successes we bring upon each other in the future. 🙌✨
Training Your Mind
Did you know that you can workout your mind just as you do your body?
Everyone knows that consistent exercise keeps you physically fit, but there isn’t as much of a cultural focus on the importance of training your mind — something I have grown to be very passionate about.
I have always been a fan of listening to motivational messages by speakers and podcasters, especially in the morning since your brain is operating at 10.5 wave cycles per second from the moment you wake up until 20 minutes after. This means that whatever you are “feeding” your brain within the first 15-20 minutes after you wake up can affect your entire day.
Therefore, by listening to these positive and inspirational messages day after day right when you wake up, you can actually condition your mind to become more focused, motivated and goal-oriented. How cool is that?
Furthermore, just as the time of day that you listen to these messages are important, the content you are consuming are equally, if not more, significant to changing the way you think. Just as doing 100 pushups incorrectly won’t do you as good as 50 pushups done correctly – quality over quantity.
There is no “trick” to being successful, just as there isn’t a quick fix diet pill that can help you improve your weight, patience and consistency are key.
With that being said, below are some of my favorite motivational speakers to listen to when reprograming my mind for success:
Les Brown
Earl Nightingdale
Gary Vee
Simon Sinek
Do Not Listen With The Intent To Reply – But With The Intent To Understand
I recently finished reading the book Twenty-Two Letters, recommended and lended to me by a close friend – and boy, was it an eye-opener!
The stories were inspiring, because I often found myself imagining what it would be like if I were in any of the situations described. This led to a deeper 
understanding – then appreciation for the characters in the book, which reminded me of why listening to others is not just important, but necessary.
Everyone has a story of their own and one of the most valuable life lessons that I have learned so far is the act of simply listening – without the intent of replying but understanding.
Sounds simple, yet the digital-first society that we live in has made the very act of listening seem like a time-consuming and unrealistic task.
However, I think mindfully listening is one of the best skills that anyone can possess.
You will never agree with what everyone has to say – that’s human nature – but by taking the time to hear their side, their story and their reasonings you might just surprise yourself with a more observant mind, better patience and heightened gratitude.
MM
“All the world is my school and all humanity is my teacher.” ― George Whitman
Ironically, graduating college made me fall in love with learning again. I like to think of the phrase “learning something new everyday” tactically. The world is now my school and I’m loving every minute of it.
With that being said, I am so thankful that I work for a company who puts continued education and interdependence first. I recently completed the Complete Digital Marketing Course on Udemy and would highly recommend it to anyone who is passionate about staying up-to-date on digital marketing trends.
