Todays blog entry is dedicated to the all important category of relationships.  I remember reading Dale Carnegie's "How To Win Friends And Influence People" some time ago and noting his words of wisdom.  His message was simple - if you want to be successful in life, then you need to surround yourself with people who are already successful.  At the very least you need to surround yourself with people who support you and who have a generally positive outlook on life. 

Of course relationships fall into different categories and for the purpose of this exercise I am suggesting that you segment them as follows:-

• Personal
• Professional
• Family
• Social
• Other

Action Make a list of names under the five sub-categories above.  After you have done that, for each person you have named, ask yourself if that person makes a positive contribution i.e. the relationship is supportive in some way.  For example, under professional you might have a networking colleague who constantly asks you for information but gives you little or nothing in return.  I suggest that for each person you putter either the letter P=Positive Contribution or D=Drain. 

I need you to be really ruthless in this exercise and examine your relationships very carefully.  Ask yourself, how much time do I invest in each of these relationships?  For what purpose?

Now determine:  Who do you need to spend less time with?  Who do you need to spend more time with?  Who do you need to phase out completely?

It may appear to be a harsh exercise AND it may feel uncomfortable, however, the result is a worthwhile one.  As you clean up your relationships you will be surrounded by positive people who make a valuable contribution to your:- personal, professional, social and family life. 

In the 'Other' relationship category you may have some embryonic relationships that you are not sure about right now.  That is OK, just make sure that you monitor them.  Assign some kind of revue date by which you will have decided which category they fit into and if they are making a positive contribution.  You may need to build some new relationships with people who have knowledge, skills or subscribe to similar values to your own. 

Building, maintaining and nurturing relationships is a worthwhile pursuit and needs allocated time and effort.  Working on them consistently will afford you rich rewards.  Take some time right now to plan who you are going to see, and when, over the next 3 months.  Who do you need to contact first?  How will you contact them?  What is the best frequency?  Who do you need to surround yourself with to accelerate your success?