For many ages, we have heard that if we have a good social circle we tend to be a happy and healthy person. But how is it related? As a child, I always thought if someone is happy from the inside, how does it matter if someone has a circle or not? But it came clear to me by a small incident that happened to me. When I was 10 years old, I had lice in my hair. My mother went to meet my teacher and asked her, “With whom is she sitting these days?” By this, she meant that probably I was sitting with a girl who had those lice in her hair and that’s why I got that. 

I, immediately, learned the lesson that our association and our circle matter a lot. The same goes for our minds. If we are associating with robbers, thieves, and wrong people, we tend to get their habits and if we are associating with wise people, we also get some wisdom. And we all know that any kind of negativity in our mind releases the Cortisol hormone in our body which is popularly known as the “Stress hormone” and stress creates so many health issues including Diabetes, Heart disease, High Blood pressure, etc.

Further, our social circle impacts our eating habits too. I remember my time when I was working with a multinational. My social circle was completely into parties. Every weekend we used to have liquor open and all kinds of delicacies to eat. Now the food we had was not something that can be counted into the ‘healthy food’ category. Maybe you would have a circle that is health conscious, so just notice around you. You would have health quite similar to your circle.

Now what shall we do? Should we change our circle? Well! that’s up to you. That depends on the kind of life you want. I would like to share some benefits of a good social circle.

1. Enhance your self-worth
2. Boost happiness
3. Reduce stress
4. Helps you cope with trauma, stress, and difficult situations
5. Encourage healthy lifestyle adaptations like joining fitness classes, workouts, and eating a healthy diet.
6. Helps you broaden your mindset
7. Gives you exposure to a variety of values

If maintaining a good social circle is so good, why do so many people find it hard to maintain relationships?

Well! there are many reasons for it. But two main reasons, I would highlight here.

1. As our age grows, we become too engrossed in our careers that we often don’t pay attention to our family, friends, and social circle.
2. Understanding the versatility of human behavior is not that easy sometimes.

What can be done?

There are many things you can do about it. Briefly, I would mention some tips here.

1. Willingness: There should be a willingness to take out time from our busy schedules to nurture our relationships. This is the first step towards stress-free life and relationships.
2. Investment in life skills: Invest your time in acquiring life skills that may guide you on conflict management techniques. These skills are really helpful in directing your life towards positivity and good health.
3. Time management: Managing your priorities and time is very important as your schedule is already tight to accommodate anything new. Learn that there are many aspects of your life to be balanced – health, career, money, personal growth, spouse, kids, family, and social circle. Learn to allocate time for each segment of your life.
4. Action: Start working on it now! If you are thinking that “When the right time will come, I will start working on it”, the right time has not come yet and will never come. Overthinking kills action habits. Start working on it right now.
5. Mentor: This is the most important part. You should have a mentor for each aspect of your life. A mentor should be someone who is leading the life which you want to live. Choose your mentor wisely. So he/she would be able to direct you if you are going wrong in your life anywhere.

To summarize, I would only say that the quality of association or social circle we have defines our life and health. Choose your association wisely. Always remember that a stress-free and healthy mindset is key to good health.