Career Mission's Chief Executive Officer, A. Harrison Barnes, in a webinar discussed the importance of planting yourself in good soil. In other words, there is nothing more important to your long-term success than finding and keeping yourself in a healthy environment.

Harrison strongly believes that you become like those whom you surround yourself with. If you live or work alongside people with negative natures, you will begin to absorb this negativity. This sort of negativity is not just confined to individuals but is common to many organizations, companies, families and other groups. They can rub off on you and influence the course of your life, for the worse. You simply cannot spend your time with negative people and inside negative organizations and have a good life. Many people go on vacations, attend self-improvement seminars, or do inspirational reading to actually help themselves tear apart from negative environments and make enormous transformations in their lives.

What Harrison is trying to tell you is that, you need to realize that you may be in destructive relationships or other situations that serve to keep you down, frustrated and depressed. Like plants need good quality soil to grow in, you too need to be in an environment that supports your dreams and helps you to grow as a person. Without paying attention to the conditions you live or work in, you simply cannot be happy. The power is entirely in your hands and you need to make sure that you do everything to avoid spending valuable time with people who pollute your body or mind. It is a simple truth that there is nothing that you do which can change such people, but they can surely pull you down if you are not careful enough. The powerful real estate developer from Texas who Harrison mentions in the article, refused to be dragged down by the negative environment he was in and made sure that he was in an environment that supported his growth and progress. Likewise, it is crucial to plant yourself in good soil, and grow into the life you dream of living.