Good Company

Just the other day I read an article that I found very interesting and something I have been saying for some time. The article was titled "In a Bad Mood? You Might Have Picked It Up." I always find it interesting when someone has to do a study to figure out what most of us know as common sense. The study found out that, like a cold, good and bad moods can be 'picked up' from those around you. The study came out of the University of Warwick (in Coventry England). The study stated that "Evidence suggest mood may spread from person to person via a process known as social contagion." The team also found out that mood isn't the only thing that spreads among friends - so do symptoms of depression like helplessness and loss of interest. While those are not strong enough to push other friends into depression, they still can bring us down. The researchers also found that having more friends who suffer from bad moods makes it more likely for you to be in a bad mood. The good point of this study is that they also found that the opposite applies, people who surround themselves with more positive people will be more positive.

Like I said earlier, this is pretty much common sense, or is it. I have seen a lot of students who really have a lot of potential but they are brought down simply because of the people they hang with. I don't know if it is peer pressure, trying to fit in with friends or simply what this study says, that hanging around people who are always down can bring you down also. If you hang around friends who don't care about their grades, then it could be possible that you might quit caring. If you hang around friends who are disrespectful to the school, then you might become that way. It's like catching a cold. You may not want to be that way, but the "virus" effects you.

Even if this sounds simplistic or silly to you, I hope that you will take notice of the kind of friends you hang around with in lab or sit with at lunch. What kind of attitudes do they carry? Are they good students who care about their future and graduating? I really think you will be amazed when you start hanging around people who are positive and laugh a lot. You will notice that it has a tendency to rub off on you. I have been fortunate to hang around people in my life that make me laugh, have positive outlooks on life, enjoy kicking back and overall are really good people. They know who they are and I thank them for that.

This last week or two I have been very fortunate to hang around some really positive people. I have been part of the National Technical Honor Society and also selecting a great group of Junior Rotarians. One thing I have noticed is that when I see them around school, they are usually involved in some pretty good company.