The effects of bad associations and environment are evident and the cause of lots of changes that occur within our minds which are replicated outwardly by us.
Our thinking and reasoning can be affected by the environment where we find ourselves, and even more by the people living in it whom we associate with on a daily basis.
The environment, if negative, can impact our mindset in such a way that it tends to redirect our manner of reasoning, and perspective of viewing life.
The environment and the people in it can directly or indirectly affect our decisions, our mode of thinking, feelings, and emotions, most especially our core values beliefs in one way or the other.
This is why we need to be cautious about who we decide to associate ourselves with and the kind of environment we should live in.
Sometimes, inherited identity, work, school and family relocations, can bring us face to face with an environment and people we never asked or wished for.
The following are the negative effects of bad association and environment:
- They can lock up and limit the mind-set to just a few positive ideas
Our minds can be set or configured to allow for the random inflow of dynamic ideas as the mind is put into its thinking mood, this condition can be limited if such a mind is allowed to stay long in a bad environment or with people with negative minds.
Staying around negative minds tends to close up or lock up the mind, thereby shielding it from accessing unlimited positive ideas that can flow in at any time. There is an effect on the mind for every negative thing it sees or hears.
If not dealt with at an early stage, it can come back to affect its future decisions as it can be corrupted to think less of innovative ideas that can only be unlocked by moving to a like-minded environment with similar kind of reasoning that would pave ways for the inflow of new ideas.
When looking for the effects of bad association and environment, the easiest place to look is in the mind.
In this case, when you think, you will find that sometimes your thoughts will begin to drift from more positive ideas towards negative ideas contrary to before.
In other cases, when you think you will be unable to reach a certain frequency of thought any more as you used to. At this point, you might want to examine the friends you keep and the environment where you tend to find yourself often.
They are both important when evaluating the status of our mindsets in anything we do because they are the closest and fastest factors that can affect our thoughts, actions, and reactions towards life events.
- They can kill dreams
Dreams, visions, and goals are a very critical part of human nature that creates a drive that surges man to greatness.
Most times, we develop our dreams right from childhood and sometimes at a certain stage of life, and we tend to run with it, holding onto it like a hinge that carries us.
A bad environment in most cases can cause our dreams to die off as constant negativity coming from negative people can destroy the mindset.
It can bring down our dreams from a hundred to a zero. That is a kill to our imaginative mind and also our imaginative future.
The effects of bad associations and environment can make to become lazy thinkers. Henry Ford says, “thinking is the hardest work there is, which is probably the reason why so few engage in it.”
When bad associations and environment catches up with a person with a big dream, there is a high possibility that if that person continues to dwell in such an environment and with such associations, he or she might end up giving up on that dream.
Meaning that bad associations and environment brings along with it a negative effect that everyone who wishes to go far in life must try their best to avoid.
- They can reduce the size of dreams and visions
Another clear instance where the effects of bad associations and environment are evident is in the fact that it has the power to reduce or cut down the size of one’s dream.
In this case, instead of the environment or people within it killing off our dreams, they help to reduce its size from ‘Big’ to ‘Medium’, from ‘Medium’ to ‘Small’, and from ‘Small’ to ‘Anyhow life turns out’
This process often happens without our conscious permission, we only come to light with it when we suddenly realize the transition has already taken place.
At this point, our big-picture visions tend to be reduced in size from one size to the other leaving us to run for a cut-down-to-sized dream picture which we may now refer to our big picture. We call it our big picture, but in its true nature, it has become little.
This can be different when it is in a different environment where we are surrounded with positive minds or an environment where everything you eye beyond is big and your emotions are trying its best to think of ways it can reach such highlight.
The effects of bad associations and environment can be damaging to a person’s dream because it will cause the person to try to fit into what their eyes can see forcing the mind to contrast in other to fit in within the existing environment.
- They can cause us to abandon a plan
The effects of bad associations and environment can also be evident in a plan already in motion.
It can cause us to abandon our motion plans. Often we could have plans already in motion, just for it to be stopped as a result of influence from a negative environment and people, at this point, they become obstacles to our big goals but because we are settling in with their style of life, we tend to neglect or postpone our plans.
In cases where the person working on the plan isn’t strong enough to stay on the plan, the person might begin to find out that time has been cut off from the project.
The effects of bad associations and environment can cause the person to have the feeling that their plan wouldn’t lead to anything reasonable in life.
When we keep bad associations, it becomes unlikely that they will ever encourage us to pursue what we have passion for in our hearts, which we wish to work on and it also becomes more likely that we might abandon our plan along the road. Except for a selected few are willed and relentless and.
This is the reason why being aware of the associations we indulge in is very important especially when you have something working for you.
- They can initiate self-doubts and fear
An unfavorable environment can cause a mind full of hope and faith to develop or initiate fear and doubt within. The effects of bad associations and environment can clearly turn a person full of hopes, faith, and life to become doubtful of their dreams, plans, and work.
Negative words can discourage a strong mind; it gives introduces leaks, which can come in the form of self-doubt, fear, and lack of faith which dreams require in order to strive and survive.
And if that person isn’t strong enough to withstand the heat, then the strong hope and faith which has been in the heart keeping up the flame and fire burning will melt.
They can cause one to begin to have doubts about the possibility of their dreams. That instance where one wants to see the tail from the head before even starting.
The fear of failing and of not succeeding can begin to take over because the encouragement and spirit of the person are being clouded by negative people and environment causing them to keep going down in spirit until the person probably reaches a breaking point.
- They can increase self disbelieve
Every being at one point or the other can develop a little feeling of self-disbelief which can sprout out anytime.
Being close to negative people can exponentially increase the little self-disbelief already in existence which we might be working so hard to reduce to the barest minimum.
When a person begins to question their self, and begin to ask the “who am I and what am I doing’ questions, then it can mean that either the person isn’t moving ahead or that the person isn’t where he or she had planned to be at that point in time.
The effects of bad associations and environment can become a limiting factor to someone which can cause one to question their self believe about everything in their lives.
A belief that says that you are incapable of pulling the string. A belief where your ability, capability is put to questioning.
This is because the effects of bad associations and environment can cause someone to perform below their capacity, capability and below their expectation.
- They can eat up ones precious thinking time
Thinking is an important part of who we are, we tend to think at one point when we are in search of inspirations and ideas to solve problems.
Our concentration span can be reduced if we dwell so much in an environment or with bad associations that do not allow us the time and chance to be alone.
It’s so had to find time to be alone when you keep bad association or you find yourself in a bad environment where they do not respect or understand the necessity for being alone to think you will find your thinking span reduced from time to time.
If for instance on a normal day you are able to stay an hour thinking of a way of solving a problem you will find out that the effects of bad associations and environment will probably cause that time to be reduced to thirty minutes and maybe even 20 minutes and you will lose concentration and focus.
This is because the moment you are being distracted by negativity or nuisance, your emotions get affected which can force it to adjust to the situation to allow it accommodate the changes In the processing of accommodating such changes is the moment your thinking span gets depleted by day.
- They can steal our ‘meditation ability
As the light glows, so does it dwindle if not recharged or supercharged continuously. Our meditation ability can be probably gone if we do not practice to enhance it. The effects of bad associations and environment can have a huge impact on our meditation ability in such a way that it can steal the ability from us.
At some point, we might forget that we have such ability and might not be able to use it anymore as our brain can no longer dwell in such an environment where it can stay unperturbed for hours without interference from the outside world.
We can lose our ability to think if we don’t engage in it or probably, we may lose a part of our ability to deep think when it calls for it. Aside from losing thinking time, losing our ability to meditate is more damaging because it can be hard to retrieve when gone.
On the contrary, dwelling in a positive or good environment gives us the opportunity to engage in such habits because it can be understood by those around us. Losing the ability becomes less likely, instead can be fueled
- They can cause us to change our most cherished habits
Bad associations and environments have a huge impact on our habits especially when it has to do with our most cherished habits. If one of your habits is reading, associating yourself with people who are negative about books, you will find yourself yielding to their appeal for you to reduce your rate of reading when they feel and think it’s not giving you enough time to have fun with them.
Associating with negative people or staying in a negative environment can influence our habits, in the sense that we might find ourselves deviating from our core habits. It can force our positive values to change which in turn changes our habits.
If you are a deep thinker, you will find yourself losing your oil because friends would make you think of it twice, in the process of trying to please will also be the process of you losing it. The oil will begin to dry up little by little. This is more of the reason why you have to be aware of the friends you keep.
The effects of bad associations and environment can ruin any habit and can quickly make one learn a new habit that may end up ruining their lives.
- They can cause us to forget who we really are as individuals
The effects of bad associations and environment can cause a person to forget who they are as individuals. It causes one to forget how they started and the reason why they are still where they are.
Often, when we begin to ride along with people of a negative mindset, we tend to forget who we really are in the inside.
Our originality begins to fade away to our faces. Boundaries which we always kept, begin to break down and as time passes by we find ourselves engaged in unproductive discussions which in no way support our original individuality.
With time, we may begin to shift from who we are to who we are not, and the moment we are in the web of who we are not, we find it difficult to retrace our steps.
Bottom-line
There are so many negative effects of bad associations and environment that you can encounter on your way to achieving your life dreams and goals.
Any of the above-mentioned reasons can keep you at a spot, draw you backward or write you off entirely from achieving your life dreams and goals if you do not start paying close attention to who you stay close to as you venture into your daily life activities.
There are different ways of dealing with a situation where you find yourself in a negative environment.
The main idea is to stay positive while in a negative environment, and while working out ways on how to get out to avoid getting contaminated.
Returning to that same environment to effect change should be a choice after getting out. Be wary of the effects that of bad associations and environment bring along with. They can change the cause of a person’s life in a matter of seconds.
What other effects do you think the bad associations and environment have on a person’s life? Tell us in the comment section.
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