When you think about your sphere of influence, who do you think of? What people are influencing your decisions, thoughts, emotions, mannerisms, relationships, financial decisions, friendships, etc? Now, let’s take it one step further. What apps do you use? What movies or TV shows do you watch? What books do you read? And what materials do you use throughout your day? Each of these things will help mold who you are, your level of contentment, and how you view where you are in life. Your life is ALWAYS being discipled by someone or something!

I have learned and have been reflecting on this specifically in the area of personal finances lately. And let me tell you, this has NOT been a breeze by any means, in fact, it has been extremely challenging! I have had to be very intentional in who and what I let influence me daily, and this mindfulness has been revolutionary. Because of my age and place in life, one of my biggest influences has been my friends. I have wonderful friends, and I have learned a lot from each of them, but what I have also realized is that they are limited in their life experiences as most of us are in our early 20s; and therefore, it has also been beneficial to seek out those who are older as mentors or those who have been specifically trained in the financial realm.

As you think about your financial circle of influence, I want to challenge you to investigate different avenues instead of just your immediate peers. Think about topics of things that you want to learn more about. Write down a few words and then ask others who are older, wiser, and have more life experience what they have learned in those areas or what resources have been most beneficial to them. Search YouTube videos of that topic but remember to make sure the source is reliable. Don’t just choose people in the same sphere of life either. Choose different people in your faith, professional, family, and school spheres and lean into those people and meet regularly. Find a mentor to challenge you who will see things that you can’t see because you are limited in your own experience.

Last but not least, I would like to challenge you to review what you are implementing from your circle of influence. I attended the Kingdom Advisors Conference this past week, and this is one area in which I was challenged. As I stated earlier, we are always being discipled by something. However, are you doing anything with what you are finding and being given? I think it is amazing to do all the work to find answers and knowledge, but if you don’t do anything with it and don’t make the changes, what is the point of doing all that research, finding mentors, and having conversations?

So how could you grow if you simply were intentional to implement what you are learning daily? It is as simple as taking the first baby step repeatedly. Keep taking these small steps and before you know it, you will be running a marathon, and likely with some pretty amazing people!