Let me start with a quote from Jim Rohn that you have probably heard before: "You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with." Most people deeply understand just how crucial the people and environments around them really are. It is exactly why parents are willing to move to new neighborhoods and invest relentlessly in their children's education. They know firsthand that a better environment is the most important thing they can give their kids.
But Kapil Gupta, a Silicon Valley CEO and mind mentor to PGA golfers, pushed this idea even further.
"You are the average of everything you surround yourself with."
The Brain Absorbs Everything
Every single moment, our brain absorbs everything we hear, see, and feel. If you spend all day watching highly stimulating short-form videos, your brain will naturally start craving only fast, intense stimulation. If you spend your entire day scrolling and killing time on social apps, your brain will inevitably start to mirror those apps.
That is why we must be incredibly careful about the things we do every day, no matter how trivial they seem.
I recently listened to a podcast featuring Chamath Palihapitiya, a legend in the venture capital world. What he said left such a profound impression on me that I have to share it exactly as he said it.
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| Chamath Palihapitiya explaining how daily social habits reshape your business mind |
"Retrain your brain. Start by turning off your social apps and giving your mind a real break. At the very least, you'll become less dependent on other people's opinions.
Think about how it all connects. How does posting a photo of your waffles relate to building a business and making money?
Social media is training your brain to constantly seek stimulation. And that same brain is the one you use to run a business. It's not two different brains. It's one brain. Your brain is being trained right now, whether you realize it or not.
Please understand this: everything you spend your time on is actively reshaping your psychology and your mental wiring. And that same brain is the one you need to make money with.
So if you don't change your everyday habits, you'll bring those exact same habits into your business."
The Shift in Perspective
Since college, I have listened to podcasts from Silicon Valley masters every single day. Simply surrounding myself with my role models brought about a massive transformation in me. I am not some extraordinary person, and I have not achieved world-altering success. But what I want to talk about right now is the shift in my mindset.
In the past, money and competition were everything to me. My ultimate goal was simply to accumulate more money than anyone else. That is why I chose network engineering as a career, purely because I heard it paid well and was relatively easy. Back then, I only chased whatever trends others said were worth chasing.
But today, my personal beliefs hold far more weight than money. I wrote about this in detail in Why Chasing Money Is the Worst Business Strategy in the AI Era, and I still stand by every word. Of course, I am not saying money is unnecessary. But since all humans are going to die anyway, and life is nothing but a fleeting moment, I came to the realization that living according to my own beliefs is the only true answer.
The Illusion of the Shortcut
Another massive shift was developing a long-term perspective. I used to think purely in the short term. I wanted everything quickly and easily. Instead of building foundational knowledge and raising my own value, I only looked for shortcuts that would yield fast results. I honestly believed I had to see results in six months or one year, not five or ten.
But now, as I explained in
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| My face when people criticize me for stating obvious basics |
People sometimes criticize me for stating the obvious. But I firmly believe these obvious things must be the foundation. The posts I write might seem like basic knowledge, and there are always people who dismiss them as unimportant. Most of those people are just like the old me: only interested in shortcuts that promise quick results.
But let me be clear. A path like that does not exist. And even if it did, it does not align with my core beliefs. That is why I focus exclusively on fundamental principles.
Reprogramming Your Mental Wiring
Bringing it all back to the beginning. I believe we must constantly listen to the words of the masters so that our brains can absorb their ways of thinking.
You are the average of everything that surrounds you. Everything you see, hear, and feel is gradually rewiring your psychology and how your brain actually functions, whether you are aware of it or not.
If there is someone you want to emulate, simply surround yourself with them. If you relentlessly expose your brain to their words and ideas, your brain will naturally start to transform to become just like theirs.
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