"A quien buen árbol se arrima, buena sombra le cobija" en inglés

According to motivational speaker Jim Rohn, you are the average of the five people with whom you spend the most time.

In other words, these five people have the greatest influence on you (who you are, what you do, what you feel, how you think, etc).

Assuming that’s true, you’d want to surround yourself with the best people you know, so you become the best version of yourself.

In Spanish, you’d say “a quien buen árbol se arrima, buena sombra le cobija”.

In English, we’d simply say that it’s important to surround yourself with positive influences.

You may have heard of the expression “it helps to have friends in high places”, which is similar but not quite the same.

With this, you’re referring to people who are powerful and influential, which doesn’t necessarily mean good influences. This is equivalent to the Spanish expression: hay que tener amigos hasta en el infierno.

Here’s how you can use it in a sentence:

🔸 “How are we going to get VIP tickets for the Champions League final?”
🔹 “Don’t fret, I’ve got friends in high places who can help us out.”

I hope that helps!

Daniel