Have you ever heard someone refer to your “six”? It refers to the six people who will carry your casket at your funeral.

Kind of morbid, isn’t it? But it’s important because it reminds us that we will all die someday. We all have an expiration date on our lives.

I want you to think about the six people in your life who would indeed carry your casket. How often do you speak to them? How close would you say these friends are to you?

If you have a hard time answering those questions, maybe it’s worth reconsidering how much time and energy you invest into those friendships.

I get it. We’re all busy with writing and other creative pursuits and commitments. But it’s not the only aspect of your life. You have family, friends, community, health, and other commitments. Writing is only one part of a bigger picture.

Don’t neglect your most important friendships and relationships to pursue your art or build a platform. Fans and readers and listeners can be fickle. They will only stick around as long as you give them something of value. But friendships are forever. Those are the people who stick with you through thick and thin. So make sure you’re investing time in those relationships and not spending all your time and energy on your writing.

Daily Question: Can you name your six?

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Some writers came from a supportive environment where his or her parents and extended family nurtured their talent. They were encouraged to write and express themselves.

Others were not so lucky. They had a much harder climb to writing success. They had to break out of a family system that didn’t encourage writing, saw it as a worthless pursuit, or worst of all, was abusive.

In his book The War of Art, Steven Pressfield makes a keen observation: “Often couples or close friends, even entire families, will enter into tacit compacts whereby each individual pledges (unconsciously) to remain mired in the same slough in which she and all her cronies have become so comfortable. The highest treason a crab can commit is to make a leap for the rim of the bucket.”

It’s hard, probably nearly impossible, to break out of a dysfunctional family system. If you grew up in this kind of environment, or perhaps you’re still there, find other writers who can support you. You have bigger goals and brighter dreams than the cold, gray nothingness that surrounds you.

They may be your family or friends, but they don’t define you. You have the power to define yourself.

So, make the leap for the rim. It is easy? Of course not. Is it worth it? Absolutely.

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