RELATIONSHIPS
From Issue #19
Sinkers, Floaters or Rockets
What sort of friends do you hang with?
By Linda Nyugen
Not to compare your friends to turd
terminology, but ever wonder if your
friends are an exact replica of the crowd
from last year’s hit comedy Mean Girls?
Are you stuck with friends who make
you fee like a loser or are they your
favourite Friday night party people?
Here’s how to determine if your friends
are Sinkers, Floaters or Rockets!
SINKERS
According to teen advisor Kevin
Cochran, sinkers make up about 20 per
cent of your group of friends. They are
the ones who will sink you. “When you
have a conversation with these friends,
they drainyou out. All they do is
complain 
about family and other friends.
All you want to do is tell them to shut
up.” But Kevin isn’t shutting up about
this topic. Instead, he has spoken to 700
students at over 50 high schools about
friendship success.
He says you will not be successful if
you’re too caught up in the short-term
rewards and not thinking about the
future. You should not let who has the
best cell phones or the coolest clothes
determine your friends, “Teens are
getting guidance through advertising. If
you don’t have the right shoes, you’re a
loser.” Kevin says that instead of
encouraging you to be better and do
better, these are the friends who are
always criticizing you.
FLOATERS
You have to learn how to standup for
yourself first. Kevin says that instead of only hanging around friends, who always
criticize you, you should look for friends
who will support and inspire. Kevin
suggests you should make more friends
who float and rocket you. The friends
who float you are the ones you hang out
with on a Friday night at the movies.
Even though you don’t learn much from
them, they are still your closest group of
friends who you depend on during tough
times. They are dependable people who
can keep a secret. These are the friends
you want to spend your weekend with.
They may not be a large group of
friends but these are the ones keeping
it real.
ROCKETS
The ones who rocket you are your
mentors. Kevin says it’s important for all
teens to have at least one mentor. Kevin
was working as a mechanic until he met
his mentor, who helped Kevin realize his
own value. Now, Kevin is a par
t of a
multi-million dollar company. “I’m not
special. I didn’t go to college or
university. I grew up in a poor, divorced
family. I wanted things to be better and I
wanted to provide for my parents. My
mentor taught me the gift of giving and
showed me that it is an important thing
that needs to be done.”
He says mentors are easy to find. All a teen has to do is pick up a phone book.
“Don’t underestimate the power of the
phone book. It’s important to call a
mentor, introduce yourself and ask to
hang out with them for a month. If you
could show them you have value and a
sense of commitment, they’ll see you as
a long-term reward.”
Kevin, who wanted to be a real estate
agent, called 60 agents in Toronto,
hoping for a mentor. All said no, except
one: the top real estate agent in North
America. “Having a mentor is the best
life experience. They’re not just going to
fall into your life. You have to prove
yourself and want them to spend time
with you.”
Kevin Cochran encourages you to look
at your friends and ask yourself
whether you hang out with people
who sink, float, or rocket your life.
Some questions to consider:
1. Who do you spend your time with?
2. What do my friends have me saying?
3. What do my friends have me doing?
4. Where do my friends take me?
5. What do they have me thinking?
For more information, visit
www.richardrobbins.com
