Good friends and bad friends

 Two good friends, let's call them Company A, are trust and diligence.

Two bad friends, let's call them Company B, are laziness and cynicism.

Friends in Company A strengthen each other; diligence increases trust, trust activates diligence.
Friends in Company B justify each other; laziness justifies cynicism, cynicism justifies laziness.

Diligence is the stimulus that prompts action, action fosters trust, regardless of the results. Trust creates the credibility that triggers action, hence diligence.

Laziness justifies cynicism, and cynicism, in turn, justifies laziness. In Company B, the classic phrases are "nothing can be done anyway," "it's useless," "it can't work," "I'll do it tomorrow." 

The classic phrases of Company A are “I’ll try”, “I’m confident in the results”, “it could work”, “we have to try”, “everything will work out over time”. 

They say our destiny is tied to the company we keep. What do you think? Is that true?