While it’s easy to spot the toxic people you should immediately banish from your life, it can be sometimes more difficult to decide who the people are you should invite into your life and keep close.

Who are the people you absolutely need to keep in your life? These are the 5 kinds of people I always keep in my life.

1. The leader

This is the person that always takes you to the edge of where you feel comfortable. They bring you to the brink of what you think you’re capable of by simply pushing you to do more. They are unafraid to take charge, grab you by the hand, and go. You never feel less than perfectly capable.

2. The storyteller

This is the friend who colors your day with experiences from his or life. They inspire you to continue moving and trying for more adventure yourself. Although we all know that complacency is the way to boredom, the storyteller reminds of how much more there can always be.

3. The listener

A person who stays with you to hear you out when you need a sounding board for your emotions is incredibly important. This is the friend that makes us feel valued even when we are unsure whether or not our words matter. This isn’t the person who will talk over you or just nod and text your through your conversation. It’s the person who really hears you, not just the person who listens.

4. The happy one

There’s always someone we have in our life who fills us with iridescent, inexplicable joy simply from his or her presence alone. It’s something practically chemical–something we honestly can’t explain. Some people just honestly bring happiness with them, no matter where they are or whom they are with. Find this positive energy and hold on tightly to it.

5. The one who forces you to think

Although it’s never a pleasant process to reevaluate our own lives, it can be necessary to check-in from time to time. Self-reflection is necessary for any sort of improvement in our lives, no matter how trying it may feel in the moment. Sit down with the person who will ask you the right kind of questions to better who you are–and keep that person close.