5 Things Successful People Do
Regardless of your definition of success, becoming a successful and influential person in all walks of life is not an easy feat.
As many successful entrepreneurs have shown us, achieving success is a long journey that requires a lot of mental preparation, open-mindedness and a strong-willed soul to overcome any obstacles and recover from the multiple failures hidden along the path.
People like Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Ellen Degeneres, the visionaire Steve Jobs, the brave Aung San Suu Kyi, the futuristic Elon Musk, the wise Oprah Winfrey and many others, all have a different definition of “being successful”, but surprisingly all of them share some simple yet undervalued principles which made them very successful in their own epic adventure.
Success is only a word to stubbornly declare the accomplishment of a milestone and the feeling of fulfillment and joy running up to your spine.
However, walking faithfully towards success and working diligently on your goals can be frustrating and overwhelming, especially when you do not have a mentor to help you move through your shaky life.
But fortunately we live in a world where we can easily and effortlessly have access to the world's best bits of advice from the top CEOs, millionaires, entrepreneurs, visionaires, dreamers and creatives so that we can model our success by following their steps.
Therefore, to best inspire you to move towards your goals without losing faith and focus, here are a collection of five things that made (and still make) successful people truly successful.
1. Understand why you're doing what you're doing
Effective Way to Understanding
I know, you've heard this piece of advice probably thousands of times, but nevertheless, we take it always for granted.
If you want to be successful, there must be a reason for that. Deep down within you, you must know the why you're doing what you're doing. You must know the why or “whys” you're spending so much time and energy on that specific thing, either is working on a business idea or fighting for social rights.
Arrogantly claiming: “I want to be successful”, without really knowing, studying and understanding the reason behind what you're doing, won't bring you any happiness, joy and fulfillment in your daily life.
When you get in touch with the real reason/reasons you become unstoppable. It becomes the driving force that will help you get back up when you fail multiple times, and make bold decisions in uncertain ones.
2. Do things differently, because you can
You do not accomplish great things in life by blindly following the status-quo. There is no attractiveness and curiosity in blending into modern society, in which mediocrity and safety are idolized and adored, while authenticity, boldness and resourcefulness are considered as weak and worthless.
Rules and boundaries are not for successful people. They manage to see the world from another perspective, so that they can think creatively and do things differently.
The only way to get ahead in life is to do things differently than what the rest of the people would usually do. Find what you are really passionate about, identify the opportunity within it and then be a risk taker to actually do things differently.
If you do things differently success will follow you like a shadow.
3. Don't have a backup plan
The minute you have a backup plan you've admitted that you're not gonna succeed, and this idea comes from your belief system.
Following the path towards success requires a strong dose of self-confidence to ultimately overcome unpredictable setbacks and roadblocks. You need to have the conviction in yourself to actually be able to step out of your small comfort zone and venture out.
You need to develop the kind of confidence that even if you don't know everything and you're scared to death, you'll jump into the unknown and do what you want to do anyway.
When you strongly believe in yourself and follow that impulse no matter what, you'll surprisingly and unexpectedly find the people or the resources or the tools that you need to achieve your goals and accomplish the level of success you've always dreamed of.
4. Teach yourself anything
If you think that you don't have what is truly needed to succeed in life, just look at those of have started from scratch and yet accomplished what many call the “impossible”.
Did Richard Branson know everything about entrepreneurship when launched “Student” magazine in 1968?
Did Jeff Bezos know how to launch and manage an online business when starting Amazon.com?
Did Oprah Winfrey know how to host a tv show?
Of course they didn't.
They have failed a bunch of times and stumbled in their own mistakes before finding success, but they certainly knew the importance of constantly learning new things even if seemed beyond their means and capabilities.
Therefore, if you think you can't turn your idea or dream into a real and tangible success because you don't have the right experiences and knowledge, then, you must teach yourself anything you need to know, as you need to know it, to reach your goals based on your unique vision.
If you want to be truly successful, run your own company or leave a positive mark on this world, you'll need to embrace the ways of the autodidact, especially when you are low on financial resources.
So now ask yourself: “What is the most fundamental thing I need to learn, at this very moment, to achieve ____________ (Write your goal here)?
5. Behave like you're the best
Our actions are the manifestation of our consistent thoughts. The quality of your thinking and the attitude that YOU have towards your work, idea, project and life in general is the foundation of all successes.
That's why many successful people agree with the principle of acting like a world-class even if you are just starting out or, worse, failed tons of times in a row. The way you behave, talk and act will leave a big imprint on someone you're trying to impress, whether is your customer or a HUGE mass of people listening to your inspirational speech.
So, the first step to behaving like you are the best in your area of expertise is to disconnect from all the BS voices that are torturing you. Get rid of all that rubbish. One step at a time, throw away all the stuff that doesn't serve you anymore to become the person you want to be, because sometimes it's important to keep in mind that you are in charge of your life.
You are the only one who can decide to be forever mediocre, or strive for success in all its fascinating facets.
