Regardless of your age, what you do for a living, or where you reside, we all have something in common; the desire to be successful.
While the definition of success varies from person to person, I think we can all agree that for one to be successful they need to be happy and content with both their personal and professional lives. In most cases, this would be doing work that you enjoy where you can live comfortably and then come home to loved ones.
Even if that’s not your exact definition of success, there are ways that you can become a success in life. Want to know how? Then check out these fifteen tips.
1. Clarity is power.
According to Tony Robbins, the “ultimate formula for success in life consists of five steps: know your outcome, know your motivation, take massive action, notice your results and change your approach.”
However, before getting started on the above steps, “you must know your desired outcome — clarity is power. Being clear about exactly what you want is the first step in achieving any kind of improvement.” This is because when you have a specific goal, you’ll be able to take the actionable steps needed to achieve it.
“Focus on what you do want, not what you don’t want, because energy follows focus. Why send your energy towards things you don’t want? Instead, clarify for yourself what you do want and train your brain to notice things that can help you make it happen,” suggests Robbins.
2. Focus on commitment.
“Just how committed are you to your goal?” asks former Olympic athlete Inga Stasiulionyte. “How important is it for you, and what are you willing to sacrifice in order to achieve it? If you find yourself fully committed, motivation will follow.”
Of course, when starting out, this can be a challenge. The good news is that you can commit to any goal by;
- Change your mindset. Make the decision that nothing is going to stand in your way in achieving your goal. Having this dedication will deter you from getting knocked off course.
- Set clear goals. Going back to the first point from Tony Robbins. You need to know exactly what you want to achieve and the steps you’ll need to get there.
- Focus on what’s most important. You need to be selective on what’s important and what needs to be ignored. Let’s say you want to grow your business. You should be focusing on tasks that achieve that goal, such as creating content, and not on mundane tasks like booking flights.
- Hold yourself accountable. At the start of each jot down your top goals for the week. Then write down the 2 or 3 daily tasks that can help you achieve those goals. If you’re not self-disciplined enough, consider joining a community of like-minded individuals or asking a friend, family member, or colleague to keep you in-check.
3. Take action to boost your confidence.
After examining numerous studies, Katty Kay and Claire Shipman, authors of The Confidence Code, found that there’s a confidence gap between the sexes. However, the authors also discovered that success is just as dependent on confidence as it is on competence.
Kay and Shipman then concluded that low confidence can result in inaction. “Taking action bolsters one’s belief in one’s ability to succeed,” they write in The Atlantic. “So confidence accumulates — through hard work, through success, and even through failure.”
Here are some of my favorite, and effective, actions you can take right now to start building confidence:
- Set a small, realistic goal and get it done.
- Do something small, really well like writing a blog post or repairing your leaky sink.
- Read a book or learn something new.
- Set and stick to a budget so you get your finances in order.
- Look your best by dressing for success, getting a haircut, etc.
4. Quit saying tomorrow.
There’s a Nike quote that I’m a big fan of: “Yesterday you said tomorrow.”
You said you’re going to hit the gym tomorrow. You said you were going to start writing your eBook tomorrow. You said that you’re going to start side hustling tomorrow so that you can start your own business.
The problem is that when you say “I’ll do this tomorrow,” you’re procrastinating from bettering yourself. Stop doing that. Instead, follow the advice of another famous Nike quote, “Just do it.”
5. Get healthy.
It’s no secret that we should all exercise and eat more healthy. That’s because when we live a healthy lifestyle, we release endorphins. However, as Renzo Costarella explains in a previous Calendar post, exercising daily will:
- Boost your energy. In fact, just by going on a 20-minute walk can reduce fatigue by up to 65 percent.
- Help you become more disciplined. Creating and sticking to a workout schedule can help you become better at time management and organizing your schedule.
- Make you happier. Going back to endorphins, when you exercise these chemicals promote feelings of well-being and reward.
- Give you more networking opportunities. Going to the gym will introduce you to a new group of individuals.
- Help you sleep better. Exercise helps us sleep better at night so that we can recharge. After getting a good night’s sleep, you’ll have the energy to conquer the day.
6. Learn from the experts.
“You will not live long enough to figure it all out for yourself. And what a waste it would be to try, when you can learn from others who have gone before,” says Brian Tracy.
As Ben Franklin once said, “Men can either buy their wisdom or they can borrow it from others. The great tragedy is that most men prefer to buy it, to pay full price in terms of time and treasure.”
Tracy adds, “Your greatest goal in life and in personal success should be to acquire as many of them as possible and then use them to help you do the things you want to do and become the person you want to become.”
7. Avoid conflicts.
Theodore Roosevelt, once said, “The most important single ingredient in the formula of success is knowing how to get along with people.”
In other words, people succeed when they can communicate effectively, actively listen, show empathy, are polite, and know when to pick their battles. When they do, it prevents conflicts so that everyone can focus on a common goal instead.
8. Prioritize.
Stop what you’re doing for a minute. Think about what your most important and urgent goal is at this exact moment. It should be something that eventually moves you closer to achieving your main goal.
Successful individuals are able to focus on their top priority without getting distracted.
9. Determine how you can be used.
When Oprah Winfrey delivered the 2017 commencement address at Smith College, she shared her secret to success: “the power of service.”
Winfrey believes that success equals serving others by asking “How can I be used?”
In other words, what unique talents can you offer to others? When you find out, you’ll not only be doing meaningful work, you’ll also be enhancing the lives of others. And, the leads to fulfillment — which is what Oprah defines as success.
10. Embrace a growth mindset.
Based on the research of Stanford psychologist Carol Dweck, and author of “Mindset: The New Psychology of Success,” the most successful individuals possess a “growth mindset.” This allows them to learn and grow from their mistakes. As a result, they’ll develop new skills, embrace challenges, and preserve against any setbacks.
On the flip side, those with a “fixed mindset” believe that intelligence, creativity, and talent is set-in-stone and can not be changed.
Fortunately, you can develop a “growth mindset” by taking these simple steps:
- Don’t be afraid of failure. Instead use failure as a learning experience.
- Know when you should take risks.
- Don’t stagnate. For example, if you’re a web designer consider offering additional products or services.
- Be willing to learn and try new things. This helps you grow as an individual.
“Do people with this mindset believe that anyone can be anything, that anyone with proper motivation or education can become Einstein or Beethoven? No, but they believe that a person’s true potential is unknown (and unknowable); that it’s impossible to foresee what can be accomplished with years of passion, toil, and training,” writes Dweck.
11. Have a PMA.
“A positive mental attitude is a must for all who wish to make life pay off on their own terms. Nothing great was ever achieved without a positive mental attitude.” — Napoleon Hill
In order to achieve a PMA you should keep your mind focused on everything that you want in life and not let negativity prevent you from reaching those goals. Remember, growth mindset? You have the ability to achieve whatever you want as long as you invest in yourself by learning new skills and taking care of yourself.
12. Stop saying “Yes.”
Whenever you say “yes” to something, you’re also saying “no” to something else. For example, if you agree to go to happy hour with your co-workers, that means you’re skipping the gym. If you say “yes” to overtime,” that means you’re not spending quality time with your family.
Instead of always saying “yes,” think about what you’re trying it for. Again, spending time with your colleagues can be a great bonding experience, but if you’re doing that every night, then how is that enhancing your life. Instead of drinking alcohol, that time could be spent exercising or learning a new skill.
13. Learn how to balance life.
“There is an immutable conflict at work in life and in business, a constant battle between peace and chaos. Neither can be mastered, but both can be influenced. How you go about that is the key to success.” — Phil Knight, co-founder and chairman emeritus of Nike.
Of course, maintaining a healthy work-life balance is no easy task. But, it’s possible as long as you identify what’s important to you both personally and professionally. This way you can set priorities. For example, if you want to have children one day, that’s going to be challenging when you’re working 80-hours a week.
To get started on finding an ideal work-life balance you need to set and declare clear boundaries, consolidate activities to save time, and work during your peak-performing hours.
14. All you need is love.
There’s a famous Harvard Grant Study that followed 268 graduates from the Harvard 1938-1940 classes for the next 75 years. The purpose of the study was to determine the secret of leading a happy and meaningful life.
George Vaillant, the Harvard psychiatrist who directed the study from 1972 to 2004, found that love is the key to happiness.
According to Vaillant, there are two pillars of happiness. “One is love,” he writes. “The other is finding a way of coping with life that does not push love away.” Vaillant ultimately concluded that the only thing that really matters in life are relationships.
Via The Huffington Post:
“A man could have a successful career, money and good physical health, but without supportive, loving relationships, he wouldn’t be happy (‘Happiness is only the cart; love is the horse.’). “
15. Give up your excuses.
Successful people don’t point fingers. They know that they’re responsible for their life regardless of where they started or what that strengths or weaknesses are.
When you’re blaming others and making excuses, you’re not giving yourself a chance to grow personally or professionally.
