Why is it that some people achieve more than the average lot? Why are some people more successful than others?
- Is it because they are smarter?
- Are they just too lucky?
I don’t believe either of the above are reasons to be more successful.
“Luck favors those who help themselves”
People don’t get successful just because of luck, they keep applying a few core success principles in their lives consistently that lead them towards success. It is important to develop a mindset for success.
The foundation matters
Just as an example, in the construction business, when any tall building has to be constructed, the most amount of steel and cement are required to build the basements since those are the base of the building. The base of the building has to be strong in order to take the load of upper floors.
Similarly, if you want to be successful, it is important to have your basics right. If you are following the basic principles correctly, you are definitely going to become successful. For someone, it might take a bit longer than others, but success can not elude you for long. These secrets of success are like important pillars that can help you create a wonderful foundation on your journey towards becoming successful.
Betterauds Team has interviewed over 1000 Successful people from different fields, We interviewed Successful Women, Entrepreneurs, Authors, Musicians, Influencers, Life Coaches and more, and asked them about the strategies that helped them become successful in their journey. Then we compiled those strategies and took out the 9 most common strategies that were being used by them.
Here are 9 ‘Secrets of Success’ that can transform your life:
‘Success Secret’ #1: Do you want it badly enough?
Successful people have a deep burning desire to achieve success. They want it badly.
The Socrates lesson
Remember the story where Socrates teaches a young man about success by dunking him underwater? If not, here is a quick overview:
A young man asked Socrates the secret to Success. Socrates told the guy to meet him near the beach next morning at 4 A.M. The young man thought to himself, – “I am asking him the secret to success and Socrates is calling me near a beach!! Man, I do not want to learn swimming, I want to know the secret of success.” Nevertheless, next morning 4 A.M he reached near the beach. Socrates asked the man to walk with him towards the beach. When the water got up to their necks, Socrates dunked the young guy into water. The guy tried and struggled to get his neck out of water but could not. Socrates held the young guy’s head into water for around a minute and after that he released his grip and allowed the young man to come out of water. The young boy immediately took a deep breath of air. Socrates asked him – “What did you want the most when you were under water?” I am sure he must have wanted to say ”the most I wanted to do was – Kick you” but he replied that he wanted ‘air’ the most when he was under water. Socrates said – That’s the secret to success, If you want success as badly as you wanted to breathe when you were underwater, then you would succeed.
Do you want it badly enough? Do you have the burning desire?
Having a burning desire is one of the first steps that you can take in order to achieve your dreams. Since taking the first steps is one of the hardest.
Success Secret #2: Do what you love
The Joy of Passion: Find out what you are passionate about
Most of the people who go to work every day to earn a living, they spend at least 8 to 9 hours each day at their workplace. They do this for at least 5 days every week. Most of the people sleep for around 8 hours per day. So, out of 24 hours in a day, most of the people spend one third amount at their work/jobs.
Imagine going to a place for 8 to 9 hours every day for 5 days a week and not enjoying what you do there.
Would such a person feel satisfied in his life?
Would such a person feel positive to go to work every day?
It is extremely important to do what we love. Therefore, it becomes extremely important to understand what is it that you are passionate about.
When you work on your passion, work doesn’t feel like work at all.
I would share from my personal experience here. While working in my job for 2.5 years, I realized I am interested in the tech niche and wanted to start something of my own in that niche.
So I co-founded a tech company where in we worked with more than a thousand customers for their online marketing. We did this for about 8 years and enjoyed doing so. Work did not use to feel like work during this time.
After that, My co-founder and I felt that we wanted to make a difference in lives of a huge number of people. So, we decided to start betterauds and started sharing stories of successful people. And work still doesn’t feel like work, we enjoy what we do.
So, there must be something that you would feel passionate about. Do you feel passionate about music or sports? is it tech gadgets? is it Fitness? Whatever is your calling, go for it.
Success Secret #3: Goal Setting: Your Roadmap to Success
Why set goals?
They give direction and purpose. Plus, tracking your progress can be super motivating!
You can make a very important contribution towards achieving success by doing a goal setting exercise. It is said that smart people write smart goals. Setting goals makes it easier for you to plan your tasks at hand and prioritize. This helps you in becoming focused on your goals.
When you have written down your goals and you start working on them, you tend to start feeling positive as you progress ahead. It is very important to stay positive on the journey towards success because there might be times when you might feel down.
Let me tell you a rewarding technique of setting your goals, just draft a table in your planner/organizer as shown below:
| Goal/Task | Reasons for working towards this goal | Priority | Target Date | Status |
Let me just briefly go through the relevance of each column in organizer:
- First of All, mention the goals that you want to work towards.
- Now, mention the reason you want to work towards this Goal, (You must be wondering that why do you need to mention the reason/necessity for its completion. This would always remind you of the results that you would reap once the goals have been accomplished within deadline).
- This should keep you motivated enough to continue working towards it since it is very natural to get discouraged/demotivated while working towards long term goals if you can not see the rewards you are going to get through them.
- Assign a priority on a scale of 1-5 for every task where 1 stands for critical tasks and 5 for tasks that can wait. Arranging the goals in decreasing order of priorities would help in tracking them
- Also, do set the target date for each task since this would give you a deadline to work towards, thus also giving you a chance to get better with your time management skills. Keep reasonable time estimates for every goal so that you are not discouraged in case any failure to achieve them due to lack of time.
- Do mention the status for every goal as Pending/In Progress/Completed. Also, you can start shading goals in red if the target date is approaching and status is still pending. The pending task in red would always catch your eye first when you open your organizer the next time.
- You can also start shading your completed task in green since this would motivate you to continue working.
Goal-setting tip: Use a planner to list your goals, reasons, priorities, and deadlines. Celebrate your achievements, no matter how small.
Success Secret #4: Work Hard and Work Smart
“There is no shortcut to success”
“In Life, there is no free lunch”
It means you don’t get something for free. If you want to be successful, you need to put in the efforts. You need to put in the hard work required to get things done. Just look at all the facilities you are currently receiving – Electricity, Roads, Cars, Buses, Smart Phones, Internet. All these are making your life so much easier. It is there because someone worked hard to invent these. Someone had the burning desire to bring these new inventions to the world.
Once you have written down your goals or once you have identified what you are passionate about, then it becomes easy to work hard in that direction. Choosing the direction is very important before you start working hard.
If you work hard in a direction that is opposite of what you want to achieve, then you would not get success.
It is also important to learn about smart strategies while working hard, that can help you in your journey. For example it is important to avoid wasting time while working on your goals, and be aware about the bad effects of poor time management.
There is no shortcut to success. You don’t get successful by taking shortcuts.
Most underachievers start procrastinating even at the thought of working hard. They start getting stressed. They look for shortcuts. Success is something that requires a specific type of mindset. A mindset wherein a person is willing to work hard, sacrifice small things in order to achieve big success. Here are 7 ways to develop Millionaire Mindset.
Anyone who has a mindset of taking shortcuts, such a person can not sustain success.
I have seen certain people closely who want to get rich quick, they keep looking for shortcuts. I have seen them trying and switching from one shortcut to another, it never works in the long run. Even when they earn some quick money through those shortcuts, they spend it too quickly, instead of investing the money so that it can grow.
My Personal Experience – How I worked hard to improve my fitness level?
The experience is about my journey towards fitness. In the last few years, I had gradually put on weight and became overweight. It felt bad to be overweight. I realized I did not want to be that way and I wanted to be fitter. Therefore, I started doing research online, looked at health documentaries on netflix, spoke to people who were fit and asked them about their journey. Over the last few years, I have tried various strategies to lose weight and become fit. These strategies include doing things like
- Having Coffee without sugar every day (Coffee with sugar tastes much better, but coffee without sugar is healthier)
- Staying on a less sugar diet
- Working out in the Gym by taking training from a Personal trainer to receive guidance on how to do the exercises in the correct way with correct posture. In addition, he also guided me about the right nutrition and daily protein intake.
Did I lose weight? Yes, I did
Did I work hard to work on my fitness goals? You bet
Did I reach closer to my goals? Yes I did
Believe me, If you are passionate about your Goal, If you want it badly enough, then, You would enjoy your hard work because you know it would bring you closer to your Goals.
How to Work Smartly?
Let’s dive into some strategies to maximize productivity by working Smart.
Prioritize Your Tasks:
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- The 2-Minute Rule: If something takes less than two minutes, do it immediately. This prevents small tasks from piling up.
- The Eisenhower Box: Categorize tasks as urgent/important, not urgent/important, urgent/not important, and neither. This helps in focusing on what truly matters.
Leverage Technology:
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- Automation Tools: Use tools like Zapier or IFTTT to automate repetitive tasks.
- Time Management Apps: Tools like Trello or Asana can help you to manage projects and tasks efficiently.
Take Regular Breaks:
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- The Pomodoro Technique: Work for 25 minutes and then take a 5-minute break. This boosts concentration and reduces fatigue.
- Mindful Moments: Short meditation or deep-breathing exercises can help you refresh your mind.
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Success Secret #5: Consistency: The Unsung Hero
If you’ve been on the hunt for that one magic formula to success, you’re in for a treat. While there are many ingredients in the recipe for success, there’s one that stands out, time and time again: Consistency. Let’s dive into why being consistent in your efforts can make all the difference.
Consistency: The Unsung Hero of Success
- Steady Progress: Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither is success. It’s the small, consistent efforts that compound over time, leading to monumental achievements.
- Building Trust: Whether it’s clients, colleagues, or an audience, showing up consistently helps build trust and credibility.
Why Consistency Packs a Punch
- Habit Formation: When you’re consistent in your efforts, tasks become habits. And as we all know, habits can be powerful drivers of success.
- Overcoming Obstacles: Challenges are inevitable. However, a consistent approach ensures that you keep moving forward, no matter the hurdles.
Tips to Cultivate Consistency
- Set Clear Goals: Knowing your ‘why’ can be a strong motivator. Define your goals clearly, so you have a roadmap to guide your consistent efforts.
- Track Your Progress: Maintain a journal or use apps to track your daily efforts. Seeing your consistency in black and white can be a huge motivator.
- Celebrate Small Wins: Every milestone, no matter how small, is a testament to your consistent efforts. Celebrate them!
While talent, strategy play their roles in the journey to success, it’s the unwavering consistency in one’s efforts that truly makes a difference. It’s like watering a plant daily; you might not see immediate growth, but over time, you’ll be rewarded with a flourishing garden. So, dear readers, as you chase your dreams, remember to show up, put in the work, and stay consistent. Your future successful self will thank you for it. Here’s to consistency and the incredible heights it can take us to!
Success Secret #6: Give your 100% to your Goals
There are just two methods of doing any work in hand:
- Doing it halfheartedly
- Doing it passionately with all your heart
Which method do you think would achieve better results?
Passion can really help you a lot in achieving your dreams. Make sure that you put in best efforts for the task at hand. Working on something with full passion will give you contentment of working and trying really hard for it from your end. Also, giving your best would encourage you to do the task at hand better and would fill you with a sense of confidence.
“Doing the best at this moment puts you in the best place for the next moment.” Oprah Winfrey
It is better to give your best and your 100% when you do something, because if it doesn’t give proper results, you might have to do the effort again. Not only would it take more energy the second time to do it, but it would take extra time too. You can use the power of morning affirmations to help you in reaffirming everyday that you can give your best at the task at hand. In fact, you might wanna check out 11 ways to start your day with a Positive Attitude.
Success Secret #7: Stay Laser-Focused
Focus is a necessary ingredient for achieving success.
As Carl Lewis, Track and Field Star Athlete has quoted “My thoughts before a big race are usually pretty simple. I tell myself: Get out of the blocks, run your race, stay relaxed. If you run your race, you’ll win….Channel your energy. Focus.”
So, focus and work towards the ‘task in hand’ without getting scared about the results since the best that you can do at any moment of time is to give your 100% towards the task at hand.
Rocket analogy
When a rocket is launched, you would notice the flames/exhaust streaming out the bottom of the rocket. In response, the rocket starts moving in the opposite direction towards the sky, lifting off the ground.
Imagine what would happen if the exhaust would start coming out from different directions, will it be able to lift off the rocket towards sky?
Just like a rocket needs focused energy to launch, you need focused energy to achieve your goals.
How to improve focus?
I generally like to follow a few simple steps that help me in staying focused while working. I generally work on my laptop, so I play a background focus music while working, so that helps me stay away from distractions. I also use an electric oil diffuser with an essential oil such as lemon grass oil while working, that helps me stay calm and focused. I understand that it might not work in all situations, but you can try to see if you can incorporate something like this to help you.
Meditating for a few minutes every day really helps improve your ability to focus over time. If you want to learn more about What is meditation and what are its benefits.
Sometime back, I read this interesting international bestseller book – “The One Thing” by Gary Keller. The book talks about focusing all your energy on the one most important thing. Once you start doing that, you get amazing success in that area. It’s a must read. I have purchased this book and am only recommending it to you since it has personally helped me.
Success Secret#8: Listen to your Gut/Intuition
Ever wondered what sets apart the truly successful from the rest? While hard work, dedication, and skill are essential, there’s another secret ingredient that often goes unnoticed: the power of intuition. Let’s explore how tuning into your gut feelings can be a game-changer in your journey to success.
The Intuitive Edge in Success
- Beyond Logic: While facts and figures are crucial, sometimes the answers lie beyond the logical realm. That’s where intuition steps in, offering insights that might not be immediately apparent.
- Natural Instinct: Think of intuition as your internal GPS. It’s been with you since birth, guiding and protecting you. Why not use it to navigate your path to success?
Why Trusting Your Gut Matters
- Risk-taking: Every success story involves taking risks. Your intuition can often guide you on when to leap and when to pause, even when logic might suggest otherwise.
- Building Authentic Relationships: Whether it’s business partnerships or team dynamics, trusting your gut can help you connect with the right people, fostering genuine relationships that stand the test of time.
Harnessing Your Intuitive Powers
- Daily Reflection: Spend a few quiet moments each day reflecting on your feelings and instincts. Over time, you’ll become more attuned to your intuitive voice.
- Trust the Process: Remember, intuition is like a muscle. The more you trust and act on it, the stronger it becomes.
Success isn’t just about the grind, strategies, or networking. It’s also about listening to that inner voice that often knows what’s best for you. In a world buzzing with information and distractions, your intuition remains a steadfast guide. So, the next time you’re faced with a decision, big or small, pause and listen to your gut. It might just hold the secret to your next big success. Cheers to trusting yourself and achieving greatness!
Success Secret #9: Don’t Give Up
Embrace Every Attempt
- Every effort you make brings you one step closer to your dreams.
- Remember, the next try might just be the one that leads to success.
Learning from Setbacks:
- Failures aren’t setbacks; they’re stepping stones to success.
- Each time you stumble, you learn what to avoid in your next attempt.
Failures are part of Success. As you keep on trying and when you encounter failures, then look at it with a perspective that you are just moving closer to your Goals. Also, you would get to know what not to be repeat the next time when you try another time.
I do understand that sometimes, you might get into certain situations in life wherein you might feel anxious and you might feel down. It is at these times that you got to persist and keep your eyes on your goals. To be Successful, it is important to overcome your fears.
“They won because they refused to become discouraged by their defeats” B.C. Forbes
The journey to success is filled with ups and downs, but with determination to never give up, you can achieve anything!
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