A lot of things…
Our definition of “success” is usually something like this…
- Earn 6–7 figures doing work that you love
- Date or marry your dream partner and have a loving healthy relationship
- Have a healthy strong body that doesn’t get sick or break down
- Feel happy, fulfilled, and give back to others.
To get to this point, an “unsuccessful” person has a lot to learn.
In fact, I’d argue that most people will never truly become successful by this definition.
I
know tons of guys who are financially successful but completely
unsuccessful in their relationships, physical health, or personal
happiness.
Having it all is hard…
But to achieve “Whole Life Success” there are only a few things that you need to know to achieve the first 80% of your goal.
The other 20% will come only with time and experience.
1. Successful People Know that “Talent” Is Earned
There
is no such thing as luck or talent. Even the so-called prodigies are
rarely, if ever true prodigies. They simply spent the first 10,000 hours
of their childhood, coding, playing chess, learning an instrument, or
creating a product instead of doing the things normal children do .
Talent
is earned with hard work and discipline. You can become a master at
ANYTHING in the world… If you’re willing to pay the price. You must
accept that success is something you earn and talent isn’t given.
Otherwise, you’ll always be stuck in mediocrity.
2. Successful People Know How to Go the Extra Mile
Most
people are lazy and, quite frankly, most people are on a fast track to
nowhere. If you want to achieve true success, you don’t need to do that much more than other people do. You just need to go the extra mile consistently.
Stay
at work until 6 p.m. instead of 5 p.m. Write one more article than your
biggest competitor. Do just one more set in the gym.
Do just a little bit more than everyone else, and overtime that extra work will compound and create big results.
3. Successful People Know Not to Take Things Personally
Say
it with me, “It’s not about me!” Here’s the cold hard truth. Most
people don’t give a shit about you. They only care about what you can do
for them. Successful people learn not to take things personally. They
don’t take it personally when an employee steals clients and company
revenue. They’re pissed off, sure. But they don’t make the problem about
themselves.
They try to figure out what
they did wrong and then determine how they can do better next time
without imagining that every bad thing or hiccup is because of them. Don’t take things personally. It’s too much of a headache.
4. Successful People Know that Success Happens Slowly
In
most cases, success happens over the course of years, not months. It’s
the result of the compound “interest” created by your good habits. You
don’t gain 40 lbs. of fat the first time you eat a donut that puts you
100 calories over your diet. It happens over months and years.
Success
takes time. It takes time to develop good money habits and build
wealth. It takes time to master your craft and become an expert. It
takes time to learn how to navigate relationships and love another
person.
Everything worth having takes time. So accept that and be patient.
5. Successful People Know that Luck is a Lie
Maybe 0.0001% of the population is “lucky”. As in, they won the lottery, inherited a bunch of money, or won a frivolous lawsuit.
But
“luck” is a negligible factor when it comes to success for the masses.
There is no luck involved in showing up early, putting in the hard work,
and being patient. There’s no luck required to say “no” to temptations
and choose better habits.
There’s no “luck” involved in real success. So forget all about it.
6. Successful People Know that Knowledge + Action = Results
Unsuccessful
people believe that knowledge is power. Successful people know
knowledge is only powerful when it’s applied. If you want to become
successful, don’t read books… USE them. Apply what you learn. Take
massive action on the lessons you get from others. Educate yourself for
an hour and then take 3 hours of action on what you’ve just learned.
7. Successful People Know that Life Isn’t Fair (And Don’t Complain About It)
Life
isn’t fair. Good things happen to bad people. Bad things happen to good
people. Get over it. Life doesn’t abide by your rules or play
favorites. It’s an inherently volatile and unpredictable system that
takes no prisoners and doesn’t pick sides.
8. Successful People Know that Their Friends Determine their Future
Who
you spend time with matters. Our recent discovery of mirror neurons has
proven, on a scientific level, that the people you associate with
impact your thoughts and behaviors more than you ever realized.
If
you want to be successful, surround yourself with successful people.
Make time for your “old” friends, but make less time for them than you
do your high achieving friends. I promise, this alone will change your
life.
9. Successful People Know that Happiness is a Choice
You
can be the richest man in the world and still be miserable. Money
doesn’t buy happiness and all truly successful people know that
happiness is a choice.
So choose it.
10. Successful People Know that Success is Personal
You can be successful no matter how much money you earn (as long as you have enough to pay for the bills you need), where you live, or what you do.
If you are happy, healthy, financially secure, and loved by the people in your life, then you are successful.
You
can’t be successful if you aren’t happy, if your body is a burden
instead of a weapon, if you aren’t loved by others, or if you don’t have
the financial security to live the life you want to live.
Create whole life success, but do it on your own terms.
You don’t have to be a millionaire, have 6-pack abs, a harem of women, or monk like presence.
As long as you have your health, wealth, relationships, and happiness taken care of… Congratulations… You ARE successful.