In today’s world, success seems to be a constant pursuit. From early childhood, we’re taught that being successful carries with it great sacrifices and great responsibility.
But what if this is all wrong?
The world’s most successful people aren’t ‘extraterrestrial’ or from some genius planet that moves at a different frequency. They may have succeeded at something, but that doesn’t mean they succeeded because they were smarter, more hardworking, or inherently better than anyone else. Instead, these individuals were successful because they understood how to think like a winner. They knew how to recognize the right opportunities and avoid falling victim to common pitfalls that everyone else has difficulty avoiding.
Now, how can we stop ourselves from sabotaging our own chances of becoming successful? Here's a few culprits that might be holding us back.
1) The Illusion of being ‘over-prepared’
Successful people know that success isn’t the product of a single, magical moment. Instead, it’s a process of building on each and every previous success. One of the biggest mistakes that people make is believing that they have to be ‘over-prepared’ for their success. While it’s true that you need to be ready for various challenges that may come your way, you don’t need to spend infinite amounts of time building a perfect foundation. In today’s world, there are endless opportunities that are open to anyone with the right amount of drive and hard work. But if you worry that your success will be jeopardized by a single unassuming mistake, you’re not going to make it very far. It’s better to keep your focus on the things that you can control, like your daily actions and the state of mind you bring to each one.
2) You think you have to be an extrovert to be successful
Successful people are not any more ‘outgoing’ than the rest of us. Sure there is a good amount of charismatic leaders and spotlight personalities that are often spoken about in the mainstream media, but that doesn't reflect those entire picture. Successful people understand that being introverted doesn’t prevent them from succeeding. In fact, they have a self-awareness that allows them to be both extroverted and introverted at the same time, and understand their strengths and weaknesses. If successful people are extroverted, it’s because they know how to use their introverted strengths too. It's all about using combining your personality with emotional intelligence and working your talents at the right times and it the right places.
3) You mistake talking for taking action
Successful people know that nobody is eager to listen to your ideas until you’ve already succeeded with them. This is true, but only to a certain extent. From the moment you start dreaming of your future, you subconsciously start building a list of ideas and plans. If you spend all your time trying to explain your ideas to people who don’t want to hear them, you’re never going to get around to implementing them. Instead, you should be building a network of people who are excited to hear your ideas and willing to help you bring them to reality. And when the time comes for you to present your ideas to the world, nobody will remember how much time you spent explaining them. Instead, you should use this time to explain how and why you’re implementing your ideas.
4) You're not building a community of supporters
Successful people understand that you don’t just have to be hands-on with your ideas. Instead, you have to be hands-on with the people and activities that support your ideas. Successful people have to be proactive in the areas of their life that matter the most. This includes learning new skills, developing new relationships, and, most importantly, giving back to the community that has supported you. You have to be willing to put in the work and create the opportunities to connect with other successful people. And you have to be willing to ask them for help when you need it.
Final Sip
The most successful people have a different way of looking at the world, and their success mirrors this. They are creative, outgoing, and open-minded individuals who aren’t afraid to step out of their comfort zones. They know that every challenge they face can be overcome with hard work, determination, and a positive attitude. Successful people are willing to take risks, learn new skills, and create new opportunities for themselves. They understand that the path to success isn’t always a straight one, and that stumbling is part of the journey.
I hope this article can help you to take another look at your current journey to finding success and examine to see if perhaps some of these setback culprits are preventing you from getting ahead. As always, thanks for your time, love you all!
We'll chat soon.
Daniel