Have you ever stopped to wonder, what sets the successful people apart from those who are average? The people who wish they could be more successful, accomplish more in life and achieve wealth but never do? Here is a list of 11 things successful people do, that average people don't.
Successful People Attract Success By
Contents
Being the Person Who Deserves It
Out of all the self-help books I read, only one book has an ongoing effect on my life.
If you've read 6 Morning Habits That Changed My Life, then you will be familiar with The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod. In the book, there's one particular quote in the book that lit a fire in my butt:
Your level of success will seldom exceed your level of personal development, because success is something you attract by the person you become. ~Jim Rohn
The reason why this quote has changed the way I looked at success is because I used to always think about achieving success the other way around. I always thought that AFTER I achieve “success”, in which I'm famous, rich and accomplished, then I will be the person I wanted to be.
It is only after I've come across this quote that I finally understand! I have to be the person who deserves the success I want!
Want to have success? Start from who you are, not what you do.
What is success to you? My definition of success is definitely different to yours. That's because everyone's ideal version of themselves is different.
Here's a quote by Maya Angelou that sums it up:
Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.
I don't believe in telling others what their success should be. Nor do I want others to tell me how to be successful. One thing's for sure. I want to be successful, not average. Being just “average” is my biggest fear in life. That's why I've read all about the habits and mindset that successful people have, that average people don't.
#1 They say “tell me more!”, instead of “I know”
The biggest difference between people who take action and those who stay stuck in their rut is their attitude towards the unfamiliar.
Have you ever caught yourself saying, “I know!” when somebody's telling you about an idea you're already familiar with? That's one of the things you should stop doing RIGHT NOW. Saying “I know” closes doors of opportunity for you to learn and grow.
If you want a new life, you've gotta be a new person. In order to change, the most important thing is to work on your mindset. When there's an opportunity for you to grow and you refuse to open your eyes, then you're wasting your life. YOU are a diamond that needs to be polished.
Successful people achieve phenomenal success because they are open to ideas, concepts and things that they're not familiar with. In other words, they're comfortable outside of their comfort zone. So, start saying “TELL ME MORE!” when you come across something you're unfamiliar with.
#2 They are constantly learning, instead of wanting to have fun
Successful people stay successful and achieve greater heights because they never stop learning and working at their craft. The key here is that they don't just learn from people who are better than them, but also from people who are seemingly below them. What I mean is that they're open to learning from anybody who knows better than them, regardless of their own success.
One way successful people do that is by reading.
When Warren Buffet was asked about the key to success, he said, “Read 500 pages everyday. That's how knowledge works. It builds up, like compound interest. All of you can do it, but I guarantee not many of you will do it. ”
Elon Musk and Bill Gates are also avid readers, with Bill Gates reportedly reading one book per week. Of course, if you want to be successful, you've gotta be selective with the kind of books you read too!
In The Reading Habits of Ultra-Successful People on Huffingtonpost.com, the author Andrew Merle quotes:
Successful people tend to choose educational books and publications over novels, tabloids, and magazines. And in particular they obsess over biographies and autobiographies of other successful people for guidance and inspiration
Well, if you wanna argue that “I READ A LOT ON WIKIPEDIA/QUORA/FACEBOOK”, I would interject you right there. Reading random information doesn't necessarily make you smarter. Choosing the right source of education for your mind is very important. The internet nowadays makes everyone an “expert”. Books are usually more reliable AND valuable, as the authors have spent a lot of time doing their research.
#3 They are 200 % committed to their goals( even when they don't feel like it)
Yes, number three is discipline. You've heard it before. The habits that move you closer to achieving success are usually not NEW to you. It's a matter of applying what you know to what you do. That one thing that helps you do that is the big D: Discipline. When it comes to doing something extraordinary in life, discipline is vital. It keeps you committed, no matter what.
How many times have you bailed on doing something just because you “don't feel like it”? Believe me, I've done that many times! The one thing I've changed this year is being 200% committed to whatever I want to achieve in my life. That's made a HUGE difference to my blogging. I can't remember how many times I've given up on blogging after only a few months doing it. But this time, I'm DEFINITELY committed. Even when I suffer severe writing block and procrastination virus, I remind myself that I'm committed to my blog.
#4 They fail, and fail again. The only difference is that they don't give up
Average people have a fear of failing. Some even have a fear of being successful. Nonetheless, they give up after failing/succeeding at something. Successful people, however, don't have the giving up gene. They're ultra-tenacious.
Remember the movie The Pursuit of Happyness? I remember that scene where the main character, Chris Gardner nearly lost it when he had to sleep on the streets with his son. His tenacity and will to never give in has always inspired me. He could have given up so many times during his one-year struggle of homelessness and financial hardship. However, in his eyes, giving up is not an option. He stays ultra committed to his goals. In the end, he achieves success. It's not because he's smarter than everyone else. Chris Gardner merely stays committed to what he wants to achieve.
#5 They believe deeply in their vision
Have you heard the story about Jim Carey's visualisation towards becoming an Academy award winning actor? Before Jim Carey was a successful actor, he wrote a cheque of one million dollars with “acting services tendered” as the source of his wealth.
Everyday, he would visualise himself mingling with famous actors, getting great acting gigs and making it as an actor. Long before anybody saw him as a renowned actor, Jim Carey already believes unwaveringly in his vision of himself.
The next time you start to doubt yourself, remind yourself of YOUR vision. Remember why you started, and how you picture yourself to become. Never waver in your self-belief. You'll eventually get there!
#6 They have a strong purpose/ “why”
In recent years, finding your “why” is a very popular adage coined among entrepreneurs, self-help gurus and business owners. Simon Sinek's Start With Why deals with this idea. He provides evidence that companies who have a strong sense of purpose or “why” behind their business usually enjoy long-term success. Businesses which have no idea why they're doing business usually falter within a short period of time.
This also applies to the blogging world. Most bloggers get really excited in the beginning about the prospect of making “quick money” from blogging. However, blogging is a marathon, not a short sprint. If a blogger lacks a sense of purpose in their blogging business, chances are their passion for blogging will disappear fairly quickly.
Think about it. Everything we do in life pretty much has a reason. Even if the reason can be quite trivial.
#7 They talk about ideas, not events and people
If successful people have different habits to average people, then it makes sense that they also talk about different things. What we talk about with others as well as how we talk about ourselves determines our actions.
Whenever I find myself gossiping with my colleagues, I always remind myself of the following quote:
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people
~ Eleanor Roosevelt
Successful people like Oprah Winfrey and Elon Musk spend most of their time finding solutions to problems that the world direly needs to be solved. When average people waste their lives feeling sorry for themselves and engage in petty arguments, successful people are achieving their potential by doing what they do best.
#8 They wake up early + have their own morning routine
One of the common habits of successful people is early rising. Waking up early is not only a great way to start the day, it also guarantees a productive life. If you start all your mornings right, then you're living your life right.
Waking up early everyday is no easy feat. I myself was a MAJOR sleepyhead.
Now, I commit to waking up before 7 am every morning. It's something that I really enjoy doing. Early rising is now my cornerstone habit. By changing the way I wake up, I've changed every other aspect of my life.
The benefits of waking up early include having a clearer mind, improving your mood, reducing your stress levels and enhancing your productivity. Most people wake up as late as possible before catching the commute to work, which creates more grogginess and unwillingness to go to work.
I'm not criticising you. I myself was one of them. Now I would rather wake up early to have one hour to myself doing the Miracle Morning than having one more hour of sleep.
The Miracle Morning consists of six habits that I practice everyday, which includes meditation, journaling, visualisation, affirmation, exercise and reading. Sometimes I change up my routine in order to keep things fresh. Some of my friends who also practice the Miracle Morning religiously wake up at 5 am as they have day jobs starting from 8am. I work in the evenings, so I wake up at 6.30am.
Another key to early rising is to not waste the extra hours you've gained by simply scrolling on your phone mindlessly. The whole point of waking up early is to be in control of how you start the day. Having a morning routine that sets you up for a productive day is very important.
So, how do you create a morning routine that will shape you into a successful person? If you're interested, you can read my 6 Morning Habits That Changed My Life post as your starting point.
Remember, everyone has different needs in terms of self-care. So, if you want to customise your morning routine and mix things up, that's great! The key here is to cater to your own needs during that one hour of extra time you have before you go to work. Waking up 2 hours earlier than I used to has certainly made me happier and more productive.
# 9 They have a growth mindset
What is growth mindset? Carol Dweck, renowned psychologist and author of “Mindset” compiles the years of research she's done in her book. Dweck argues that the biggest difference between people who achieve success and those who don't is their mindset. Whether you have the growth or fixed mindset is irrelevant. Some people have both types of mindsets towards different aspects of their lives.
The key is that success is not determined by intelligence. It's how you perceive and react to events in your life. The growth mindset approaches failure in a “growth” perspective, in which failure is “a first attempt in learning”.
People with the fixed mindset would label themselves as a failure when they encounter obstacles. Instead of looking at failure as a perfect opportunity to learn and improve as a person, people with the fixed mindset will think of failure as something that will stop them from moving forward.
If you're stuck at something and unable to solve a problem, take a break. But know that you can always use failure as your stepping stone. Hey, what doesn't kill you really does make you stronger. And smarter. It's a good thing! You're gaining skills, knowledge and expertise that other people don't have. Experiencing failure is actually a privilege.
If you're not out there learning, making mistakes and failing, that means you're pretty much stuck in a rut and not growing.
#10 They trust the process, not the result
Success is THE process and reward. Not the outcome. Of course, we're all working towards a certain goal and outcome. But if your eyes are only on the prize and you're forgetting about the person you're becoming in the process, you'll get discouraged very quickly and give up.
I've come across so many young piano beginners who just give up learning after one year. The reason? I don't like practicing the piano. Everybody wants to play the piano like a pro, but not everybody trusts and ENJOY the piano practice process. It's a gruelling and at times lonely exercise. But it doesn't have to be that way. If practicing the piano is already the reward in itself, then the student is more like to continue having lessons and making progress as a pianist.
# 11 They are incredibly patient at PROBLEM SOLVING
Sometimes, success is just a few steps away. But we either give up too easily by being impatient, or we stop being creative problem solvers. Add these two deadly combinations together and you'll have an early termination to your project.
When it comes to blogging, or starting any business, learning skills and implementing techniques that work take a lot of time and effort. Often times, creating a business means you'll have to work harder than ever before. Just because you're working towards becoming your own boss does not mean you get to just sit around all day waiting for money to come to you.
In business and in life, you get a huge sense of accomplishment when you work through a difficult problem all by yourself. The fun lies in solving problems in life like a puzzle. Instead of giving up too early, working through a problem equips you with valuable and new skills that you'll never get from books or textbooks.
So, the next time you feel like giving up on the success you want, try to get unstuck by reminding yourself to be patient. Just keep swimming, and problem solving.
How To Get Unstuck
With the 11 Things Successful People Do Checklist
Now that you understand the things that successful people do, it's incredibly useful to have a checklist in hand whenever you feel stuck. As an entrepreneur myself, trying to level up in my skills means encountering many mental roadblocks along the way.
That's why I've created this free checklist for you to use whenever you need it.
All you need to do to get the checklist is filling out the form below. Just your first name and email address and proceed to download the checklist!