Everyone believes they have a handle on what it takes to get ahead, and though each person will have a different variation of what “success” truly means (even change that definition multiple times in their own lives), there are some general principles that most of us will agree on make the difference.
At the end of the day, I liken the improvement in each of these areas to the often-used baseball analogy…nobody hits the ball even half the time in baseball, but the difference between hitting the ball for a .300 average and a .270 average pretty much makes the difference between a successful hitter and a less than successful hitter.
That difference is somewhere between 5-10% (depending on the number of batting attempts of course). In 200 tries the .270 hitter would realize 54 hits whereas the .300 hitter would realize 60 – a mere 6 more hits makes the difference between a 270 hitter and a 300 hitter!
Notice that great hitters achieve success in the face of knowing they will never be anywhere near perfect, in fact, they will never be even “halfway” perfect, yet being a mere 5-10% better is within their reach not because they perfect every single principle that it takes to succeed in baseball, they simply adopt 5-10 more and try 5-10% harder at achieving those principles.
So, when you look at improving your results in life, business, your relationships, etc…look at the following do’s and don’ts of successful people in that same light. If you can simply expand your focus and execution by 5-10% you will be well on your way to improving your results many times over.
Do’s And Don’ts Of Highly Successful People
1. Accept (Even Embrace) Change Versus Fear Change
Of all the principles I have found to impact my life and the lives of those around me this one is the biggie! Life changes…we either accept that change and find a way to evolve ourselves OR we fear and resist change which holds us back both personally but also socially and professionally. The fact is that we learn about live through experiencing change, learning is the catalyst to improving. That implies a degree of failure or experiencing setbacks, however successful people view this as the ultimate learning ground and so begin to accept change (along with the challenges) in order to move ahead faster.
2. Start From Within And Then Make It About Others Around Them
Highly successful people are able to look within themselves and find that drive, passion, purpose and reason to live giving them an internal motivation, confidence, determination and motivation that helps them be less reliant on other people for direction and motivation in life. Unsuccessful people are constantly looking for reason, direction and passion from others leaving them open to internal conflict and frequent disappointment when others seemingly “let them down”. Successful people pull their purpose and passion from within and then realize that helping others achieve their purpose and passion is the way to improve their own lives and success.
3. Confident and Happy Versus Angry and Frustrated
Chronic anger and frustration is the surefire signature of unsuccessful people. People who hold inner turmoil and anger are not only incapable of making rational decisions (making for very poor judgement), but they also emit energy outward that repels people rather than embraces and influences them making life even more challenging on a daily basis. Temporary anger and frustration can be used to direct change in life which can lead to change that, in turn, results in more confidence and happiness…but this so rarely happens. Successful people are sure in their purpose, aligned with their passion, emit positive energy and attract like-minded people to them which reinforces their happiness and success
4. Doer Versus A Talker
Many highly successful people are evident by their results rather than by their talk.  When you find yourself so busy doing that you have trouble finding time to talk, that’s when you know you are on the right track. You learn 10X faster what works by doing than talking. Successful people spend half their time listening and observing (to help with their future planning) to those who have been where they want to go and the other half of the time executing (doing!)
5. Good Habits Versus Bad Habits
Successful people understand that getting results requires sacrifice, that they must be willing to give up non-productive things (TV, gaming, internet, day-dreaming, alcohol, endless partying, etc…) to make sure there is more time (remember the 5-10% analogy above) for making plans, learning from mentors, books, experts, etc…and doing. Unsuccessful people get stuck with bad habits of needing too much relaxation time, too many diversions, too much talking, too many unproductive tasks that lead to zero return.  We all need downtime, I’m not saying successful people never take a break, only that they do not let diversions or breaks become habits, but rather planned breaks to help re-charge their batteries and stay on course
Highly Successful People Know What They Want
If you find that you fall into the category of “unsuccessful”, at least in terms of where you rather your life be right now then start by getting a handle on what you really want in life. What type of life would you ideally like to lead? Where would you like to live? What type of people would you like to have as friends (that maybe you don’t have today?) . Once you have this, outline the habits that you will need to make this vision become a reality.  Start a plan for next week that begins to introduce that change in habits (gradually at first – remember the 5-10% better rule from above). Finally, identify a way that you will help others get more of what they want (either in your job, business, relationship, peer group, etc…) which will help you break through to getting more results in your life.
Are you planning or going through a change in your life, have these principles helped you to become more clear on the difference between successful and unsuccessful people? Leave us a comment and let us know.
