How to Be Successful

Everyone should strive to be successful. Success is the meaning of life: your struggle, goals, where you are, where you're going, and where you have been. Success is a journey. Your job is to not give up and find a way to reach your destination. Below are 8 ways to find your way to success. You may have heard them before but that is because of how important they are. I will go into great detail with them so you know what is expected of you to be successful.

Define your idea of success
Everyone has a different idea on the definition of success. You need to have your ideologies straightened out to plan your goals. Your idea of success is not a goal let's be clear. Your idea of success is your visualization of what it is that makes someone successful. For example, my idea of success is self growth and experience. I believe with these things, I can become the best person possible over time. With that said, I now plan out my goal.

Plan out a goal
Obviously, there are two types of goals: Long and short term. Goals are a must. I think of them as checkpoints and once you complete them, they are behind you. You just keep looking forward.

Short term

I believe this one to be the more important of the two for one reason: confidence/reassurance. The correct way to have a short term goal is to make it for a short time. I would say daily. I would write down a list of what you need to do that relates towards your long term goal. As the days, weeks, months go by, you will look back on that list and see day after day that items are crossed off your list. Nothing is stronger than visually seeing forward process by looking at your to do list being completed day after day.

Long term

Long term goals when added up, together, get you where you believe is your idea of success.

Short term = long term= success. One builds off the other. Your long term goals can be looked at as a gathering or grouping of successful short term goals. For example, if I feel successful by getting married (which I don't), my long term goal would be to meet a woman. How do I do that? Through short term goals. My short term goals would be: work on myself, work on my interactions with women, maybe talk to 5 women a day, go out more often, go on dates, and so on. If I do that time after time, hopefully, I would reach my long term goal and get a girlfriend. Now when that Long term goal is completed, it's time to make another long goal which would be to get past the first year mark. So now you write down small daily goals that get you there. You keep doing this process over and over until you reach what you believe is successful. It's honestly a fail-proof formula if you stick with it.

Lifestyle
If you want to be successful, you have to live the lifestyle of success. What do I mean by that? Well, to be a writer, I would live the life of a writer. I would read, write, write, write, read, go to conferences, talk to other writers, attend classes, write, and read. You get the picture. Every aspect of your life should be around your goals. A writer once told me "I work full time to support my writing." I respected her for saying that. She made good money but her life and passion was to write. So she literally just worked so she could live day to day writing.

People
You want to surround yourself with people that have the same goals as you. It's good for a competitive drive, inside information, inspiration, and positivity. For me, I feel like I already met my goals when I have the people around me that have the same goals. I feel like a team. As a writer, surrounding yourself with other writers makes you feel accomplished and accepted as if I was a writer all along.

Mindset
Success is a mental game. You have to mentally endure the journey ahead and realize it's never easy obtaining greatness. You have to have that "no excuse" attitude and make things happen. Stop wishing and start doing. You should be positive. Success is more than having materials. A good mindset and some gratitude is a common trait among successful people. You will be amazed on what it can do for you.

Effort
My father is one of the wisest men I had the pleasure to be around. His famous phrase was "Don't tell me what you're going to do, show me what you've done." He drilled this into my head so much that I wouldn't tell him my short term goals anymore. Instead, I showed him the results of having them. I never told him when I got a job, great grades, or a girlfriend. I only showed him that I got the raise at the job, the degree at school, and the anniversary of the relationship.

Everyone talks. It's time to separate yourself from the crowd and start doing. Show people your capabilities. Challenge yourself. That is what life is about.

Time
The problem with a lot of younger people is they want things now. I was one of those people trying to find the fastest way to get what I want. Everything takes time. In fact, you should take your time anyway and enjoy the journey. You will grow and learn a lot about yourself if you grind through a long road of obstacles instead of trying cut corners and cheat your way to success. Ask anyone 30+ years old and they will tell you everything from getting over a heartbreak to getting a six digit salary will take some time.

Don't give up
This is the most important on the list. This list will not work unless you are consistent. You have to keep moving ahead. It's easy to give up. Be different and take on a challenge. Stop complaining if you had to take a step back, start over, or not getting the results you want. Go back to setting your short term goals and start over. Time flies and you'll be amazed on how much you can accomplish in a short period of time if you are consistent day to day with your task.

I promise if you follow these 8 things, you will be successful. The most important things to remember are the journey and the commitment. You have to stay on it. If you do so, you will only move forward. Good luck.

Any more tips? Comment below.