Four Roads To Success Many People Miss

When we talk about what it takes to be successful, we usually shoot off a list that includes hard work, good time management, leadership and communication skills.

 

While such attributes matter we often neglect to consider other equally significant factors that could have a huge impact on our success and ultimately, our happiness.

Here are four roads to success many people miss:

1. Your inner circle

Entrepreneur Jim Rohn said that we are the average of the five people with whom we spend the most time. For some, that’s a frightening thought!

Friendships are often the result of history and pure luck (right place, right time) rather than conscious thought and decision-making. Hence we rarely stop to think about the influence our friends have on us.

Take a moment to think of the people in your inner circle. Can you be yourself around them? Are you open and honest with them? Do they support you and help you shine? Do they inspire you? Does their attitude leave you feeling energised or drained?

Depending on your answers, you may want to distance yourself from your biggest energy-drainers and plan to spend more time with friends and family who uplift you.

2. Your first thought of the day

Think back to this morning when the piercing sound of your alarm clock interrupted your dreams. What was your first thought? Did you resent having to get out of bed? Did you automatically begin worrying about the same thing you worried about just before drifting off to sleep?

Our thoughts are just a result of unchecked habits, an automatic audio that replays over and over in our heads. But our first thought of the day can have a profound effect on our mood, energy levels and attitude for the rest of it.

So if your waking thoughts aren’t putting you in a healthy state of mind, set yourself a challenge tomorrow morning. When you wake up, choose a positive thought and see what impact it has on the 24-hours that follow.

3.  Schedule time out

I’m sure you’ve had one of those days when you got home from work exhausted by your incredibly busy day yet also frustrated over the pitiful amount of work you actually got done.

Being frantically busy feels a bit like getting your car stuck in the mud. You can press down hard on the accelerator and spin the wheels until the tires smoke, but you won’t be getting anywhere. This is where mindfulness and discipline play a huge role.

Spend five minutes each morning and night practicing mindfulness. Just sit in silence while paying attention to the weight of your body on the chair, the sounds in and outside the room, the feeling of the air entering and exiting your lungs as you breathe. Keep this up for a week and see how  much calmer and more focused you feel.

If you’re a social media addict, challenge yourself to only check your social media accounts once every hour rather than every two minutes. This seemingly small change of habit can help you feel in control and less mentally scattered.

4. Reflect on your journey

When you have a goal, the road ahead can appear to stretch for miles with loads of steep hills and wobbly bridges. So it pays to occasionally glance back to see how far you’ve come.

There may still be a long way ahead but think about what you have already achieved. What have been your little wins? How has the journey already changed you? What knowledge have you gained from any mistakes along the way?

The accomplishments you take for granted now are potentially the things that you once thought were difficult or even impossible to achieve. So even if you haven’t reached the finish line just yet, use your early wins and small steps forward as motivation to persist during the rest of your journey.

Elyse Gorman

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