A look inside the basic principles of success
Execute
I have put this at the top of the list because it is the one thing that ties all successful people together. Without this ability they would never be successful regardless of what other skills they have.
The bottom line is that successful people get things done. No ifs, buts or maybes. They follow through and finish tasks.
Successful people are not measured by effort, but by results
No matter what the task is before them, they find a way to get it done. Breaking it down into a series of next steps and focusing with all their intensity and effort on achieving that next step.
Success is just a series of smalls steps, complete one after another until the job is done.
If you want to be successful you have to focus on getting tasks done. The method, technique or tactics you use isn’t that important. What matters is that you get the job done.
Fail
It is so easy to look at successful, productive and high achieving people, but focus only on their successes. What they achieve only tells a part of the story. Behind each of their successes there will be hundreds, if not thousands of failures.
From our first steps we learn that the only way to be successful is to try, fail and try again in a different way
For every great shot Tiger Woods has played over his career, there has been hundreds of thousands of balls struck on the practice range. High shots, low shots, draw, fades, pitches, chips and putts. All try with different speed, angle of attack, follow through and aim. Learning what works and what doesn’t. Then when it comes to the competition put it into practice and be prepared to fail. Then going back and starting again. It is absolutely no co-incidence that Tiger Woods has been so successful and at the same time is one of the most disciplines practicers in the world.
You have to be prepared to go out and try new things each day and be prepared to fail. Then learn from the failure and come back better next time.
Success = (Try+Fail) x Repeat
Plan
In the pursuit of success it can seem like you have to never stop doing. Grinding out 18hrs a day should be the norm. Just be a busy bee and everything will fall in place.
Without planning, action is just chaos.
Only in the lottery, does success come from random chance and happening. In every other situation, success is a product of the compounding interest of a long series of small, but intentional actions.
These actions are not just random in nature. Successful people plan and deliver in abundance. They look at where they are now, where they need to be, then plot a path to get there.
A sprinter might need to take 0.25s off their 100m time to be competitive and their next track meet. So they identify which part of the rash they are weakest, then set about a plan for build strength in that area. They devise a set of steps and exercises they will need to complete. Determine how much rest they will need and then plan on how they are going to achieve it.
It is the same in any field. Success starts will planning a route on how to get to your desired position.
Read
Standing on the shoulders of giants, each generation of successful people learn from those who went before.
Athletes, study video tape of legends of their sport, or their closest competitor, hoping to unearth some hidden strength or weakness that they can use to their advantage.
Once of the biggest sources of knowledge is reading. So many successful people have strong reading and learning habits. It doesn’t matter if it is actual reading, or listening or watching. The important this is that they are constantly consuming different pieces of information, advice, experience and insight, then digesting and using it to form their own insights and ideas.
Exercise
Your entire experience on this earth is lived out through your physical body. Regardless of it being physical or mental your body needs to work to deliver.
If it is not healthy, then the output it will give won’t be optimum. That is why it is so important to focus on being healthy, so your mind is a clear and you have lots of energy to go about your day.
Look after your body and your body will look after you
Thanks for reading!
As someone who recently started taking these habits into my routine, I can say that these do really work. I strongly believe that as humans, we are inherently beings that learn from the mistakes of the previous generation and that standing on the shoulders of giants is who we are as a species.
Also breaking up a larger goal into smaller achievable tasks has been one of the best practices I have adopted and has resulted in quicker completion of project deadlines and a strong sense of motivation to get things done! Brilliant article!