Success is something that every person strives for, but achieving it can be a daunting task. It requires hard work, perseverance, and determination to overcome obstacles and reach your goals. However, success is not just about hard work; it also involves other factors that can help you reach your full potential.
In this blog post, we will discuss seven basic factors – rather qualities – that contribute to success. You will find that all – ALL of the successful people have these 7 qualities. The emphasis on each of the qualities may differ from personality to personality. But the composition will always be there!
Also – you will notice – these qualities are complementary. They contribute to each others’ effectiveness and efficiency…! So working consciously to cultivate each of these 7 factors of success will develop your overall personality.
Let’s begin!
1. Focus
Focus is the ability to concentrate on a single task or objective without getting distracted.
It is one of the most critical factors for success. Without focus, you will have a difficult time achieving your goals. To achieve focus, you must find a joy, pleasure in doing the activity. Even if the particular task seems boring, one can cultivate a habit of enjoying the grill by focusing the desirable end result.
As the great philosopher Aristotle said,
“Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work.”
Remember – Focus requires discipline and practice, and it can be honed through techniques like meditation and mindfulness.
2. Persistence
Persistence is an essential trait for achieving success because setbacks are inevitable on the road to success. Without persistence, you are likely to give up at the first sign of difficulty. It is the ability to keep going despite setbacks and failures.
Thomas Edison has famously said,
“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”
Persistence requires mental toughness and a growth mindset. To be persistent, one needs to have a outright belief in the path chosen – at the same time, willingness to accept mistakes and correct the path.
NEVER confuse persistence with adamance. Persistence is NOT about refusing to accept mistakes. It’s about accepting the shortcomings, correcting the path and continuing the journey of progress.
3. Hard work
As the legendary football coach Vince Lombardi said,
“The price of success is hard work, dedication to the job at hand, and the determination that whether we win or lose, we have applied the best of ourselves to the task at hand.”
Hard work is the foundation of success. There are no shortcuts or quick fixes. To achieve success, you need to be willing to put in the time and effort required. Hard work requires discipline, focus, and persistence.
Note here that hard work doesn’t begin from day 1 – especially if you don’t have a habit of working hard on other previous endeavours. Initially you might get bored, tired, exhausted. You might feel like giving up. And that’s okay! That’s your “habitual self” asking to be just “the way you were” previously.
Listen to that voice and then ignore it.
Slowly the voice will change its tunes.
It’ll then ask you to work harder! That’s when you will realise that your old lazy self has now evolved into one hard working super cool person!
4. Resilience
Resilience makes you bounce back from setbacks and adversity. It is an essential factor for success because setbacks and failures are inevitable. Resilience requires mental toughness, a growth mindset, and the ability to learn from mistakes.
Former US President Barack Obama once said,
“The real test is not whether you avoid this failure, because you won’t. It’s whether you let it harden or shame you into inaction, or whether you learn from it; whether you choose to persevere.
Understand the difference between (and how the two complement!) persistence and resilience. Persistence enables one in continuing during tough situations. Resilience give the power to bounce back after defeat.
For example, say you are in a very tough financial situation and are looking for a job. Any job would do. Say you get an appointment for a job interview. But the company, job profile, the industry – everything is alien to you. Yet – you google, watch YouTube tutorials – you understand NOTHING! What do you do?
If you are persistent – you keep digging deeper. You try different resources, you ask around – you keep trying…! THAT’s persistence.
BUT – let’s say – even after all of this hard work, you don’t perform well in the interview and you don’t the job. This happens 2-3-4 times further…!
Now – if you are resilient – you don’t get down. You bounce back the first time you fail. And again, the second time. And you bounce back again and again – until you get your first job! THAT IS RESILIENCE…!
5. Positive attitude
A positive attitude is essential for success as it makes you hopeful for the future. With positive attitude, you see the good in every situation and to approach challenges with optimism. It strengthens your belief that with right things in place (like the 7 qualities for success!) you will reach the right place you aspire for!
However, it is not easy to gain a positive attitude & mindset. It needs to be systematically and consciously developed. A positive attitude requires mental discipline and the ability to re-frame negative thoughts. Tools like morning rituals and affirmations help in developing and strengthening positive attitude.
6. Time management
If there’s one challenge most of us are facing in our lives – it’s lack of time! We just don’t have enough of it! Days and Weeks just pass by without us achieving anything substantial. But is that the case with successful people? No it isn’t! Because they are great at time management! And they do it by putting important things first!
Author, Trainer, Motivational Speaker Stephen Covey said this brilliantly –
“The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.”
Time management gives you the ability to use your time effectively and efficiently. It is an essential factor for success because time is a limited resource. It requires discipline and the ability to say no to distractions.
Fact of the matter is – You can’t have it all. You can’t know it all. You can’t execute it all. Therefore – you must prioritize things that matter, and put your focus, energy, enthusiasm into that one thing. After that’s done – then you move to the next thing. Then the next. Having a daily planner, preparing a to-do list often help in time management.
7. Continuous learning
Successful people keep growing and improving continuously. It is an essential factor for success because the world is constantly changing, and you need to keep up with new developments.
Albert Einstein said,
“Intellectual growth should commence at birth and cease only at death.”
Continuous learning requires curiosity, a growth mindset, and a willingness to step outside your comfort zone. The added advantage of continuous learning is, it maintains the novelty in our life. Thus keeping you always energised and enthusiastic.
To Conclude –
If you hone these 7 qualities within you – achieving success will be an inevitability for you. These factors are not mutually exclusive; they work together to help you reach your full potential. By practicing these factors, you can overcome difficulties, obstacles, self doubt and achieve whatever you deem worthy.
Remember that success is not just about achieving your goals; it’s also about the journey and the person you become along the way. These 7 qualities will make the person in you worthy of true success. Embrace the challenges and setbacks that come your way, learn from them, and keep moving forward.
As Napoleon Hill has said,
“Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve.”
So, stay focused, stay persistent, and never give up on your dreams.
Success is within your reach, and it’s up to you to make it happen.
Cheers!
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