Most successful people are not blessed with more time and money than us. They have the same 24 hours on their clocks like any of us. They have the same human capabilities like anyone else. Like Albus Dumbledore said to Harry Potter, “It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.” Successful people do certain things differently.
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Here are a few things that successful people DON’T do that set them apart from the crowd:
They do not let anyone else define their idea of success
Successful individuals remain unfazed by someone else’s perception of success. They pursue what makes them happy and then work diligently to transform that dream into a reality. Some of them define success in terms of market value while some others define it in terms of the positive change they create. They know what matters to them and don’t let anyone else define it for them.
They don’t underestimate the power of planning ahead
Most successful people believe in planning ahead of time. They plan their day the night before and re-evaluate their priorities at the beginning of the day. They keep planners, journals, diaries or even online dairies and apps with them all day. In fact, most of them even have a proper morning schedule that they follow without fail.
They don’t set unrealistic goals
They believe in setting realistic goals and setting even more realistic deadlines for the same. In fact, Narayana Murthy mailed Infosys employees urging them to understand the importance of leaving office on time. “Never put in extra time unless really needed. Don’t stay back unnecessarily and spoil your company work culture which will in turn cause inconvenience to you and your colleagues,” he wrote. Instead of spending too much time at work, Murthy asked his employees to spend their evenings more productively instead.
They don’t stop learning
When Elon Musk was asked about how he learnt to build rockets, he simply answered, “I read books.” Bill Gates is another known bibliophile. He explained his reading habits saying, “I have a rule that I always finish a book once I start it.” Successful people never undermine the benefits of continuous learning. Most of them understand the value of reading and some of them even take help of online resources to enhance their skills further.
They don’t back down from adversity
Instead, they see failures as learning experiences. They don’t lose their strength in the face of adversities but take them as opportunities to grow better. Oprah Winfrey was fired from her first television job as an anchor in Baltimore, where she said she faced sexism and harassment. Today she is worth an estimated $2.9 billion, according to Forbes. Colonel Sanders started an empire of his own at the age of 65 when most people think of retirement. His Kentucky Fried Chicken faced over 1000 rejections. J.K Rowling was rejected by 12 different publishers.
All these individuals had one common quality: they did not lose hope and kept at it till their dreams were fulfilled. Or, as Albus Dumbledore would probably have it, they chose to have hope and work towards what they wanted to achieve. So what’s your excuse?
