HOW TO BE A SUCCESS

. HOW TO BE A SUCCESS : 5 THOUGHTS . 

Being a success is something that we all, no doubt, continuously strive for. I for one am always working hard to be a success, to achieve successes & push myself and my skill set to be the most successful possible. The funny thing though, about success, is that it’s so utterly subjective. It’s dependent on so many variables, the person, the context, the goals. Success to me is personal, and success has to be measured and defined against specific goals, ambitions and targets that you’ve set out and defined yourself.

Success as a topic is a minefield really, and i’ve already attempted to tackle the question of ‘What is blog success‘ (in fact my article was actually featured in Blogosphere magazine which was quite the ‘success’), but today I thought i’d share my 5 thoughts on ‘success’ from what it is, what it means for us all individually and how we can achieve our own successes.

It’s such a broad topic, i’d love to hear your thoughts on the topic too :)

#1 DEFINE SUCCESS

For me, the first step on the route to success, is of course defining what success is to you. Perfectionism, alongside success are such ambiguous terms that unless you really define what they mean to you, could end up being painful, stressful and pressurising achievements to try and deliver on.

The main thing I think any successful person (whoever you may deem those people to be) have in common, is that they have a plan, an ambition, a goal post. They know what they want, and they’re working towards achieving it.

So step one … define what success is to you!

#2 SET YOURSELF GOALS

Naturally if you want to achieve the ultimate of successes, you need to have not only defined what that success actually is, but also set yourself goals, a roadmap & objectives that will help you achieve them. Regardless of whether your ambition is blog success, career, family or personal related, setting yourself milestones, little goals, little tasks will only help you achieve your long term successes and ambitions.

I actually wrote a whole post on how to develop a business plan for your blog which talks about and shares ideas and thoughts on setting goals and how to measure success etc, which is a really helpful guide to identifying what your success objectives should be based on and how best to go about setting out and delivering on your ambitions.

#3 BE SPECIFIC ON TIMINGS

Success is ambiguous enough on it’s own, let alone without any specific timing plan! It’s no good saying ‘I want to be CEO of my company one day’ … that’s so far removed from reality that delivering on it is near on impossible! So as well as being specific on goals, be specific on timings and when you want and need to achieve your goals. The more specific you can be, the better!

One question that I always think is a good sense check of your ambition & progress path is to think about where you’d like to be in 5 years time … once you’ve defined that goal, you can think about the specifics you need to do to get there.

#4 FOCUS ONLY ON YOU

A really really really important tip and one that is so often hard to actually do, is to focus on you. And you only. Forget about those around you, what they’re achieving, what they’re doing and the successes they’re managing to deliver! Everyone has their own journey, own ambition and own successes along the way, the most important thing you can do is to celebrate their achievements, and focus on delivering against your own. I actually think comparing yourself to others can be one of the most negative things to do, and can massively hinder your journey to success, rather than aid it. Whilst it’s great to take check of the competition, the market & the landscape, as these are all things that can affect your journey, they should not be your focus or definition of your own success.

#5 GET FEEDBACK

On the journey to success, it’s important to take check, get feedback and seek guidance along the way. You as a person can be your harshest judge, equally people can easily be disillusioned and overly confident in their ability, when perhaps in reality they’re ‘not quite there yet’, to avoid any confusion, it’s always good to get feedback from others on your performance, delivery & progress along the way … whether that be your boss, peers, clients, readers of your blog or just your family and friends. Be sure to measure your success and progress based on general consensus or actual facts and figures, not just what you think or feel.

I for one can feel like a total failure one day if i’m having an emotionally bad day. Others I can feel like i’m bossing it when I get a few exciting emails or opportunities.

The emotions around success can fluctuate incredibly … so always ensure your journey is grounded in good people, measurable objectives and a very clear definition of what it is you want to achieve.

Ultimately success is your oyster … I firmly believe in this day n age, we can achieve whatever we set our mind to, with hard work, high spirits & a non stop flow of passion and enthusiasm!

# BONUS: BALANCE

The irritating thing about people who we often admire as successes is that it’s not just their achievements we aspire to and respect, it’s often that they seem happy, content, and like they’ve got life sussed. And this is a really important thing to remember … success isn’t (or shouldn’t be) just about financials, big awards or achievements. In my opinion the ultimate life success is having balanced career and personal life well … having achieved my career ambitions, but not at the sacrifice of wellbeing, friends, family & fun!

So on your quest for success, make sure to check in on ‘life’ too. Have fun, and enjoy yourself on the journey!

I really hope you found this post and my thoughts on defining and achieving success interesting, if not useful! I’d absolutely love to hear what your ambitions are, whether that’s work, blog or just life ambitions, and what you’re doing to help achieve them!

If you have any other tips too, be sure to leave them in the comments, i’m always open to new ideas and opinions!