Successful people are successful because they produce great results more often than they fail. They find new ways to do things and it seems like whatever they touch turns into gold.

Though their results are always seen by others what is not always so obvious is their thinking, the way they look at things and even more importantly the way they look at themselves. This inner part of them is actually the most important thing which makes them successful.

So, how successful people look at themselves?

1. They think they must have fun at whatever they do

It is impossible to do something successfully while being bored by it. It just doesn’t work that way. Having fun at work takes out all the stress from even the most difficult tasks.

One of the greatest ambassadors of fun at work and always enjoying at whatever he is doing is a business wizard, Richard Branson. He is an epitome of a mixer of success and pure enjoyment.

 “Fun is one of the most important – and underrated – ingredients of any business.” – Richard Branson

2. They think there is always something new they have to learn

Successful people never stop learning from the others and also from their failures. They know that in order to find new ways of doing things they have to be open for the new knowledge.

So they think of themselves as constant learners.

“Stay hungry, stay foolish.” – Steve Jobs

3. They consider themselves as very disciplined

In order to reach their goals, successful people know they have to discipline their lives. They do things which others don’t like doing it and cancel things which distract their focus.

Successful people don’t spend hours watching TV or spend hours drinking in a pub chatting about the weather and politics. They rather spend their time productively, like focusing on their present job or taking care of their body.

“Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishments” – Jim Rohn

 4. They think they have to leave a mark in this life

Successful people have the inner urge to think not just how to improve their own life but also how to improve other’s people lives. They know that they are here because they have to make some improvements by doing new products which make other people’s life easier or by changing old patterns of thinking.

A good example of such successful person is Nelson Mandela who despite being imprisoned for 27 years have stopped the apartheid in South Africa and improved the lives of millions of people.

5. They never think of themselves as failures (even if they fail)

“Our greatest glory is not in never failing but in rising every time we fail” Confucius

Successful people never take a failure personally.
If they are selling something they know that when people say to them “no” they just mean “not yet”. So they go ahead with no bad feelings.
If they fail sometimes in their life or in business they take it just as a part of the process and they use a failure to learn something from.

Henry Ford failed and went broke five times before he succeeded.

 6. They see themselves as great fighters

Successful people know life is full of challenges so they don’t stop at the first obstacle which comes on their way. They don’t accept any circumstances for not succeeding. Their second nature is being great fighters for their ideals.

One of the most prominent examples of a great fighter is Oprah Winfrey. She was born in poverty. She was sexually abused as a child by her relative so she would have enough reasons for pitying herself – if she wasn’t thinking she can fight her way against all the odds right to the top.

7. They think they are very passionate

Passion is the fuel of any successful man or woman. They are addicted to it. They put all their feelings in the thing they do. Their passion helps them cross all the obstacles on their way to success no matter how big the obstacle is. Their passion is always bigger than the barrier in front of them.

“You have to have a lot of passion for what you are doing because it is so hard… if you don’t any rational person would give up” – Steve Jobs

8. They think of themselves as risk takers (and never regret it)

Every successful person knows that sometimes you just have to cross the line when nobody else wishes to do so. They know that risk-taking is part of success and if they fail, they never regret it. They trust so much their risk-taking nature that they know there will be always more wins than failures in their life.

9. They see themselves as very spiritual people

Successful people are concessions that there is more in life than only their physical presence. They feel they need some guidance on their way to success and that the best guidance always comes from within.

They take great care of their spiritual life by reading motivational books, attending self-development seminars, meditating and constantly practicing their gratitude.

10. They see themselves as resourceful

Successful people always look for the solutions. They don’t accept answers like “It can’t be done” or “It is too hard to do it.”

Because successful people think of themselves as being resourceful they naturally look for new ways to do things. They know there is always a solution for just any problem.

A good example of a very resourceful and successful person is Elon Musk, founder of PayPal, Tesla cars and SpaceX. While other big companies like Toyota were concerned just how to make good enough electrical cars he concentrated on finding the solutions how to make fast electrical cars.

11. They think of themselves as givers

Successful people know that the more you give more you receive so they are usually great philanthropists.

Successful rapper 50′ Cent and well-known motivational speaker Anthony Robbins joined their forces with Feeding America to help providing meals for families across America in order to solve domestic hunger.

So if you want to improve results you have in your life right now and become (even more) successful think of the way you see yourself and try to improve some thought patterns which might hold you back.

All the best on your way to your success!

Featured photo credit: John P. via onemansblog.com

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With exam season fast upon us students of all ages are preparing for exams. No matter what age we are, we tend to fall into the same traps every time, setting unrealistic expectations for ourselves whether we are taking our first school exams or university finals. Here is a look at our repeated expectations versus the reality:

I will develop a love of learning.

Especially as we get further through our education, we keep waiting for that moment when it stops feeling like hard work because we just love the learning so much. Our passion for our subject drives us to burn the candle at both ends. We forget to eat, drink or breath because our love of imaginary numbers or Renaissance art makes us so giddy. Except it doesn’t happen, does it? And yet again, revision feels like a chore. I’m pretty sure it’s possible to drive the love out of absolutely anything by putting an exam at the end of it. How to get over it: Don’t wait for your love of your subject to ensure you rack up the hours needed to develop the skills, understanding and knowledge needed to pass your exams. Sadly the only way forward is sheer hard work. It doesn’t mean you’ll never enjoy it; it’s just natural not to enjoy the prospect of rote learning and exam halls.

I will understand everything.

Even if we don’t love them, we expect to understand our subjects in the run up to exams. We’ve paid attention, we’ve completed all our assignments and even made some pretty intelligent contributions in class–yet we find ourselves staring at our textbooks and class notes utterly bemused. How to get over it: Prioritise your revision. It can be tempting to keep covering the topics that we do understand. This makes us feel good, but our time might be better invested brushing up on some of the trickier areas. Take time to learn good sources of additional support for the moments when problems seem intractable. Are there any good websites or are teachers/lecturers on hand for revision queries? It can also help to revise with friends. Challenging yourself to teach a topic to a friend is a great way to test and expand your understanding, and sometimes friends will have a different take on things that will help a difficult concept click for you.

I will write the perfect revision timetable.

There is no such thing as the perfect revision timetable, but we can often fall into the trap of spending hours painstakingly crafting a colour-coded timetable which accounts for every single minute of the day. How to get over it: The best revision timetable is a flexible one. Make sure you don’t overdo your revision for your earlier exams at the expense of the later exams and be ready to adapt your revision timetable as you go if you are working more or less quickly than you’d hoped. The best revision timetable isn’t the one that wins a prize for presentation, but one that helps you feel confident you will be able to get to an adequate understanding of all your subjects before you enter the exam hall.

I will revise long before exams.

No cramming for me. No, I’m going to start revising months and months before and take it slow and steady. Slow…yes…steady…not so much… and now there’s no time and so much to do and…ARGH! How to get over it: It’s reassuring to know that this is a situation that almost every student has found themselves in repeatedly. Take time to carefully prioritise and make the best use of the time that you do have. It’s never too late to start.

My hard work will pay off when I enter my exams feeling cool as a cucumber.

So we get it together (albeit a bit later than planned) and manage to get in some quality revision. And we’re ready. So we should exude quiet confidence as we approach the exam hall. Except we don’t, do we? Even the most perfectly prepared student’s heart does a double backflip as the exam hall doors loom. How to get over it: Learn a few tricks to help your body relax and calm down, such as breathing skills and mindfulness.

I will look after my physical health.

We know that we’ll do better in our exams if we’ve been getting enough sleep, eating well and getting some exercise and we keep meaning to make a start on healthy living, only suddenly it’s exam time and we’ve eaten nothing but junk for six weeks and can’t remember the last time we ventured outside or slept for more than three hours straight. How to get over it: Try to make it as easy as possible to be a little kinder to yourself. Set yourself a bedtime. Get up time and try to stick to it–you’ll sleep better if you have a set routine, and you’ll revise better and retain more if you are well rested. Make healthy snacks available rather than junk and build revision breaks into your timetable–use these to step right away from your work. A walk around the block is a great way to get a little exercise and reinvigorate your tired grey matter.

My final exam will finish with a flourish and fanfare.

The countdown to the moment we walk out of our final exam starts way before we walk into our first exam. It seems like it should be a moment when the world stops spinning and everyone pauses momentarily to congratulate us on a job well done. Except that’s not how it works. Everyone else is kind of busy and our last exam just isn’t as big of a deal to the rest of the world as it is to us. Besides, we’re so exhausted that even if there were fireworks and fanfares we would be too busy lying in a darkened room to appreciate them. How to get over it: Plan how you will mark the end of your exams so you have something to look forward to. But make sure you build in a little rest and relaxation time before any crazy partying commences or you may just find yourself partying straight to your first early night in six weeks.

I will fail completely.

Exams are over, and you’re waiting for the results. You’ve spoken to everyone else about what answers they put and are consequently convinced you got pretty much every question in every exam wrong. You’re sure you failed and you dread your results. How to get over it: Generally speaking, this is an irrational fear. If you’ve prepared well, you’re unlikely to fail. Dissecting your answers post exam isn’t helpful and just acts to raise your anxiety levels. Start focusing on the next exam as you walk out of the last rather than picking it apart. And once the last exam is over, enjoy your freedom. If failure is a genuine possibility, have a think about what your next steps should be prior to picking up your results. You’ll feel less stressed and more in control if you have an action plan you can follow. Whatever exams you’re preparing for, good luck. And remember, you can only do your best.

Featured photo credit: Jeff Sheldon via download.unsplash.com

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Is procrastination taking over your life?

We are all familiar with the phenomenon of procrastination. You have a task you need to do, but instead of doing it you slack off, dillydally, deliberately put it off, or delay by fiddling with miscellaneous things like making unnecessary calls, checking e-mail, or social media.

You know you should be working, but you just don’t feel like doing anything. So you drag your feet and defer the work, only to face it later when it is unavoidable. And then when it is indeed too late, you panic and wish you had done the task earlier.

Ironically, I had planned to finish this article yesterday by the time it was 10 a.m.

In the meantime, I had consumed two breakfasts, checked my e-mails, edited a post for my website, watched a few episodes of a favorite TV show, opened several tabs on my browser, despaired at my lack of progress, hung out with my cousin.. and written absolutely nothing.

What’s wrong with me?  It’s not like me to not want to write.

The problem with procrastination

According to research that attempts to explain this sort of behavior, nothing is wrong with me. Or, at least, nothing out of the ordinary for writers. Derek Thompson, a senior editor at The Atlantic, notes that productive people sometimes fail to differentiate reasonable delay and true procrastination. The former can be useful: “I’ll respond to this email when I have more time to write it,” he says.

The latter, Derek writes, is by definition, self-defeating: (“I should respond to this email right now, and I have time, and my fingers are on the keys, and the Internet connection is perfectly strong, and nobody is asking me to do anything else, but I just… don’t… feel like it.”

Joseph Ferrari, a professor of psychology at DePaul University, puts it plainly that procrastination “really has nothing to do with time-management. To tell the chronic procrastinator to just do it would be like saying to a clinically depressed person, cheer up.”

If you occasionally suffer from true procrastination (as I am sure all of us do), then these ten quick mini hacks might come in handy to help you get a handle of things and overcome procrastination.

1.   Set a deadline for tasks.

One thing that can help beat procrastination is the inescapable pressure of an impending deadline. So, set a hard deadline for tasks to bind yourself to your responsibilities. It’s amazing how productive we get when we face an impending deadline. Admittedly, the pressure might not be felt until after the deadline has passed for chronic procrastinators, but still. It has its uses.

2.   Schedule reminders to complete tasks significantly ahead of the deadline.

To hack this strategy, you could schedule one-shot reminders as late as possible—even slightly after you were supposed to start the project, says Derek. This way you shock yourself into action and stop yourself from putting off assignment. Scheduled reminders are also great because they ensure you don’t forget about a task until long after the deadline, as it sometimes happens when you’re procrastinating. Imagine how great you’ll feel when you’re done ahead of the deadline.

3.   Break down big tasks into micro-steps.

Most tasks contain many sub-tasks that they cause a mental overload. We find ourselves opting to take the path of least resistance, which is often procrastination. The way to beat this trap is to break down big tasks into micro-steps. For example, if you are procrastinating about writing a book, just start with the title. Come back and write the outline. Then just write the first sentence. Write the second sentence and keep going from there. If you take it one step at a time, it’s not that daunting at all.

4.   Use the 10-minute rule.

If a task seems overwhelming or if you can’t bring yourself to start and are tempted to just procrastinate, tell yourself you are only going to do it for 10 minutes. There is nothing intimidating about 10 minutes. Once you get started, the Zeigarnik Effect will kick in and you will be much more likely to keep going. This is a highly effective hack that helps break the pattern of stalling or dreading work.

5.   Remove distractions.

Procrastination is much easier when you have tantalizing distractions everywhere, such as Facebook, Twitter, pinterest, TV, IM and e-mail. Instead of hoping to come back strong after being distracted, it’s much more effective to prevent distraction from derailing you in the first place. So remove all distraction during work hours. Clear off your desk, turn off e-mail notifications, close all open browser tabs and any other distractions on your computer. In fact, disconnect the Internet if you can.

6.   Eat the frog last.

If you have a bunch of tasks that you need to do but you are procrastinating, try doing the easiest task first. The idea is to get things into motion and create momentum straight away. Once you are in motion, it will be easier to eat the frog (to do the “worst” or “hardest” thing that you must do regardless) when the Zeigarnik Effect finally kicks in.

7.   Change your environment.

Sometimes our work environment promotes procrastination. Consider the room you work from. Does it make you want to work or does it make you want to snuggle and sleep? If it is the latter, it’s time to change things around. Tidy up the room, improve the lighting, bring indoor plants to change the ambiance, order comfortable furniture, get a good heating system, or relocate to a quieter place. Whatever you do, make sure your work environment makes you feel inspired to get work done.

8.   Communicate your progress to others.

It could be a close friend, a business partner, a colleague, a mentor, or an editor. Whoever it is, communicate to them your progress whether you’ve actually made any progress or not (and if not, why not). The idea is to have someone hold you accountable and keep you on track.

9.   Go outdoors and enjoy nature.

Science has shown that going out into the wild and enjoying nature can double or even triple your brain activity and get your creative juices flowing.Set work aside when you feel overwhelmed with a task and get something like a twenty minute walk or so outdoors. It will do you a lot of good, boost your fitness levels, and strengthen your willpower to get stalled projects moving again.

10.  Get enough sleep.

Granted, this isn’t the root cause of procrastination. However, if you don’t get a good night’s sleep, say because you go to bed too late, your brain won’t function optimally the next day. You will be fatigued and weak-minded all day and give in to pretty much every possible distraction of the day. However, if you get a good night’s sleep you will wake up refreshed, energized and ready to get things cracking.

And don’t also forget power naps. There’s nothing better than taking a quick 5- to 15-minute rest when you realize you are procrastinating. This will often do the trick wonderfully.

Featured photo credit: sunshinecity via flickr.com

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