There are thousands of books that have been published about what it takes to achieve in business and in life. Another thousand pieces about the topic have already been published online, and another thousand will do so tomorrow. It may be difficult to distil such a broad subject and the countless variables that can influence our happiness into a reasonable collection of concepts that anyone can read and apply to their lives.
But among all those uncountable legends and stories, all those thousands of books and articles, there are some themes that run through them all. You’ll discover human-related principles that many of us consider but seldom put enough effort into achieving. You’ll hear about decisions and ideas that we all wish we could reach but frequently struggle to comprehend. Which of these ten traits do you presently possess, and which do you need to acquire, according to the stories of people who were successful in business and in life?
- Be unafraid
Do you want to know why society views achieving economic success as such a difficult task? While there are some obvious obstacles to overcome, one of the most difficult tasks is getting over the first dread of starting a business. Most people spend their entire day at their boring jobs, counting down the minutes, while daydreaming about starting a big business. They never give up the stability of a paycheck because establishing a business makes them too anxious about the uncertainty. You must learn to control your own fears if you want to stand out from the crowd. You’re not alone, so don’t worry.
For those who want to be truly successful in business, this is just the start of the journey. Overcoming your fears and starting a business is admirable, but the real tests of a fearless entrepreneur come from situations like striking up a conversation at a networking mixer, asking for the sale on a big deal, cutting ties with a partner who is hurting the business, and perhaps the most terrifying of all – witnessing a business fail (it happened to Henry Ford twice before he created his famous assembly line!).
2. Recognize finance
People frequently discuss how a well-known company once began in a garage or basement, to the point where it’s almost romanticised the idea that rising from poverty to success is what truly characterises a good entrepreneur. The fact of the majority of profitable company operations is completely untrue; in order to succeed, you’ll need money. When you’re just starting out, you don’t necessarily need to have a lot of cash, but rather it’s more vital to grasp how finance works and how to use your money to grow in the most intelligent way.
Robert Kiyosaki is most known for educating people about the value of financial literacy and how it affects the lives of successful business people. Those who rely on their paychecks to get by also burden themselves with debt from credit card debt, house and car bills, and other materialistic expenses. However, those that are financially savvy are aware of the significance of accumulating assets, or items that provide income. You can start learning how to increase your income through investing as soon as your asset column starts to turn positive.You must understand how to take money and make it work for you if you want to be a successful entrepreneur.
3. Advance as a Leader
You’ve already started down the path to being a leader once you learn to control your concerns and take the plunge to starting a business. Your final success will be greatly influenced by how you assist others in finding their own, as we’ll cover in a moment. In the same way that football fans hold a star quarterback or wide receiver in high regard, many of us place successful businesspeople on a pedestal. These people always lead a team, though, and that team is what makes them successful. To inspire others to support your endeavour, adopt your philosophy, or pay you money for a good or service you provide, you must develop some level of leadership skills.
Just because you need to be a good leader doesn’t mean you have to be the CEO, the public face of the organisation, or the one “in charge” to succeed in business. The founders of Google, who were engineers rather than CEOs, hired Eric Schmidt, a successful CEO, to lead the business as it began to take off. Having the correct charisma and message to persuade the appropriate people to take the necessary actions is sometimes all that is required to successfully manage a team or a large group of people. A superb soldier may excel at organising troops on the battlefield but may struggle to oversee the entire conflict.
4. Use Your Influence
Understanding what “to do” with the chances that present themselves along the path is one of the biggest obstacles that will prevent an entrepreneur from achieving their goals. It requires a specific mindset to look “beyond the box” in situations to find the value in a new connection or condition, which is where leverage becomes such a crucial notion that those entering the corporate world need to comprehend. The same folks who are too afraid to quit their day jobs are also the same people who are clueless about how to make the most of their resources and connections.
Use leverage to advance your company’s goals by following the advice “when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” Many folks will prepare their own lemonade and consume it. A true entrepreneur will create lemonade, sell it to others who don’t have any lemons, and then utilise the money they gain to expand their firm or buy more lemons. Donald Trump is a perfect example of an entrepreneur who frequently used leverage to acquire important real estate or close highly lucrative commercial transactions, despite the fact that he is currently a divisive political figure. Whether you like him or not, his book The Art of the Deal is an excellent resource for learning how leverage may help someone become extremely successful.
5. Acquire Partners
We previously discussed how developing leadership skills is one of the most essential traits one needs to “move the chains” in the business world. Then, in order to succeed as a leader, one needs a group of people who share their convictions about the goal. That is why building a strong team of partners is crucial to every successful organisation. A firm can only grow so much if there is only one source of drive, inspiration, and the actual sweat equity required to keep the lights on. A true “business owner” is someone who does not need to be involved in the day-to-day operations in order for the business to run and remain profitable, as we will see in grasping the meaning of success both in business and in life. The classic book “The E-Myth” is a fantastic account of how many people attempt to manage a business on their own (and fail). Instead, you should use your leadership abilities to inspire people to use their own unique skill sets to work as a team for the benefit of the organisation.
6. Possessing the Proper Attitude
We’ve already covered some of the most crucial ideas you need to comprehend in order to succeed in business, but how do you define real success? Is it money, sales, or the impact your behaviour has on the world around you? Real economic success only matters in the long run if it also equates to success in life, and that all begins with having the proper attitude toward it. Rich people who despise their current environment are not given any attention. Everyone is familiar with the tale of Ebeneezer Scrooge, the cynical old man who had unlimited wealth yet did nothing but cause suffering for others.
Knowing what’s genuinely essential and developing values based on what you can do each and every day to make that world a reality are prerequisites for living a truly happy and full life. Yes, a lot of people who launch a business hope to become financially independent to some extent. But once one has such riches, what does one do with them? People who believe that having money allows them to surround themselves with more “things” and make them feel better about themselves than others can never be successful in life.
7. Manifesting Gratitude
Every single day, the world we live in changes faster than any of us can possibly comprehend. In the past 30 to 50 years, technology has changed how we interact with our neighbours, loved ones, and business associates throughout the globe. The generations who have grown up with this technology frequently take it for granted, never pausing to “smell the roses” and realise that they live in an amazing period of history and that much of what they have in their lives – from the electricity powering their lights to the cars that help them get to their next meeting – is a gift from that time.
People that are appreciative of their surroundings are those who are content in both work and in life. These are the folks who make it a point to thank the barista for their coffee in the morning, who hold doors open for others, and who pay attention to the other person when they are speaking. Entrepreneurs that are successful should never take for granted the people, places, and things that have helped them go from their modest beginnings to where they are today. Remember Louis CK’s excellent insight that you’re “sitting on a chair in the sky” the next time you’re in the air, and be thankful for all the lovely things we get to enjoy every day.
8. Maintaining Health
Your money and success isn’t going to do you any good if you’re not around to use it – so why would you live your life so dangerously that you would sacrifice your health? What good is all the passion you have for your business dreams if you’re not going to be around to see them come true? Too many of us are preoccupied with living that we seldom stop to consider the harm we all inflict on our bodies. As entrepreneurs, our days are so jam-packed with work and juggling tasks that lunch breaks are reduced to brief periods of the day when we force-feed ourselves quick food to satiate our hunger.
The stress of the day becomes an excuse for us to use drink and drugs to dull the pain during the nights when we sometimes burn the candle at both ends. Is that how we define success in life, while we worship the famous people who passed away before their time? We become hungry and insecure about who we are and how other people view us as a result of our concern with money and material possessions. Without good health, we will never be able to succeed fully.
