What all successful people have in common

In the previous article we talked about the foundation to success; find what you love or your passion. If you have not read the article on why it is important to have your passion as a starting point, you can read back on it here.

Imagine success as a long winding road, with roundabouts with which, when you take the wrong exit you either go on the wrong path or have to start over. Or when you take a good exit you take a short-cut towards your destination. Looking at the industry giants and successful people that are well known and respected, they all have one thing in common; they started somewhere.

Start

“The secret to getting ahead is getting started”- Mark Twain

There are millions, or even billions of businesses and ideas that have would have potential, but all failed on day one. Why? Because the thinker of the ideas or businesses did not act on them. There is a reason why there is many sayings of the same thing such as “nothing ventured, nothing gained”, “no pain, no gain” or “nothing will come of nothing”. They are different iterations of the same message: if you do not start and try, nothing will change. The reason the number of people that manage to be successful is small is because very few have the stomach to go for the things they want. Comfort is prioritized above possibilities. Fear of the unknown can be crippling. It is those who prioritize their ideas and potential above fear and comfort that make steps towards the journey of success. That first step of taking action is the most crucial and will open endless of possibilities.

Start Small

Regardless of your ambition and goals it is only cars that can go from zero to one hundred in 3 seconds. You are not a machine. Actually, almost all the big brands we know today all started small:

• Apple – In 1997 the first Apple computer, the Apple I, was built by Steve Jobs and Wozniak in Jobs’ garage. The two had the vision of making computers more accessible and portable for household use[i]. The company was founded the year prior to the release of the Apple I. Looking back at the company’s beginnings and where the company is today, the founding vision has been achieved several times over.

• Amazon – Started in 1995 in Jeff and Mackenzie Bezos’ garage. The company started selling books but with a vision be an “Everting store”.[ii] Fast forward to today, you can find almost anything on amazon. in 25 years, Jeff Bezos managed to start and built his company towards his vision successfully. 

• Dwaine -The Rock- Johnson – Today he is Forbes highest paid actor for the second year in a row. But he had truly humble beginnings. Him and his family got evicted from their home at 15[iii]. Hollywood was farthest thing to anything he could imagine achieving.

Besides from it being almost impossible to start big, the tools needed to build something that will last take time to acquire. There is no way around that. Every master was once a beginner. It helps to visualize your goal and planning milestones that will show progress. What ever it is you want to accomplish, you won’t get there without starting, and the only way to make it last and to not get overwhelmed is by starting small and to grow.

Don’t be afraid to fail

The thing about failure is that everybody fails at something at some point in their life. Actually there is a 9 in 10 chance that you probably failed miserably a couple of times before you developed your walking skills. Imagine if you had just given up the couple of times that you failed at walking… Would you still be crawling around the place? Failure is temporary and is part of the learning.

“There is no such thing as failure, unless it is accepted as such. Every defeat is temporary unless you give up and allow it to become permanent. In fact, temporary defeat often makes us stronger and more capable. Each time we try and fail, we learn something that helps prepare us for eventual success.”- Napoleon Hill[iv]

Success is not a given, and can be a long difficult journey. Only those that can stomach the hard work the, constant doubt and taking on criticism by turning it into learnings will be able to succeed.

Believe in yourself

If you don’t believe you can achieve success then you simply will not. There is no bigger cheerleader for your goals than you. Consistently work and invest in yourself. Because the more you develop a strong belief in yourself the more others will see and buy in to it.

“You don’t become what you want, you become what you believe” – Oprah

The thing all successful people have in common is that they had a dream or vision and believed they could reach it and acted on in.

[i] https://www.loc.gov/rr/business/businesshistory/April/apple.html

[ii] https://www.businessinsider.nl/jeff-bezos-amazon-history-facts-2017-4?international=true&r=US

[iii] thelist.com/73769/stunning-transformation-dwayne-rock-johnson/

[iv]http://www.naphill.org/tftd/thought_for_the_day_wednesday_october_18_2017/