The 7 Pillars of Success

“Successful people are simply those with success habits.”

~ Brian Tracy

One of the most exciting things that comes up when you observe, listen or read about some of the most successful people is the “common factors” they all have.

While everyone has a different definition of success, it gets really exciting to look at some of the principles they believe and follow. I like to call them the common factors or pillars of success.

And, here’s the 7 pillars that I find most common in the biographies of successful people. We’ll discuss each of the 7 in more depth later but for now, here’s a brief into

1. Think Positive

While everybody else thinks positive thinking is just hogwash that doesn’t take you anywhere, successful people are determined to keep themselves positive. It’s no longer just a matter of being a pessimist or optimist, it’s also a matter of keeping yourself motivated. And, it’s much easier to motivate yourself to do something when you think of the successful outcome.

Think about the prize, not the price.

2. Overcome limitations

While it’s really easy to come up with 100’s of reasons why you can’t pursue your goals. Perhaps you don’t have the money, perhaps it’s your neighborhood, your spouse, your parents; successful people are determine to succeed. They are determined to get past the limitations and get what they want.

3. Take Action

Without going too much into the theoretical aspects of action and energy, it is my observation that when you take actions towards your goals, you move 10 steps closer to success. Even if you’re determined to succeed and have written goals, it’s easy to get distracted by too much information. I think knowledge itself is very important but here’s how I see learning and taking action - when you learn about a concept, you move a step towards your goals; when you take action on that concept, you move 10 steps towards your goals.

4. Take control of your time

Time can either be your best friend or your worst enemy and while most people in the world don’t give much thought to where they spend their time, successful people are determined to make the most of every single minute they’ve got. They realize that time not money is the most precious and powerful resource. And, when you take that understanding and use your time wisely to move towards your definition of success, it’s only a matter of time

5. Believe in Yourself

I haven’t yet met a single person who has achieved a great level of success who doesn’t believe in himself or herself. I think it’s the immense belief in themselves that allows successful people to overcome all the challenges and keep moving forward to achieve their goals.

When the going gets tough, only the tough can keep going.

6. Help others

Of all the people I deem successful, I haven’t met or heard of one who doesn’t like giving and helping others. In fact, most of the successful people I can think of enjoy helping others grow and accomplish their dreams, they are passionate about making a positive difference in the lives of others.

I personally think this ties in with number 5. I know there’s been times when my self esteem has hit rock bottom and I don’t know of anything else that motivates me to keep trying during those circumstances except the times I’ve made someone else smile.

7. Be flexible

While a lot of successful people I’ve heard about, known or read about have strong values and principles they believe in, almost all of them believe in listening to others and being flexible. It’s the flexibility that allows them to change their plans on the way to success.

Stand up for your core beliefs and values but be willing to change things a little.

So, which of the 7 do you find most challenging in your lives? And, what are your experiences of using the 7 pillars of success in your lives?

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