7 Ways to Assure Your Success in Any Endeavor

How bad do you want to escape the life you live to a life you know, deep down, that you truly deserve? What if I showed you a way to have that life if only you followed a few simple rules? If your very first reaction is to be skeptical, then you have some internal programming work to do. If you'll simply open your mind and follow the rules, then you'll be well on your way to realizing the kind of life you deserve.

How do you define success? Some people equate success to a sum of money, an amount of income, or a standard of living. Others define it as the amount of freedom they desire. The truth is, success can be defined in as many different ways as there are individuals on this planet. 

 Most people claim they desire to be “successful” in some form or fashion. Some want a high-paying position or job, a certain kind of car, and a certain style of home in a desirable region of the world, or a lifestyle that offers them the freedom to do what they want when they want.  

Sadly, because “success” is so subjective, few people actually feel successful. The primary reason for this is not because success is unachievable, but that most people fail to implement any kind of actionable plan on how they’re going to achieve the success they desire. Most believe if they affirm it, proclaim it, or think about it enough, success will just somehow manifest itself. Except it doesn’t work that way.

Here are some things you can start doing, right now, to virtually guarantee your success, no matter how you define it.

1. Take action, now.

Life will be as “busy” as you allow it to be.

Stop putting your goals and aspirations behind the avoidable delays and distractions of life. Eliminate the excuses you have for delaying your success aspirations for a “better time” or when you’re “ready”. If you take this approach, you may never realize your dreams and achieve the success you desire because there is no better time than right now to take action to begin your journey toward your goals.

Start today. Stop making excuses that you believe are actual reasons for putting off your action plan to achieve the success you so badly desire.

Make a list of the things you must do in order to achieve your goals. Then, prioritize that list and do one thing every single day, even if you only have just ten or fifteen minutes a day. Taking consistent action is one of the most satisfying things you’ll do to achieve the success you desire. Ignore this fundamental truth at the peril of your hopes and aspirations.

2. Spend time with people who are wiser than you.

Who do you listen to? Who do you take advice from? What sources are you seeking insight and wisdom from on a daily basis? You’ll never learn as much spending your time and attention around the people who are exactly where you desire to escape from. You learn and grow by spending your time and attention with people who are where you desire to be in life. This can be one of the toughest things for some people because of the emotional ties that exist among people. 

Your choices will define every aspect of your life. Your income will be within $2,000 to $5,000 of your closest five friends. Your standard of living, insight, and opportunities will be highly influenced by the friends you keep close. Choose wisely.

3. Save more than you think you can…and invest early and often. 

Time is the one aspect of investing that provides the most leverage. If you’re young, get this truth into your head and leverage it. The “time” to learn this fundamental rule of return is not later in life like most people. The truth is, you’ll be fifty years old before you know it. If you’re young and leverage your time wisely, you’ll be a wealthy fifty-year-old instead of a regretful fifty-year-old. 

If you’re not-so-young, start now anyway. Time is relative to how much you have remaining. You cannot go back and reclaim it, so don’t waste any more of it in regret. Instead, get started now!

Get your priorities straight

It is never a good idea to buy a bigger flat-screen TV if you already have a functional TV and you can instead choose to invest the $500. Same thing goes for the car you’re driving. Do you really need a new car? Financial freedom begins as soon as you decide to use money as the tool it is to achieve the success you say you desire. The path to financial freedom begins to become clear when you see how money can work for you, not the other way around. 

4. Never stop reading.

One of the primary differences between successful people (broadly defined) and unsuccessful people is that successful people are avid readers. They have an insatiable appetite for information. 

Recommended reading for beginners seeking success:

Think and Grow Rich, by Napoleon Hill
The Magic of Thinking Big, by David Schwartz
How to Win Friends and Influence People, by Dale Carnegie
The Secret, by Rhona Byrne
The Power of Positive Thinking, by Norman Vincent Peale
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, by Steven Covey
Fear Is a Thief, by Gary Westfal

These books form an essential foundation to a level of knowledge and insight leading to a life of success; no matter how you define it. They should be a permanent part of your ever-growing library.  

5. Stay fit.

Success in any language must include the elements of physical, emotional, and spiritual fitness. These elements form the basis of balance and harmony in life. If any of the three elements is deficient, an imbalance will occur until you take action to correct it. 

Be sure to incorporate the time to ensure your physical well-being by staying active, eating right, and consistently engaging in some kind of physical activity. Your ability to stay active is essential in helping you to think clearer, function efficiently, and live a vital life. 

When your mind, body, and spirit are in balance, you are grounded in your potential. With balance as the cornerstone in your life, you will always experience the best of what life has to offer.

6. Connect with a coach or mentor.

The benefits of learning from someone else allows you to leverage the knowledge of someone who has traveled the path you desire to travel in a much shorter timeframe and often in a much more efficient manner. If your burning desire is to reach the pinnacle of your version of success as quickly as possible, consider enlisting the assistance of a coach or mentor.

A good coach or mentor can literally change the course and construct of your life. These leaders can help you identify your strengths, develop them, and take advantage of opportunities best leverage those attributes.

7. Master the Power of Influence.

Influence is part of every interaction. Anyone refusing to admit that it’s not a part of their life is likely the one who is being influenced. Influence is so powerful that it has become a vital part of an increasing movement of personal awareness and self-improvement curriculums designed to accelerate results across the spectrum of business and personal relationships. 

Your ability to persuade and influence people to help you get the things you want out of life is one of the most important skills you can develop. Learning the fundamentals of influence opens the pathways to greater personal power that leads to your ability to get more of the things you want faster and easier than ever before. Your ability to influence can be a difference-maker between success and failure. It can virtually guarantee your progress and enable you to use all of your other skills and abilities at peak performance levels. Learning how to influence people will earn you the respect of those you interact with and has the potential to make you one of the most sought-after people in your community or business. 

Until next time...

- G -

"Your life changes with a DECISION. Once you make a decision, the Universe changes with you." ~ G. Westfal 

-----------------------

If you'd like to receive a notification anytime I publish a new article (currently about once per month), visit my Facebook page: G. Gary Westfal, Author

Once there, click on "G-Life! Magazine" in the left column.  You'll then be subscribed and will receive a notification whenever I publish a new article or provide updates to my books or appearances.  

If you like this post, please recommend it to others!

-----------------------

COMING SOON!

Your Ultimate Guide to 

Setting and Achieving 

Every Goal You Can Imagine

“Gary Westfal rolls-up everything I have learned in a 40-year military career about Strategic Action Planning in one book.”

Lieutenant General Bradley Heithold, USAF (retired)

Coming in the Spring of 2020

-----------------------

333The Power of Equilibrium

"A powerful book that provides an interesting

 cross-section of three different points of view for 

the balance of body, mind, and spirit."

~ Amazon Reader Feedback

Get your copy of this insightful book

on Amazon.com TODAY!

Available Now!

-------------------------------------------------------------

Get your copy of Gary's best-selling novel 

Dream Operative, 

 NOW AVAILABLE 

on Audible.com!

FEAR Is a Thief is on Amazon.com 
and is NOW AVAILABLE on Audible.com too! This inspiring book is the first in a self-empowerment series that was written to help people get past fear using five fundamental truths as a basis for understanding and taking action for a better life. 
Get your copy today at FEAR Is a Thief/Amazon.

Also be sure to check out: KEY HORIZON, the second novel in the G. Weston spy series. This thriller is receiving rave reviews across the spectrum and has captivated a new following of "spy-fi" readers. 

Order your copy of these exciting novels today at Amazon.com

Ten (Limiting) Stories We Tell Ourselves

1. I never succeed at anything.

2. It’s just the way I was raised.

3. I’m not happy because life isn’t fair.

4. I don’t ever make the right decisions in life.

5. I'm damaged goods; I've been through so much!

6. I’m too old. The course of my life is destined to be what it is.

7. I don’t have the talent or skills. Even if I try, I'll probably fail.

8. I'm not smart (talented, brave, handsome, pretty, or worthy…) 

9. It takes money to make money. And I don’t have that kind of money.

10. I can't change because it seems I always find a way to mess things up.

You don’t have to buy into the limiting stories you’ve been telling yourself. They may seem like facts, but they are actually just circumstances that have developed to support the narrative of your self-professed story. When you change the narrative of your story, an amazing thing begins to happen – you begin to change the very course of your life. And the circumstances have no choice but to follow the new narrative. 

As your circumstances change, so too does your perspective.  Your perspective drives your thoughts, beliefs, and actions. When your perspective changes, you develop a fresh new outlook that opens the door to all kinds of goodness to flow into your life. 

You have the power to release your stories whenever you decide you’re tired of believing them. You have the power to rewrite them at will. All you have to do is draw a line in the sand and start writing the narrative you desire and know you deserve.

Let’s devote a thought or two to just a couple of these limiting beliefs. As we do, I think you’ll begin to see two things emerge: 1. You are the author of your story and, 2. you have the power to edit that story any time you wish. 

1.  “I never succeed at anything.”

This statement reflects a closed mind that has accepted defeat. Success is defined as the slow and steady progress toward a worthy goal. It is not defined as the surface trappings of life we typically see in social media every day. Take a good look at all areas of your life and acknowledge the progress you are making. It’s there if you look for it. When you find it, you’ll see you are indeed succeeding at something. Claim that success and own it! Then, simply change the narrative of your story from “I never…” to “I am…”

2.  “It’s just the way I was raised.”

You are an individual capable of writing your own story. It’s true your family handbook was a strong influence in creating your fundamental beliefs, but there comes a time when you must carefully select what you wish to adopt from that influential source to develop your own story. Don’t ever think you must use this limiting statement to justify who you truly are. Listen closely and you will hear your own calling. Use what you hear as a brand-new foundation to write your own empowering story.

3.  “I’m not happy because life isn’t fair.”

As an author, I can tell you that the manner in which you frame a sentence or statement matters. Consider the above sentence in its current state. The sentiment is one of discontent and defeat. With a simple rearrangement of the words, we can change the entire dynamic to one that reflects the real truth. “Life isn’t fair, so I’m not happy.” Once we see the truth of the matter, we gain power over it and can actually do something about it. Guess what? Life isn’t fair. So, now that we know the truth, we gain insight into knowing our happiness should never be tied to the fact that life isn’t fair. 

4.  “I don’t ever make the right decisions in life.” 

This is a statement of absolution that is likely more reflective of a lack of self-confidence than a statement of fact. In other words, it’s an excuse and an exaggeration. Decision-making is part of our everyday lives that has consequences. Make the wrong dietary choice and you could gain too much weight, get sick, or even worse. Drive your car through a red traffic signal and it could have catastrophic consequences. If this kind of statement is part of your narrative, I would point out that you are likely not focusing on the right decisions you are making. Build your new narrative on the good choices you’re making and more of the same will follow. 

5.  “I’m damaged goods. I’ve been through so much.”

No one on this earth knows what you’ve been through in life quite like you. Your circumstances are unique and have no doubt shaped your beliefs and values. Therein lies the limit of your situation, however. To be clear, you are not alone in having “been through so much” in life. The difference between those who lean on this belief and those who don’t is quite amazing actually. There are two mindsets at play here. While one side embraces difficult circumstance as a Scarlett Letter they must bear because of the past, the other side refuses to accept the narrative in spite of past circumstance. You have a choice. You always have a choice. Just because someone rejected you or something went wrong in your life, does not mean you must edit your story to a self-deprecating narrative. Trust me, there is much more goodness in store for you if you will just believe that you deserve it. 

Interested in taking a deeper look at the next five on the list? Let me know by leaving a comment or reaching out to me directly. 

Until next time…

~ G ~

“Stories are the shortest distance between us and truth. So, when we understand and uncover these stories, we gain the opportunity to understand maybe we need a new story.” 
~ Chris Cade

-----------------------

333

The Power of Equilibrium

"A powerful book that provides an interesting

 cross-section of three different points of view for 

the balance of body, mind, and spirit."

~ Amazon Reader Feedback

Get your copy of this insightful book

on Amazon.com TODAY!

Available Now!

***********

Step into the mind of Author Luc Vors.

"Keep producing things, great or small, and you will find that your 

creative mind will blossom with more and more ideas." 

***********

Check out the wise, knowledgeable, and often entertaining perspectives of Author Elisabeth Auld inside the editions of

 Gals in Blue.

************

Check out our new affiliate partner, J. Jane, a fascinating blog of mentorship for, by, and between women.

j. jane 

-------------------------------------------------------------

Get your copy of Gary's best-selling novel 

Dream Operative, 

 NOW AVAILABLE 

on Audible.com!

FEAR Is a Thief is on Amazon.com 
and is NOW AVAILABLE on Audible.com too! This inspiring book is the first in a self-empowerment series that was written to help people get past fear using five fundamental truths as a basis for understanding and taking action for a better life. 
Get your copy today at FEAR Is a Thief/Amazon.

Also be sure to check out: KEY HORIZON, the second novel in the G. Weston spy series. This thriller is receiving rave reviews across the spectrum and has captivated a new following of "spy-fi" readers. 

Order your copy of these exciting novels today at Amazon.com.