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“To begin to think with purpose is to enter the ranks of those strong ones, who only recognize failure as one of the pathways to attainment. ~ James Allen”
I have found 5 simple truths that lie at the heart of living successfully.
And no they’re not the only truths, but working on the principle that there’s nothing special about me, then my assumption is that if these 5 truths work in my life then the chances are high that they’ll work for you too.
I didn’t invent these principles. I have ‘borrowed’ just about all of them from people much smarter than me, so I think I can safely say that they’re a pretty good start to moving towards living successfully.
Everyone has a lot going on these days. Life is complex and it’s too bad that it doesn’t come with an owners manual. Not that it really matters.
What matters is that we remember our future success lies entirely in our hands. There isn’t one way or one path, so the best we can do is walk our own path.
These are some strategies I personally used to help build a happier life. Take the ones that appeal to you, the ones that you think will help you walk your own path especially when it isn’t brightly lit, and looks to be without the lack of noticeable road signs.
And remember what I think is irrelevent. What you think is the only thing that counts.
The key to you living successfully lies in you, in your ability to stay the course.
Don’t let anything or anyone get between you and your incredible potential for greatness. And don’t get overwhelmed because you’ve convinced yourself that living successfully means you have to take massive action. In fact if you do believe this, then you need to begin choosing a new belief pronto!
Small habits = big success
Have you noticed that the real truth of most matters lies in the simplest thing?. We humans tend to make life more complicated than it is, and we put incredible pressure on ourself to have some earth shattering improvement that will knock the socks off everyone we know.
Why would we pressure ourselves like that? I honestly don’t have the answer to that. Not that I’m sure the answer matters a lot. You don’t have to listen to me, but this is one of the things I have learned about living a happy, successful and fulfilling life.
Small improvements every day. And I mean really, really tiny ones can have life changing consequences.
This is what James Clear says in his book “Atomic Habits.”
Here’s how the math works out: if you can get 1 percent better each day for one year, you’ll end up thirty-seven times better by the time you’re done. Conversely, if you get 1 percent worse each day for one year, you’ll decline nearly down to zero.
If you get stuck on this, try using what some might call a weird paradox of nature. I’ve written about it before many times. This is the same practice that has sustained me through those times when life got hard.
Ask yourself this question as though you were asking someone else: “How would you feel if you’d overcome this rotten experience.”
And then feel like you have already got through the challenge and you’re out on the other side, whilst also doing what you need to do to reach that goal.
I did say it was one of nature’s paradoxes. But it really works.
Take control of your life
Your life and your time are precious. Those who have a definite aim for their day, for their week or year will run rings around the masterminds of the world who have no definite purpose and aren’t clear on what it is they want.
By choosing something that you desire to experience, however small, you begin to transform your world. You can experience affluence, satisfaction, joy, mindfulness…move from underachievement to great success regardless of where you are. But it’s up to you to take control, seize the day and take charge of the one thing you can…the way you think about life.
Living successfully is all about keeping things simple
You have already climbed many steps and even when it seems like you’re running in circles, the truth is you’re always heading upward. Make it easy on yourself by keeping your days as simple as possible, bearing in mind that the simplest way to get things done is to do one thing at a time. Don’t have too many irons in the fire that you have to keep tending.
Remind yourself to stick with one item at a time. Focusing on this one thing forces you to keep your attention on it which makes the decision making process that much easier. You’ll be amazed at how quickly you get through your ‘stuff’.
Learn the master skill of success
Successful people have developed the power of focus. Every single day their attention is on achieving a goal they’ve set, an outcome they desire, or a step that leads to fulfillment. They’ve developed and stretched their manifesting muscles.
Be willing to no longer accept mediocrity for your life. Give yourself permission to be one of the people who have joined the ranks of those living a successful life. Whatever that means to you.
Happy, successful people will tell you that they tend to think about the life they desire and keep their focus on what’s right in their world.
Unhappy people on the other hand tend to think and speak about everything that’s wrong, what could go wrong and what it is they don’t want in life. Don’t be one of them, they are unlikely to be heading towards successful living in any shape or form.
Unlock your positive mind
Don’t get out of bed in the morning until you know what your desire will be for the day. It’s an ideal way of unlocking and releasing great ideas and energy that lead to the actions you’ll be taking that bring the results you want.
Discover how remarkable you really are and be willing to take bigger risks, that probably feel scary. Sticking to your comfort level is solid evidence that you’re not growing, not testing your limits. Believe in yourself, you’re capable of so much more.
If you don’t feel a little uncomfortable or even a little anxious about your goal you can be sure that your desire isn’t worthy of you.
Take a chance, take a quantum leap, so that at the end of the day you can say I don’t need excuses, I haven’t wasted my time, I have no regrets…I had a great day.
Then, regardless of any mistakes you made, or any failures you had, you’ll know that you gave it your best. And you’ll discover that the consistent things you do each day will make the biggest difference…you’re one step away from greatness.
Raise your expectations
It’s time to renew your sense of hope with a great vision for your future.
All great achievers have been visionaries. They had an ability to see themselves achieving their goals.They stay focused on what could be and not what already is. They have stirred up their vast ability to create, to invent, to make better, and then they were moved to take action to bring these things from the inner world of thought into the outer world of reality.
You have the same potential the same ability. Even if you’re the underdog, expect to come out on top, and prepare your acceptance speech.
If one door closes expect to make it through another one. If you can’t see another door, make one.
If you believe something bright and wonderful will happen no matter how dark it seems now, the chances of you experiencing living successfully at a new and greater level.
Practice self reliance
At the end of the day be self-reliant. You are responsible for your happiness and if you start by accepting who you are now, totally and completely, regardless of where you are in life, or what’s happened and make the changes YOU choose to make and not because someone else thinks you should be different you’ll be walking the path that’s right for you.
Are you ready to love yourself enough to do what’s necessary for your happiness…to love yourself enough to move out of your comfort zone…to love yourself enough to take control of your life?
Be patient and allow your awesomeness to shine through.
If you have any thoughts on successful living, especially those that work really well for you I’d love to hear them in the comments below.
And thank you, as always for reading and commenting. If you know somehow that would enjoy this article please share.
Encourage one another.
Love Elle
Latest posts by Elle Sommer (see all)
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9 Comments
Self-employed, working 7 days a week for a decade plus I decided, “Even G*d took a day off.” With fear, I did begin working 6 days/week.
What happened? I made MORE money.
Next, a couple years later I decided a lot of people work 5 days/week. So, I began working a few 5 day weeks.
What happened? I made MORE money.
Fear is easy. Trust is hard.
Facts speak.
Thanks for all you share.
Garden & Be Well, XO Tara
Thank you for writing this, Elle. Sometimes all we need is a little bit of encouragement and just someone to remind us that we ourselves are responsible for many things in our lives, especially when it comes to success.
Keep writing
Elle, I love when you say even if we are the underdog, be ready to come out on top and prepare the acceptance speech. It helps me to think about polarities. A bad day is always followed by a good one. A good experience will always be followed by a challenge. This helps me keep my outlook balanced, avoiding the extreme ups and downs!
Hi Martine, what a great perspective on life you have. No surprise there of course! 🙂
Thank you, Elle for sharing your wisdom with us again. I love it when someone can take something so complex – like life! – and distill it down in a way that really makes sense. I love the idea of focusing in on your goals and creating that vision for your future. It’s such a hopeful and empowered stance! Thank you Elle!
Nice to see you here Jessica. I’m happy you enjoyed the article. Course we can never cover the whole kit and caboodle at once…but sometimes getting a sense of a few ways to keep chugging along in a happy state can make all the difference. 🙂
Love this, Elle. I am a strong believer in self-reliance and taking control. We create our future with our actions every day. Along this line, I do believe we need to think in a way that supports and encourages us. To me, that is more than just “thinking positive.” Then, all of this needs to be followed by actions!
Love this article Elle! I find all the wisdom you shared here very inspiring. Thank you!
I resonate with all of these, Elle. I especially like the idea of keeping things simple. And those numbers related to small habits are mind blowing. Thanks so much.