Written by Michel Perlong | Ever wonder what kinds of habits successful people have? Maybe you’ve wanted to adopt some of these behaviors to improve your own life, or see if your friends or potential partners hold these traits. Of course, success is subjective and there is no step-by-step guide on how to be successful, but hopefully these ten things will point you in the right direction.
1. They do lots of work.
We’ll start with the obvious – successful people work. A lot. It’s not just how much you work, but where you focus that work. If you ask any (honest) person with useful skills or knowledge, you’ll discover that those skills were attained through hundreds of hours of developing them. Find out where your skills lie and hone those skills. There are no shortcuts!
2. They get up really early.
Sounds like a pain, but if you want to be at your most productive and fit all that work in, you have to find the hours in the day. Business Insider reports that most CEOs, including those at Apple, General Motors, and Disney, wake up at 4:30-5:00am. Former presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush would wake up at 4am and the former would stay up until 2am. Getting two hours sleep probably won’t lead to a very productive day, but if you can find that extra hour or two in the morning, it should go a long way.
3. They go against the flow.
Going with the crowd can be very tempting and an easy way out, and not something that successful people do. Successful people are the ones who do what others don’t, otherwise everyone wouldn’t be successful. If you go somewhere with less competition, there’s a higher chance of success.
4. They don’t dictate. They lead.
If you’re in a position of responsibility, you can sit back and let your minions do all the work, or you can do what successful people do and lead. Being a boss and being a leader are two completely different things. Getting your hands dirty, getting involved in the work, and leading by example are much more rewarding than dictating to others.
5. They aim high
Starting at the end is not the only key to success, aiming for the result you really want is the key. Successful people don’t get to where they are by having modest aims; they get there by aspiring to reach levels most people wouldn’t even dream of. Having average aims will most likely yield average results.