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5 Tips to Help You Be More Successful

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Success

Hunger for success is natural and is in everyone. There isn’t a more uplifting feeling than when you accomplish your goals through hard work and discover your true self. Everyone wants to be more successful, but what is a success?

Although success can be well–defined, based on the experience with our clients, it means something different to everyone. There are those who feel content in possession of lots of money. Those who own and run a business – which is what brings them joy. Some people are dedicated to personal and professional development and there are also those whose 1st priority is family – and others to whom it’s caritative work. 

All work for success, all in their own ways, some following their passion and others in need of a little uplifting now and then. 

But what ways are there to be more successful? Here are 5 tips for you to help you be on the path of joy and success.

Find out what success means to you.

I am sure you heard that people who follow their passion are happier and more successful. In some sense, it is true, even though passion is only one component to success. So, as a start,  find out what makes you feel happy. As soon as you have a goal, you can create the plans yourself – if you really want it. 

Then find what you like to spend time doing and what you are good at.

When you do something with all your heart and soul, you are moving huge energies and can achieve extraordinary things. This energy will automatically help you concentrate on creating experiences that move you forward and ease the progress to a great extent. Without a shadow of a doubt, you will be able to mobilize your energies and turn your ideas into actions.

We all know though, that passion paired with excellence is what makes a difference, and to make an impact you need to have and utilize the right skills.

When you are tuned into success and positive about the future, you rarely consider that success always comes at a price. Expect surprises and be open to making sacrifices.

Depending on what success means to you and what you want to achieve or what your goals are, – you must expect to make sacrifices. We often say the best things in life are free, but everything comes at a price.  If you want to spend more time with the family, you must make the time for it. If you want to progress in your career, you must invest in yourself. Do you want to start a business? You need funds, new skills, and time. Perhaps,  you need to save money for months or even years to start your business.

With all the learning, the extra efforts, and the work invested in, you might find that you have even less free time. The good news is that everything is temporary. I am sure you heard the phrase ‘This too shall pass’. Once you reap the fruits of your labor, you will see the sacrifice was worth it.

Surround yourself with people smarter than you.

There are only a few people in the world from who you couldn’t learn something good and new. On the way to success, you will come across and work with a lot of people. They all help you towards your goal in one way or another. Don’t be afraid to share, ask for help, or cooperate.

Never give up!

One of the keys to success is that we do not surrender when faced with obstacles. It is one thing, of course, to know the way how to overcome the obstacles ahead, and another to implement the solution. 

Many people become uncertain and hesitant when one small inconvenience arises and lose the strength to start over. 

Don’t be like them. Adopt a problem–solving attitude and concentrate on finding solutions, not excuses. If you do so, not only your work will be fruitful, but others will also recognize and appreciate the results. Not to mention the lessons that will enrich your life and increase your self-confidence. 

You also need to understand that you are in the driving seat and hold the key to your life. 

Even if you believe there are a magical influence, other people, fatal powers, or coincidences that prevent you from achieving your goals, you will always have a choice and a solution, you just need to find it. 

Many people don’t accomplish their goals because they are not willing to take the necessary steps, not because they are not capable enough. 

The accomplishment of your life goals may somewhat depend on luck and talent, or on your relationships, or other factors. But it definitely depends on how you handle the above-mentioned factors.

Let the challenges be the reason why you can progress and succeed, when others may hide behind those as they fail. This is how simple it is to stand out and achieve all you want.

Photo by Jason Dent on Unsplash

Tips How to Track Your Goals

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Tips How to Track Your Goals

Why isn’t the title say: Tips How to Track Your Progress? Because making progress doesn’t necessarily mean you are going in the right direction.

We all make progress in our lives and knowing what progress we make definitely helps. Although without knowing how such progress adds to the success, the progress is no more than a step forward. We don’t know how big the step is or if we, in fact, walk on the yellow brick road.

But by tracking your progress, you do more than most people do. The question is whether it is enough to achieve high performance and the level of success you are happy with. And there is another question. If tracking your progress itself is not sufficient, then what is?

 

Tracking a goal, assuming the tracking method is fit-for-purpose, will give you sufficient information on both your progress and the added value of your efforts to your success.

 

But what method can you use to track your goals?

You are not tracking the goal itself; you are tracking your progress toward the goal, you are tracking how close you are achieving the goal in time and quality. That makes sense, doesn’t it?

Naturally, you can choose methods to track your progress against a goal if you sufficiently specified the goal. Which means your goal needs to be specific enough for you to be able to measure your progress against it. What then means, your goal has to include specific details about it. E.g., a deadline, or a certain % of the progress you would like to achieve.

E.g. My goal could be: ‘I would like to read two books every month this year.’

  • The goal in this example specifies what I would like to achieve and in what time frame. What I would like to achieve is to learn from two books and I do that in a month.
  • It also tells me how I will achieve it. I achieve the learning by reading.
  • Moreover, it tells me that unless I read two books (100% of the book) a month, I am going to stay behind my goal.

You can define for yourself the progress you have to make each month, or a week, or even a day to achieve your goal. In the example before I did just that.
And sometimes achieving such progress is not going to be linear; or you have to do different things each time to get where you want to be.

 

All in all, if you have a long-term goal, breaking it down to smaller pieces will help you better understand how you meet it and will reduce the risk of not achieving it, too.
Additionally, it will also help you revise your strategy, if needed, along the way.

 

But some people say that setting goals is meaningless anyway, so why do I bother tracking them?

This is a question I received many times this year. I realised there were articles out there with titles suggesting goal setting had no added value, even though the articles mostly included the benefits of goal-setting in various ways. So, here is my answer.

  • Setting goals just for the sake of it is meaningless.
  • Setting a goal that does not resonate with your life strategy and plan, doesn’t matter how SMART your goal is, is also meaningless.
  • Without setting goals though, even if you have a clear view of your life strategy or your priorities for the next three to five years, you will struggle.

Because goals are basically milestones. At least they should be. They are the lights at both sides of the path you walk on in the park. And I am not suggesting life is a walk in the park. I am suggesting life is a journey.

Imagine you are travelling by ship. A beautiful large ship with all the facilities and programmes to make your journey exciting and joyful.

  • How would this ship make a long and successful journey without knowing where the harbours are and where it needs to stop for supplies?
  • What is the way to enjoy the journey without knowing you are safe, and the staff knows exactly what to do and when to make your journey pleasant?
  • How would the staff know what to do and when without planning?
  • And how would the staff be able to plan without goals?

But tracking your progress against a goal is not just about knowing what you want to achieve. The goal or in that case the milestone is an outcome; and what takes you to the result is action. During your journey, you want to know what you need to do to get the desired result.
Once you know what you want to do, your goal essentially

  • you need to know how success looks like, and
  • how you can measure the success, and
  • what is the shortest time period which is reasonable to measure for progress.

And that answers an important question. Should you track your progress daily, or weekly or monthly, maybe quarterly? It all depends on your goals and on your discipline.

 

And what tools can you use to measure your progress?

This is an interesting question, because there are many good tools out there.

Nowadays there is an app for everything.

  • If you want a few clicks and nothing more a day because you are extremely busy, you can do that.
  • If you trust detailed information, you can use a spreadsheet or a project or task management app.
  • You are not good with written words, just use a voice recorder or a transcriber app.

I suggest you don’t waste time on finding the perfect tracking tool first. Find one that is good enough and perfect your tracking method. Once you are satisfied with the way how you track your goals and performance, you will find the perfect tracking tool, too.

If there are useful tools that you can utilize why some people never reach their goals? You can find the answer in the article we published Why don’t people reach their goals?

Why don’t people reach their goals?

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wachieving our dreams_ cover image for why don't people reach their goals

One of the strongest desire we, human beings have is achieving our goals and dreams.  Well, sometimes we make all the efforts to achieve our parents’ or partners’ dreams, but if we want to be conscious about our life, we work on achieving our own dreams.

And what is a better way of achieving a dream than seeing it clearly in the mind and articulating it as a goal? Once we have our goals set, we are done, aren’t we?

Perhaps it is surprising but even though goal setting is a popular topic, various studies show that achieving goals is not a success story for all. Naturally, the number of people who achieve their goals is different in each study, but a recurring theme is that many of us abandon the goals within four weeks.

In the meantime, we hear stories of success almost every day and examples of high performers fill the pages of online and offline magazines. We all love to hear the success stories.

And we all would like to live the dream, the success story. But few of us do. What could be the reason?

As a starting point, we can talk about goal-setting. I know it is May already; we have almost reached the end of Q2. We shouldn’t talk about setting goals, right? Setting goals is part of the new year’s resolution.

Just stay with me. The way how you set your goals has a high impact on your success of achieving them.

Many like to set same or similar goals others set for themselves just to follow the “good” example. But will the same thing work well for everyone?
Others like to go for super ambitious goals just to lose the steam after hitting a barrier once or twice.
Not to mention those, who think about the first couple of steps but don’t take the time to see the challenges, the required change in context.

These are just a few examples. What we can learn from these is if we would like to see the results, we need to see where we are going and what path is going to take us there will help achieving our goals.

Think about it. It is May already. If we still didn’t achieve our goals or made visible progress, we’ll lose nothing by reviewing your goals.

Regardless of the progress they make, high performers take a look at their goals multiple times a year. This is part of their success formula.

What is the advice here?

  • Plan your six months or the year or two years with the end in mind. Think about the most important things that must happen for you to achieve your goal.
  • Think about your life and see what fits in there. You can go for ambitious goals and achieve them, if you can allocate the time and resources needed. If you cannot do that, you will struggle and eventually abandon the goal.

That links to a tricky part of goal achievement and success. Maintaining motivation so you stick with your goals.

We often use the expression losing motivation. Truth to be told, one cannot lose motivation. Although we can lose focus; or just to link back to the first aspect, goal setting, we can set unrealistic or uninteresting goals.

Let’s talk a bit more about motivation. What is motivation? What is the source of motivation? Is it within us or does it come from the environment?

Motivation is a combination of reasons why we act or behave in a certain way and a certain level of energy directed toward achieving our goals.
We may feel motivated because of an internal desire or because of external influences. Such external influence may be a reward. A reward can be material, or a recognition of our results voiced to us or shared in front of others.

When we abandon a goal, we no longer believe that achieving our goals is worth the effort. Either because we believe something else will bring about better results, or we experience problems in putting in the required effort.

So, you see. One cannot lose motivation. The motivation is there, but it is most likely redirected.

What can we learn from this?

  • Listen to the signs of your body and mind to recognise when you are about to re-prioritise. You may revise your goals intentionally, but sometimes our instant desires are stronger than us. High performers understand delayed gratification and to maintain high performance and repeated results, you need to be patient.
  • Be conscious of how you allocate your time and energy.
  • You may have more goals on your list all the time but that doesn’t mean you have to multitask. Be clear on what you need to do within a specified time period and maintain your focus. Once you are done and progressed with one topic or task as desired move to another task.
  • If you are stuck with a specific task, park it. Get on another task, so you don’t waste time. This practice will help you not only with improving your efficiency but your creativity and problem-solving, too.

Of course, success and high-performance are more complex and both depend on more than just goal-setting and motivation; and both goal-setting and motivation can be improved in many ways.

Photo from Unsplash

Inspiration for women who want to achieve more

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cover image for inspiration for women who want to achieve more

How do we become high achievers? Learn from successful women. Inspirational video of high achieving women.

“If your actions create a legacy that inspires others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more you are an excellent leader.”

Dolly Parton singer-songwriter

How does a woman become a high achiever?

inspirational image for high achieving women

Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash

First, according to a study about Harvard Business School MBA graduates, some years ago, women and men had similar values regarding their hopes for achievements in life and career.

Secondly, women rated factors such as a satisfying work that is meaningful. Also,  professional achievements and accomplishments are key dimensions of their professional lives. Furthermore, career growth opportunities and development programmes were of as much importance to them.

In addition, while some work in corporate jobs and others find job satisfaction and fulfilment in other professional areas, achievement and the desire for inspiration & growth are formed parts of our lives.

Whether we work in business, as artists or in public services, there are behavioural patterns that enable us to higher achievement. Such behavioural patterns are:

  • seeking clarity about her own self and the world around her
  • finding and generating energy in almost any situation
  • being courageous and bold, trusting her own abilities
  • continuously improving herself and her capabilities

We could continue this list, do some research and find that there are unique views on this topic. Instead, why don’t we view the following video and think about these amazing women? Moreover, every high achieving women is inspirational for their hard work, dedication and spirit. How did they do it?

Finally, get more inspiration by reading How do women do business? Also, you can learn about How do high achievers really think?

pCover Photo by Christina @ wocintechchat.com on Unsplash

3 Things That Might Hold You Back

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3 things that might hold you back

3-min read

Looking at successful people around you may make you wonder whether you are on the right track. However if you spend too much time pondering over your past failures it may paralyse you. Find out three ways how you can increase your self-confidence.

Find ways how to avoid things that hold you back

Making a couple of good moves may be easy but repeating success poses a series of whole new challenges. Looking at all those successful people around you may make you wonder whether you are on the right track.

Such thoughts are beneficial when it comes to checking on your progress and the overall direction of your life, but if you spend too much time pondering over your past failures or actions you label as failures, you might find yourself in the passive zone.

The passive zone is a period in your life, which might last hours or days, even weeks or months, and during that time you slow down; or even worse the fear that you cannot meet the expectations will paralyse you. 

What are these things that hold you back?

You probably failed in the past in a particular field, or someone told you that you failed.

When it comes to failure, it is better to step back a little and think about what failure means to you. Some see failure as a dreadful thing and associate the lack of success with it; and while this is partly right, failure itself can be rewarding, too.
What is this crazy article talking about, right?

Situations in which we don’t entirely achieve what we set out for ourselves are often excellent learning opportunities. If you take the time thinking about your situation and what exactly happened, you will undoubtedly find things that worked well and some that didn’t.

Let’s see an example:

You attend the job interview and you don’t get the role. In black and white, it is a failure. You needed a job, you had the chance to present your fitness for the position, and you didn’t get the role. Straightforward failure. Or is it?

Think about the whole process:

  • Did you update your CV and did you include the relevant skills and experiences?
  • How did you prepare for the interview?
  • Did you do your research about the company?
  • Can you remember the great and the less pleasant moments of the conversation?
    If so, you can pinpoint when it didn’t work out so well.

People around you are telling you that you are not capable of accomplishing what you set out for yourself.

That is an interesting one because for that they must be in your shoes and they must live your life. Do they now?

Furthermore, they have to know you better than you know yourself. While there are people who have very little self-awareness, I don’t assume you are one. In fact, there is a tiny to zero chance that you are one. Do you know why? Because you are reading this article.

So why do these people tell you that you are not capable?

  • They might not have a good view of your situation.
  • They don’t know you very well yet.
  • They wouldn’t be able to successfully deliver in a similar situation and assume you wouldn’t be able to do that either.
  • They are worried about you because they think your goal is a considerable undertaking.
  • They underestimate you.
  • They are jealous.

These are just a couple of examples, but I am sure you get the picture. People around you may have several reasons to tell one thing or another, and it is up to you whether you let their opinion influence you and these things that hold you back. Find out here How do people drag you down? 

Your Fears

You don’t take on a new responsibility at your job because you fear you won’t meet the expectations. Question is whether you really know what the expectations are, or you assume what the expectations would be.

You would be surprised just how many times people assume certain things. They look at someone’s face or try to interpret their gestures; they don’t ask for performance indicators or success factors.

Take time and figure out where your fear is coming from, understand the aspects of your concern. Get to know your fear before you decide facing it.

Yes, the final step is facing your fear. Now, if you think about holding a spider in the palm of your hand; that is not what I meant.

Once you understand your fear and where it is coming from, you will be able to handle it, because you will be able to see the root cause and deal with it; and once you dealt with the root cause itself, the fear will fade away. Leave behind the things that hold you back and harness the Benefits of believing yourself.

Photo from Unsplash

5 tips to successfully change your habit

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change your habits cover photo

1-min read

Tips to ingrain new habits quickly and successfully. Introducing a new habit is a challenge at any point in life with the practical tips in this article you can do it more effectively. Learn how to change your habit successfully!

Whether it’s a New Year’s resolution you want to keep, or whether you simply want to bring changes into your life, use these 5 tips we collected for you to successfully change your habit and ingrain a new behaviour.

1. Make it easy

Don’t overcomplicate it, just choose a goal you really want to achieve and write it down with a plan.

Be specific: answer simple questions like why do you want it, when, where, how, how much, and give details about the habit you’re going to change. Include what you think will be the positive impact on your life if you keep going with the habit.

2. Keep it simple

Focus on only ONE habit at a time and stick with it at least for 30 days. Start with small steps and spend even just a small amount of time a day on that specific activity.

Even if you’re extra busy or overwhelmed with your current life situation, we can all agree, it is absolutely possible to find at least 10-15 minutes for it per day.

3. Find a trigger

The best you can do is trigger the habit you want to form by activities you have already included in your daily routine.

Set implementation intention (‘if-then’ plans) and link the new habit with an existing one. For instance, if you’d like to meditate every day, you can aim for “When I wake up, I brush my teeth and then I meditate”. Use these 9 Ways to improve your self-discipline to support your habit changing progress.

4. Reward yourself

Celebrate every milestone, no matter how small it is. Rewarding yourself is great positive feedback, but the reward needs to be immediate. Learn more about The power of now and how you can harness it.

5. Be positive

Positive thinking helps you to maintain motivation, be confident about your success, and support you in sticking with the new habit. Keep trusting ‘you can do it’.

Various visualisation techniques help you to place yourself in ‘your destination’. Don’t be too harsh on yourself. Everyone can have a difficult day, so don’t give up if you weren’t successful; learn from your failure by figuring out the obstacles.

Cover photo by Gustavo Spindula on Unsplash

How to set goals you can achieve

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how to set goals you can achieve article cover image

4-min read

Typical goal setting mistakes and how to fix them

Various sources, methods and even apps are available to support you if you decide to set goals for yourself.

Many of us set new goals in January each year and we all try to do our best to achieve those goals.

Somewhere along the way, after a couple of weeks or months these goals seem to fade away. You turn your attention to something else, which you believe, seems to be more important. Similar may happen to other goals you set during the year.

Why did you decide to place these goals in the back of the top shelf of your mind? Was their fate to be forgotten? Which goals prove to be long lasting and achievable? Where did it go wrong and what could you have done differently? Did you use the best app?

Let me share with you the common mistakes in goal setting, and these have very little to do with an app:

  • goals are set based on an impulse;
  • you think goal setting is like writing a daily to do list;
  • goals listed as you would prepare your shopping list;
  • you can only achieve your goal by doing something you really don’t fancy;
  • you think achieving the goal will sort out your life;
  • the goal is shiny and fantastic, and it is so far from you as the moon and the stars … but when you talk about it everyone admires you for having such a great adventure ahead of you;
  • you set a goal, because your friend(s) or significant other set the very same goal and by the way they are doing quite well in achieving it;
  • you can achieve the goal when sleeping, or standing on one leg, singing a song and juggle three apples at the same time.

Probably I could extend the list with a bit more effort, but I am sure, by now you understand, goal setting is about you. Your life and your future are in your hands, you are the director of your own movie. Therefore, anything goes wrong with goal setting is on you.

Devastating, I know…

On the other hand, it might just be good news. There is freedom in accepting you have control over your life and that comes with freedom to decide and act. For more inspiration click here.

Let’s take a look at these mistakes one by one. Learn from them, so that you can embrace your newly acquired set of opportunities.

Goals are set based on an impulse

New year resolutions, unless you built a habit of them, are good examples of such goal setting. However, you may experience this phenomenon when you buy a treadmill, because you saw an inspiring video. It convinced you running is the best option for you to lose weight.

You are setting a goal in a mood for changing things quickly and/or in a hopeful moment. On the other hand, don’t think about ways of achieving it or the activities and obligations coming with it. You try to stick with it, try your best to achieve it. At the end your schedule, work, other tasks or even your hobby may cross your way. Finally, the goal you want to achieve seems to require so much effort you can’t make.

Goals listed as items on a shopping list

Shopping lists are created in different ways, some like to sit down and think what is needed for the next couple of days or for the week. Others leave little notes about the items they need to replace, replenish in the household. Alternatively some just would like to add the most obvious items and add more items while shopping to allow some creativity and flexibility around shopping. The more practical you are with your shopping list is the better for your purse probably.

What is wrong with the shopping list type of goal setting?

Basically, you list things you would like to buy, rather than to achieve/earn and you think on a short term.

I give you an example, which is coming from one of my friends. His goal list started with get a new sports car this year.

He was thinking about an item, and acquiring this item was itself the goal. Even if not within a year, but within a year and a half or two, he could finally buy the sports car and that is when the disappointment started. The sports car was great, but he couldn’t drive it as much as he wanted. Additionally by the time he got the car, he felt he could have invested the money better, and he didn’t enjoy the car as much as he thought he would.

You set goals as you would write a to do list

A to do list includes activities you plan to deliver in a day, so you define what you would like to achieve on a short term. The activities you plan are usually the ones that can be delivered easily and will not pose much challenge.

You can only achieve your goal by doing something you really don’t fancy

Doing the Ironman triathlon is an impressive goal unless you have hydrophobia, or losing 22 pounds in 2 months can be very challenging if you know you are not ready to leave your favourite foods behind and find alternatives.

You think achieving the goal will sort out your life

While losing weight, or changing your career may bring improvements to your life, hoping it will solve all your problems may cause you disappointment at the end.

Many believe they just need to change their clothes, earn big money, or have cool friends and they will change their lives. Waiting for something to happen just to start something else. This decision makes your life journey more difficult and takes you away from what you really can achieve and what really can bring you success.

You set a goal, because your friend(s) or significant other set the very same goal

Friends can show you a good example inspire you, root for you and be with you in the moments when you need them most. Doing things together is fun and strengthens your relationship, on the other hand your friend’s life is different than yours. His or her desires will be different from yours. Your friend set the goal for him or herself, believing the goal will take him or her forward, not you.

The goal is shiny and fantastic, and it is so far from you as the moon and the stars

Being a billionaire in a year, may sound ambitious and worth sharing at a party. Assuming you have surefire ways to achieve it or you are a genius who gets new revolutionary ideas quite frequently and have the talent to make things happen quickly.

Should your friends not see you this way, your goal will sound as bragging and may damage your relationships. Maybe your friends already know, you like to set big goals, which you abandon later. If that is the case and you are just fed up others not taking you seriously, you might want to change your mind about goal setting.

You can achieve the goal when sleeping, or standing on one leg, singing a song and juggle three apples at the same time

Setting a goal of being promoted this year, when you already know the promotion is on its way is not only naughty, but unhelpful in many ways.

I shared with you the most common mistakes in goal setting, so you may be curious to know the better ways of setting goals.

Let’s start with understanding how setting goals for your life is different. As you are achieving goals you put yourself on a certain track of your choice.

Talking about life path sounds more serious than just setting goals, isn’t it? Your life is very precious and you have the right to make decisions on it. Setting goals are such decisions.

If you asked me whether there are golden rules for goal setting, I would probably hesitate saying there are, because I saw many people successfully set goals in many different ways. However, there are certain guidelines to goal setting, which may help you to be better and more effective, and by more effective I mean you will feel closer to your goals and your sense of achievement will increase.

Set goals that make you feel you are going in a good direction

Setting goals helps you stay focussed and allows you to take and/or increase control over your life. It also will make you more structured and will improve your memory.

Each goal you set may or may not fit in the big picture of your life. Why not choose the ones that fit?

Once you decided the direction for your life, you can start planning the journey. Setting goals is to lay the stepping stones on the road, your goals will take you further in your journey.

Set goals that relate to your priorities and target areas in your life where you identified a gap and will aid your efforts in building your skills and improve your life situation.

Make your goals measurable

Sense of achievement comes when

  • you know what you want to deliver and how your success will look like;
  • also, you have a plan of action
  • finally, you deliver on your plan.

Goals can be defined in different ways, the more specific the definition of your goal is, the closer you may get to accomplishing it. A measurable goal will specify what exactly you want to achieve and by when. Include specific dates, volumes, or rates.

Set goals that motivate you, but don’t make you struggle

Goal achievement requires dedication and to keep progressing your motivational level needs to stay high. To achieve that you need to be convinced you can do what is needed, but delivering it will not be too easy for you either.

When you don’t have this, you risk postponing what you need to do to make the goal a reality or accomplish so easily that the goal will not give you a sense of achievement, leaving you feeling disappointed.

I set my goals in details, and include why I want to achieve the goal, where achieving it will take me and how it will help me in the future. I end up with longer sentences, but it is worth as I can keep my eye on the ball and have a check whether the goal still fits in my bigger picture of life. 

Record you goals and your progress

Writing a list of your goals, recording the deadlines you set for yourself and create a habit of looking at your goals periodically will help you maintain focus.

I personally use an app to record my goals and have a reminder each day, so the goals appear every day in the morning on my phone. This way I start every day by thinking about how much closer would I like to get to achieving my goals and what do I need to do differently if I slowed down.

Make an action plan

Develop a plan of actions in that includes the steps you want to take to achieve your goals. Depending on your preference you can create a detailed plan including every step to take, just consider how much effort will be required to maintain your plan.

A good plan is clear, simple and logical and includes just as much detail, that is necessary for you to understand and remember what the steps mean.

You can write your plan on a paper, develop it in a spreadsheet or in a project planning application, or if you are in a very creative mood you can create a visual representation of your plan.

Make things happen

Even the shiniest plan will sadly sit in the bottom of your drawer, if you don’t act on it. Create a habit of doing something, even a little thing, every single day, that takes you closer to your goal. Check back on your progress and if you slow down find and assess the reasons, and work out solutions.

Difficulties, challenges will always come into your way. Some people will be helpful, others may have priorities conflicting yours. Keep up a positive attitude and build and rely on helpful relationships. If you would like to learn more about building and maintaining helpful relationships click here.

Enjoy and celebrate the progress and small successes even

I am not saying you should throw a party every time when you could raise your workout time by 5 minutes, but remind yourself of the good job you are doing and use the achievement as a building block to the next one. Learn from professionals to make decisions easier.

Cover photo by Hannah Olinger on Unsplash

What does it take to be confident?

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3-min read

That may seem like an ambiguous question, but it is, in fact, the very essence of what confidence is all about. If we take the words self-confidence or self-acceptance or self-assuredness, the common denominator is self. How you feel about yourself is key to building a good self-attitude. Much like a manager who will try to build up his team’s morale, you must build up yours. Be your own manager. Learn more about the Benefits of Believing In Yourself.

There are decisions to make when it comes to beginning the courageous journey in finding your inner confidence. We all have it, you have it, even if you haven’t found your real voice yet. By addressing a few key areas of your life, you can unleash your best self.

When it comes to losing your confidence mojo, you may be able to relate to the challenges in Bridget Jones’s life, or you’re feeling a bit like Spiderman when he lost his powers and had an attack of low self-esteem. Know that you are not alone in the world, fictional or real.

So, how does one remedy this?

From career choices to work-life balance, from making hard decisions to crashing through those limits you set for yourself, there are ways to pull out that sanguine person buried deep.

Take heed of a few simple pointers that will get you thinking and finally bringing out your courage to be the best possible you; you can be.

Step out of your comfort zone

Take a step away from your physical self for just a moment. If this means looking deep into a mirror, pulling out old photos of yourself, or even asking a very close friend to analyse your attributes, then that is what you should do.

Feeling good about your inner life and outward appearance are top items on the list. It isn’t egotistical. It isn’t superficial. It is necessary and your family, friend or partner can help you with this. The way how your progress & look makes you feel is vital to building up that confidence in yourself.

Perhaps you’re a sloppy dresser or you don’t pay attention to your hair or face. Maybe, you don’t stand up straight or bother with your diet and exercise routine. All these factors will show on your outer facade. Take pride in your body, in your appearance, and especially in how you speak.

The words that leave your mouth are just as important to your psyche as they are to the people that receive them. A wrong word can taint your opportunities in seconds.

Perhaps you have received only good feedback from your boss so far. Isn’t that suspicious? Is it possible that you don’t make mistakes at all?

You got to work-work-work

We all should work, but as soon as you take the work, add skills and mix in some ‘passion’ and ‘love’ then you are guaranteed to find the career that suits you better.

When it comes to career choices, we need to sit back and evaluate what skills and capabilities we have, how determined we are to go all the way, and what we really love and passionate about.

Being in a job that fulfills your ambition, but doesn’t fuel your joy and ardor is a waste of time and energy.

Equally a job that is joyful, but will get you stuck for years, will not help your development and won’t challenge you; and once the fun is over, you find yourself out in the world seeking for the lost paradise.

Building a career requires focus, dedication, and work. Click to find 3 Methods that successful women follow to keep their career on track.

If you need the courage to change jobs, whether well paid or not, gather your thoughts and list all that you believe you can achieve in your new job. Collect the benefits, and save your desires to fire your spirit when the going gets hard.

In other words, collect what you can get out of the new job and not what you would like to achieve with it.

And, yes, it will take time, but making that step in the direction of fearless, but realistic positivity, is a step that can make all the difference in your life.

Work out what makes you want to get up in the morning when it comes to the daily grind. Because, as soon as you start to focus on what that is, you will no longer look at it as the daily grind.

My secret is listing my goals and a couple of inspiring messages on google keep, which pops up every morning and reminds me where I am going and why. There are literally gazillion different tools that can help you keep your eyes on the ball. If it feels good, post pictures on your walls, make notes on the first page of the notebook you use every day, but make sure you will look at it every single day.

Keep your chin up

We are our worst enemy. And, sometimes, just like in all good novels, one should kill off your darlings.

Get rid of that little devil inside of your head that tells you daily that you are not good enough. Take a sledgehammer and beat her down. She doesn’t belong there. She is a jealous little bitch, and she needs to go.

A couple of surefire ways of starting off your day on a more positive note for you:

  • Affirmations. It can be anything you want, as long as it is positive. It can change daily, or you can keep it the same every day so that they become embedded in your body, mind, and soul.
  • Gratitude. It may sound strange, but most of the time we tend to walk past the wonders of life, sometimes as simple as a sunny day. Living in England, I learned to appreciate a sunny day. If you are juggling work and kids, you may be grateful to have some you time.
  • Feeling happy for your partner or friend.
  • Reminding yourself of a good memory. A memory of your last holiday, a good night out with your friends or family.

When you are feeling low, and that monster of negativity starts to claw her way up from the depths of your soul, just reach for your uplifting toolkit. It won’t solve all your problems but will help you see the world from a different angle and will give you the energy to go forward to solve your problems.

And that brings me to my next point.

We all have problems to solve

We all have a few problems that most times seem or feel like the world’s dilemmas. But, when you start to break them down, you will realise you are in a better position to solve them. And, all problems have a solution. It is the yin and yang of life.

It is easy to say, isn’t. Sometimes it is difficult to believe that there is a solution. At those times a little uplifting may help you start thinking about a solution, but you will need more to go on.

Solving a problem requires-

  – the ability to see cause and its effects,
  – openness to view things from someone else’s point of view,
  – creativity to see potential ways you haven’t seen before,
  – courage to test yourself every step of the way.

Once you started to develop your skills, one will enable the other; and a small success will give you the strength to achieve the next milestone.

Remember, we all have a problem to solve, so if you struggle to find understanding and collaboration, remind yourself, that others, out there, are also trying to find remedies to their problems.

It may happen that a solution for your problem is in the hands of someone else, who is looking for an answer that you have the key to. You should know these 5 ways to get helpful feedback.

If you feel you need to solicit the aid of a friend, family member, a colleague or your boss, then do so. You are not alone in this big bad world.

People like to feel needed, so reach out and need them. Oh, and it is not a sign of weakness. It is not a sign that your confidence level is waning. Asking for help is a very courageous thing to do. If it is helping towards the bigger picture, finding your self-confident self, then it makes sense to do it.

Celebrate your uniqueness

You are the only you there is, so find those unique aspects about yourself, and celebrate them.

Much like we constantly think about the one we are in love with, or with whom we are infatuated with, so should you be with your splendid self.

Falling in love with yourself starts with focusing on you and all those parts you know are original and absolutely fabulous. Again, make a list. Mental or otherwise. List those traits that make you.

Maybe you react in anger too quickly. Maybe you have a habit of taking too long to decide on something. You may have the amazing ability to spurt milk out of your nose. Okay, so that one is a little weird, but hey, how many others can do that? You may be the best speller on the planet or may even be able to clock a five-mile run in under 30 minutes.

Who knows what you’re capable of? But take a deep, and eye-opening look at yourself, because you own that body. You own that mind and soul. Make yourself the best project you have ever worked on.

You won’t believe the difference you will feel in yourself once you accept yourself and all that magnificentness. (Yep, I made that last word up!)

Because you are magnificent. Those limits you place on yourself need to be broken. And today is the day to break them.

Cover photo by freestocks.org on Unsplash

How different personality types can help you be more successful – The introverts II.

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Regardless of your definition of success – financial, spiritual, philanthropic or familial – achieving success is important, not only because it is your responsibility, but your duty as well. A variety of things determine how successful you are; your level of education, your career choice, the organization you work for, your skills, your capacity to negotiate and your understanding of different personality types.

Note: this article is the 4th part of a series. Start here with the first part so you can have a better understanding of the personality typology we write about in this series.

If you haven’t done yet so and would like to take the assessment now, go to Take the MBTI for the official test or alternatively you can find a free, similar approach based Free Personality Test here.

Throughout life, you are forced to deal with various individuals that have different personality types. Because human beings require social interactions to survive, an understanding of different personality types is crucial, not only from an academic stance but also from a life point of view.

The better we understand how other people act and think, the better we understand ourselves. This understanding gives you the power to try possible to succeed. Understanding different personality types is about using the knowledge you gain to your benefit in day− to− day situations, to get people to do things or to influence them, to get others to assist whenever they can and to get your points across. Additionally, it helps to shape the way you make your decisions and, most importantly, understanding personality types helps you understand and manage how your actions can impact other people.

At the same time, understanding the personality types of people you interact with can help you expect their actions and behaviour better, and it will further give you valuable insights into that person’s personality traits. Here are different personality types that can help you be more successful:

ISTJ

People that have the ISTJ introvert personality types are easy to depend on because it devotes them. Typically, people with ISTJ approach things in a logical way and they are extremely well− organized to enable them to operate efficiently. Individuals with ISTJ personality are methodical, and they store the knowledge they gain from past experiences which is then used to face new problems and ideas.

When associating with people with ISTJ personality at the workplace, such individuals are the stereotype for the devoted and always impressive employee. In all positions, whether subordinate or managerial, an ISTJ personality will conform to structure and will be a stickler for the rules because they respect authority and a chain of command.  When you give a person with ISTJ personality a task, in most cases, they see it as an opening to prove to you that, yet again, they are the right person for the job.

On the flip side, ISTJ introvert personality types struggle with change, whether it is assuming new responsibilities or losing old ones. When interacting with an ISTJ, you should be very precise about what you expect from them in a straightforward manner; do not waste time to beat around the bush or spending valuable time in small talk.

ISTP

ISTPs are classically quiet, observant, and they enjoy tasks that allow the use of their hands. They enjoy examining the world with an unruffled rationalism and energetic inquisitiveness. People with ISTP love to build things and are often involved in different projects that permit them to take things apart only to assemble them again. As such, most engineers and mechanics fall under this category.

Most people with ISTP are cheerful and kind-hearted, preferring to go with the flow rather than get stressed out by a schedule. ISTPs also combine spontaneity with logic, and they can change their mindset to accommodate new situations easily. Because of this, they are great to have in a crisis because they think on their feet.

On the other hand, as easy as it is for them to go with the flow, ISTP people are stubborn, and they can change plans on you quickly and insensitively. Additionally, people with ISTP are difficult to get to know and can be very reserved and private.

ISFJ

Individuals with an ISFJ introvert personality types are practical, compassionate and caring. They are motivated by the need to make others comfortable and to protect them from any looming danger. They enjoy the occasional opportunity to contribute to the well− being of the community, meeting every task with enthusiasm. ISFJ personalities tend to range from neat to perfection and, although they like to procrastinate, they finish the commission assigned to them on time.

ISFJ people are not quick to leave things half finished. Instead, they are meticulous and are flexible to accommodate the needs of a changing situation, just so they can ensure that the goal is accomplished. ISFJs are also inventive, and they use this quality to empathize with others, which makes it easy to see things from other people’s perspectives.

Despite their willingness to help, ISFJ personalities are shy and, since they tend to focus on the well− being of others, they might also ignore their needs and repress their feelings. Their willingness to immerse themselves in their work also means that they have trouble separating personal and impersonal issues. Any arising conflict affects their personal and professional lives in equal measure.

ISFP

ISFP introvert personality types are true observers of life, and they use what they observe to create and design things. For ISFPs, respect for harmony and morals is important, which is why they are dependable particularly once it estabilishes trust.

ISFP personalities are colorful, and they live in a world characterized by unpredictability, exploration, and experiments. Despite their unique perspective on life, ISFPs are notoriously introverted and very emotional. When it appears as though a situation has gotten out of hand, they are more likely to shut down than step up to the plate.

ISFPs can also escalate small issues and blow them out of proportion, which can cause them to ignore the bigger picture in exchange for a moment of glory. However, beneath the competition, ISFPs are very passionate people and, in friendship, they are some of the most comfortable and carefree people to hang out with.

At work, ISFP people are fiercely independent and they hate to be controlled and micromanaged. In this regard, when working with people with ISFP, you should give them positions that allow them to be expressive, independent and spontaneous. Check these 11 Top Jobs for Introverts.

Follow the links for the other parts of the series and learn about how different personality types can help you be more successful:

1: How different personality types can help you be more successful – The extroverts I.

2: How different personality types can help you be more successful – The extroverts II.

3: How different personality types can help you be more successful – The introverts I.