I have noticed more than once that the greater the chances of successfully doing something, the more persistently people take on its implementation. Still, when an idea seems impossible, excuses often appear in our heads. So what to do in such situations? Yes, just...
You need to set yourself up for success. It can be confused with motivation, but a mindset of success is simply the belief that you will get to the end. And this is not self-confidence, as many may think. By the way, I already wrote about how to develop self-confidence, I advise you to take a look.
We will really increase the possibility of a positive outcome of your actions - achieving your goal. Moreover, we will convince your inner consciousness of this. It doesn’t matter what you want to achieve - write a book, earn a million, lose weight or renovate your apartment. These methods are suitable for any person, in absolutely any situation.
I have collected 7 simple but very effective ways on how to set yourself up for success. You can apply them all, or maybe the first one will bring a tangible result. But these techniques really work.
Get support
You can ask your friends, relatives or colleagues for support. Remember how, before some difficult exam, they asked you to keep your fingers crossed for you? So why not do the same in other situations?
Direct assistance is also possible. For example, if you want to renovate your apartment, you can ask your friends to come help. I think if they don't have anything important to do, they'll actually agree.
Another option is indirect assistance. That is, they seem to take away part of the tasks that weigh on you at the moment of achieving the result. Parents, for example, can sit with their children while you finish the next chapter from your book. Or your wife takes care of household chores while you draw up a business plan.
It turns out that a mistake is a good thing.
At school we were taught that a mistake is bad, and the grade will be reduced for it. This is an example of a fixed mindset. The one who does nothing makes no mistakes, remember? In the adult world, a mistake is new information. When scientists repeat experiments over and over again (for example, to prove a theorem), and over and over again the experiment fails, they do not perceive this as a failure. So they cross out everything that is wrong. Yes, it's great to immediately say that 2 + 2 = 4, but sometimes you first have to figure out that it is not 5, not 893, not √13 and not ½.
I don't make mistakes, I cross out the wrong options.
Save more money
No matter how trivial it may sound, the more money we have in stock, the more secure we feel, and, therefore, more confident. And we just need to achieve absolute confidence that we can reach the end. Even if your goal does not involve any financial expenses, saving is still a good idea.
You will know that even if the crisis deprives you of your last assets, you will always have some amount left that will allow your plans to continue to develop. In addition, this money will help you achieve other goals that will appear later. And this is an additional mindset for success.
If you save 300 rubles every week, then in a year you will have about 15,000 at your disposal. With this money you can buy some equipment or create a profitable website. I use the method that I read on the Neverlex blog. Namely, I simply put all the change that is stored in my pockets into a piggy bank every time I come home. And also 10% of monthly earnings also goes into the piggy bank.
Motivation
One of the components on the path to success is motivation.
The psychophysiological process influences the subconscious, prompting it to action, manifestation of activity and firmness. Motivation can be defined as a goal that a person passionately desires to achieve.
The main types of motives that encourage action:
- External - independent of the main field of activity: the desire to receive an award, the approval of friends, superiors;
- Internal – related to the type of activity: the desire to earn a certain amount of money;
- Self-affirmation – the desire to become the best in one’s profession, sports, studies, business;
- Imitating a successful person is the desire to repeat someone else’s success;
- Thirst for power – career growth;
- Fear of losing something - for example, material reward, if you do a bad job.
Motivation can be considered as a powerful tool for inducing action. Therefore, you can try out the following methods of motivation:
Start taking care of your body
Taking care of your body is the key to stability. What happens if you suddenly get sick while renovating your apartment? Living for two weeks in a half-dismantled house? Not a bad prospect, yes... So start taking care of your body today. It’s not in vain that you read material about how to set yourself up for success, right?
Many people imagine this concern as exhausting workouts that make you fall off your feet every evening (this has its own charm). However, to maintain normal physical condition, it is enough to spend only 10-20 minutes daily. This can be as simple as exercise and walking, but it needs to be done. I bet you'll soon get the hang of it and want to diversify your workouts. You can read about how to start running.
It is also very important to eat healthy foods. Avoid fast foods and unhealthy foods. Monitor your sleep. Don't allow yourself to sleep too little or too much. I have already written a lot on this topic on this blog. I advise you to look at the following posts: Phases of sleep, how to learn to wake up early, the results of the experiment “Healthy sleep in 30 days.”
Know your setup
If Carol Dweck - one of the world's experts on motivation - talked to you, she would determine your type of Installation, which you use to explain the phenomena of your life. There are only two of them.
- People with a fixed mindset believe that their intelligence, talents, and skills are innate, fixed traits. For such people, it is important to confirm that they can, are able, and know. They break into a sweat at the thought that someone might figure out that they are not capable of something. A mistake for such people is the end of the world.
- People with a growth mindset approach life differently. For them, a mistake is food for thought, and failure is a reason to try again. They believe that they can learn anything, and mistakes along the way are natural occurrences.
Professor Dweck says attitudes are particularly influenced by how we are praised for our achievements as children. For example, when a child wrote a test well, he hears from his parents: “You did well, you are very smart!” — this contributes to the development of a fixed mindset. And in another case, for example, a child participated in the Olympiad, but did not win. His parents tell him: “It’s okay that you didn’t win. Well done for trying! Next time it will work!” — this is the foundation of a development mindset.
Read Carol Dweck’s book “Flexible Consciousness” on this topic. A new look at the psychology of development of adults and children"
Be positive
Many people think very negatively and skeptically. They constantly criticize something and are always dissatisfied with something. This is an extreme form, but it can also manifest itself in ordinary people. If you constantly hear objections in your head like “This is just nonsense,” “This is really stupid, this is impossible,” “You won’t succeed,” then it’s time to become more positive.
Just block all negative thoughts. Yes, just go ahead and delete them forever. If you start to think negatively, just close your eyes and say out loud (preferably) or to yourself: “La-la-la, I can’t hear you” and immediately think about something positive. For example, “how cleverly I pasted this wallpaper” or “How damn well I came up with the image of the main character.”
People who have achieved success from scratch
There are quite a lot of bright positive examples, and some books just shout their names from the bookstore shelves “100 people who achieved success”, “50 successful geniuses”, while many books are dedicated to people who still received worldwide recognition, despite physical features, including Ludwig Van Beethoven, Frida Kahlo, John Nash, Nick Vujicic. I propose to focus on the brightest personalities, so that everyone can believe that everything will work out for them in the best possible way. Jan Koum, a native of Ukraine, who, thanks to the success and subsequent sale of the start-up WhatsApp, carried out a revolution in communications.
How can one not remember Henry Ford and his automobile breakthrough, as well as Colonel Sanders, who after long service in the army and years of self-discovery created the KFC brand, Roman Abramovich and his colossal business empire in Russia and abroad. And the inventor of the ordinary incandescent light bulb, Thomas Edison, also started from scratch, just like the world-famous and today rich writer Joan Rowling. There are many examples - both in the field of production, creativity and modern technical projects. And such bright personalities literally tell us: “If I could, why don’t you at least just try?” But indeed, maybe not everything is so complicated and success is much closer than it seems.
Reminders
If you are going to do something for a long time (and most often these are the main goals), then try to give yourself constant reminders. You can write your goal on a sticky note and hang it on your monitor. Draw an image and stick it on a mirror or door. You can use the techniques from the material “Visualization of Desires”.
I also recommend writing a list of all your goals on a piece of paper and putting it in your pocket. Every time you have a free minute, re-read them and imagine yourself as if you have already achieved them. First of all, it’s a great motivator. Secondly, it increases your chances of a positive result and you will no longer have to wonder how to set yourself up for success, because you will be literally immersed in it.
I also advise you to comply with all deadlines. In general, there is an excellent post on this topic, “How to Set a Goal,” where everything is described in great (even too much) detail.
Failure can be learned
50 years ago, during experiments on dogs, the American psychologist Seligman discovered the phenomenon of learned helplessness. That's what the experiment was like.
Watch the psychological experiment on learned helplessness if you are too lazy to read about dogs.
Seligman concluded that the dogs in the second group learned that their actions did not affect the outcome, and therefore stopped fighting and resigned themselves. It’s the same with people: if you haven’t been allowed to do what you want for a long time, you develop eternal passivity and a persistent belief in your own failure.
Flea experiment
Break everything down into small steps
Surely your goal is not so small that it can be achieved in one day or at least one week. For example, I won't be able to do a 7 hour race right away. I need to prepare long and hard. You also can't write a book in one evening. Every day you need to slowly increase the pages.
Often such goals very quickly lead to despondency, because we do not see the real result. It's like a newcomer who just started a new job and immediately wants to become a director. And as soon as they realize that this requires years of work, they immediately discard this idea.
I recommend that you simply break your goal down into smaller sub-goals. That is, if your goal is to earn 1,000,000 rubles. First, you can set yourself the task: “register as an individual entrepreneur,” then “successfully complete the first order,” and so on. It is much easier to achieve such goals and you will have a desire to move on, because you have already felt the mood for success.
Key principles for achieving success. 9 rules
No matter how individual the concept of success may be, it has common basic principles.
First of all, it is important to understand that you are an individual and you independently determine the degree of success of your life. The government, parents or phases of the moon are not to blame for your problems.
The government, parents, or phases of the moon are in no way to blame for your problems.
You take it and do it. We will not be remembered only for our thoughts. Only concrete actions change the situation. The more you think about an idea, the more fears there are and the less desire to move;
Live to the maximum. No one will improve our lives except ourselves. We are the artists of our own destiny. Often, between such a familiar comfort zone and the anticipation of new emotions, it is difficult to choose the latter;
Decide youself. If you always act under the influence of the imposition of other people's values, you can quickly lose your “I”. It is acceptable to take into account the opinions of others, but the final decision is made independently. Clearly and confidently;
Challenge yourself. The meaning of human life is constant development. If we do not strive to know the unknown, we gradually slide down the personal ladder;
Communicate more. Find those who have achieved success in the field that interests you. Sharing experiences will help you get closer to your own success. Just don't envy or compare yourself to others;
Always learn. If you want to succeed, you need to study it. Everyone who has achieved something has not received it ready-made on a silver platter. Only through training and practice;
Take the position of an author in your life. Many people do not consciously notice that they are taking a sacrificial position. Most of our attitudes are hidden in the subconscious and manifest themselves automatically. Sometimes we don't notice that we are complaining, making excuses or blaming others;
Develop the skill of active actions
A person understands that it is important to act actively, but few people delve into the essence of how and what to do for this. Each specific case has its own set of specific principles;
Make friends with your own motivation
It is important to understand that there is motivation, and there is self-motivation. These concepts are not identical. Misunderstanding of the meaning of life, laziness and reluctance to do something often arise due to a lack of understanding of this important principle of success.
American psychologist William James said: “Success is self-esteem multiplied by the level of your own ambitions.”
That is, a successful person moves towards his goal, but in such a way as not to lose respect for himself.
A little schizophrenia wouldn't hurt
It's time to talk to ourselves. Argue with yourself. Praise yourself. We are sure you are an excellent conversationalist! Diaries are suitable for such experiments. Research shows that the habit of journaling can greatly help cope with negative thoughts. When we think about ourselves, these thoughts sound like an inner voice that we trust. When we write down our thoughts on paper, the inner voice becomes, as it were, an interlocutor, and thoughts look like a dialogue (you can even write in the form of a dialogue). Then we have a desire to start arguing with the inner critic, to prove that he is wrong.
If you don't like fiddling with paper and pen, download the app. For example, Grid Diary. There is a list of questions that helps you analyze your day and look at it with a positive outlook. It's like a social network, only here you are completely freed from external criticism. You can, without hesitation, praise yourself and analyze.
Self-programming
Setting yourself up for success using self-programming techniques means creating the right program for your subconscious. It consists of a series of affirmations that are charged with strong positive energy.
You can create affirmations for your program yourself. You can do them for all areas of your life.
If the desire for success concerns work, then the following settings can be applied:
- My work brings me joy.
- My business is interesting to me.
- My work is useful.
- I have a good income.
- I have enough time for both work and leisure.
- Thanks to my job I can travel.
The use of these and other statements allows you to find an activity that will bring pleasure and maximum benefit. Using the same principle, affirmations are compiled for success in other industries and aspects of life.
Do your best, but avoid perfectionism
Success and happiness are the result of small, uncertain steps forward. You won't be able to think everything through perfectly; you'll have to trust your luck and take the first step. Either you will succeed or you will make a mistake. If you made a mistake, draw conclusions and try again. The main thing is not to give up.
Perfection is an illusion that can destroy you. Weaknesses are part of our uniqueness. Don't let the "perfect people" you follow on social media fool you. Nothing in life is perfect. Just be yourself.
Photo: Pixabay
Author: Sergey Tumanov
Make bold and informed decisions
Don't let the fear of what might happen keep you from doing anything. We all have goals we want to achieve, and believe it or not, we all have a pretty good idea of how we actually want those goals to become a reality. We have already envisioned what is needed to move to the next stage or the next step that will bring us closer to the end result we are looking for.
We are literally and figuratively aware of the tasks we need to complete, yet we often remain stuck. We can and should move forward, but for some reason we have remained stagnant. Why?
Even though we know what we need to do and are interested in it, we don't actually take the necessary steps. We can't find motivation? Inspiration? The will to start. Why? It's because we're scared.
We are afraid of what will happen if we try to complete this task, afraid that we might fail miserably. We fear that this could be the starting point for a whole mountain of criticism from our friends, family or colleagues. We fear that the blow of failure may damage our self-esteem or that it may at least be more than we can handle.
The point is that we can never create an “ideal” situation because it doesn’t exist. Perfectionism is both good and bad.
We must simply learn to adapt to any situation. Now, even though we cannot control the outcome of every situation, we can stack the odds in our favor. Simply by focusing on those factors that are within our control, we can change the outcome.
The fact that we made a particular decision or set of decisions to move forward should not be forgotten. We took a chance and reaped the rewards. Let's not let the fear of indecision stand in our way again.
Forget what others think
People who care too much about what others think about what they do will never achieve success.
Caring about the opinions of others means limiting yourself to their beliefs rather than your own. Tell me, whose opinion is more important when you are pursuing your dreams - your opinion or someone else's?
Young millionaires have developed thick skins and care little about what people say about them. They pursue a life of goals and achievements and do not expect or require support from anyone.
“Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life.”
- Steve Jobs
