Everyone wants to be successful in life at a conscious or subconscious level. Yet not everyone has the ability to know how to prosper in life and often end up thinking that being successful is a matter of luck. But the best way to prosper is to follow the success advice from experts, emulate the habits and lifestyle of famous people who set goals and follow them through. However, the ability to know how to do your homework, aim at something big and make something out of your life depends upon a number of factors: one’s own self-awareness, motivation, productive habits, the commitment towards self-development, and recognizing hidden opportunities and making the most out of them. This article has rounded up tips to become famous, super productive and wildly successful with relevant examples:
Seize the Day by Getting Up Early
One sure-shot recipe for success is to start your day early, as it is practiced by the likes of Tim Cook (the CEO of Apple) and Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook founder). But since everyone is not an early riser, this can be a bit tricky. Getting up early means going to bed early too, and this automatically requires you to have an early dinner and let go of late-night partying, watching of TV or playing video games or browsing social media at night. So, you can see that one small step in the right direction can automatically make lots of positive changes in your routine.
Become a Voracious Reader
In an age of gadgets, reading, as a hobby, has fallen out of fashion. Nevertheless, people like Warren Buffet, Oprah Winfrey, Bill Gates and Elon Musk are all avid book readers. Warren Buffet used to read nearly 500 pages every day; meanwhile, Bill Gates finishes 50 books each year. Likewise, Oprah has her own book club. If you are a student, reading adds to your knowledge and helps you do your homework better. Young professionals can also pick up lots of knowledge and ideas from reading.
Be Slow, Patient and Consistent
By design, human beings are impatient and want to see quick results. However, success doesn’t work that way. No matter which field you are trying to break into, you have to work consistently and patiently, and, let’s be honest, invest money in your pursuits. So, I know that if I am struggling in a subject or in my homework and need help online, practicing over and over is what would help me do my homework, buy me some time and improve my learning outcomes. Do you know that Michael Jordan used to practice a hundred jump shorts each day to perfect his aim when he was starting out? When you have diligence and patience, you work slowly but thoroughly, can spot your own deficiencies and mistakes and get a chance to correct them before anyone else. Needless to say, patience makes way for excellence.
Practice Makes a Man Perfect
Even if you have great ideas, talent and intuition, practice is what would make you a pro in your field. It’s just like practicing your shots when you are shooting ball over and over in order to perfect your game. You should know that the owner of Dallas Mavericks, Mark Cuban, reportedly used to work till 2 a.m. during the initial years. Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, used to work the entire week till 3 a.m. to deliver book orders. They kept up this kind of gruesome routine until they were able to get where they wanted to be.
Don’t Consider Anything Beneath You
When you are working on a group project, a homework essay or are just starting out in your first job, you have high ambitions and a sense of self-worth and consider certain jobs and chores beneath you. This creates a lot of conflicts with your peers and higher-ups as well as within yourself. Do realize that in order to go up, you have to start at the bottom. Oprah Winfrey’s first job was to work at the local grocery store. Michael Dell of Dell computers used to wash dishes as a teenager at a Chinese restaurant. Indra Nooyi, the CEO of Pepsi, put herself through Yale by moonlighting as a receptionist. Stephen King had worked as a laundry worker and janitor before becoming famous. Barack Obama used to serve customers at an ice cream shop. All these people had known that they had to do anything to get by while getting close to their dream jobs and actual passion.
Keep Yourself Fit
In the quest to work harder and achieve perfection, most of us are guilty of cutting corners when it comes to our physical and mental health. While this may work well in the short run, it impacts our well-being in the long run and makes us vulnerable to health issues and diseases. Creative geniuses like Franz Kafka and Charles Dickens and Richard Strauss used to work intensely throughout the mornings and then do simple exercises in their afternoon breaks. Bill Clinton is fond of jogging, while Hillary Clinton has a personal trainer and does yoga. Donald Trump utilizes his breaks to practice golf, as it keeps him away from impulsive eating and stress.
Set Definitive and Achievable Goals
The way people work affects the outcomes they achieve. If you can work in a haphazard and directionless manner, you would end up getting in nowhere at the end of the day. But if you have pre-defined goals and a roadmap to follow, you would be able to get plenty of work done in a set time. The best example of this is Bruce Lee, the martial artist and Hollywood legend. In 1969, he wrote a letter titled “My Definite Chief Aim,” in which he expressed the desire to become the highest-paid Oriental superstar in the United States within the two next decades. It was not just a mere hyperbolic desire, but he had set definitive goals as to how he planned to achieve his aim.
Success doesn’t come easy. It takes a lot of dedication, thoughtful efforts and sacrifices. People who are rich and famous now have done all of this to get where they are today.
