There are a lot of tips and tricks, productivity hacks, decision making criteria, time management techniques that I talk about in these Success articles you receive each week.
Tips and tricks are good. They can help us get more done, in a more sane manner. They can lead to success, but only when used correctly. Layering strategy on top of strategy doesn’t help, you need to select the best strategy for you, and use that. Simplify your decisions, simplify your work, simplify your success.
The formula for success is actually quite simple: a few positive steps taken daily.
Deciphering what these steps are for you can be complicated, and that’s where different tips and techniques come in handy. Sometimes these techniques can change the steps we take in pursuit of success. But sometimes the steps that work for other people don’t work for us, and that is okay. That is normal. After all, we define success for ourselves, so what does work for someone else may only help you if your goal is exactly the same.
How does this look in practice?
Fitness
The way I define success in my fitness pillar is: below 15% body fat, and over 40% muscle mass. Achieving these goals will enable me to be best equipped, physically, for any challenge life throws at me. Having defined my goal, my definition of success, I now need the routines and action steps that will lead me to those goals.
Learning what other people do helps tremendously, and it enables me to carefully evaluate what steps help other people, and if those same steps would work for my lifestyle and goals. For example, when you do a quick search for fitness tips you will be bombarded with a long list of different tips and tricks that work for some people: yoga, spin class, cross-fit, weight lifting, running, walking.
That list only grows exponentially when you throw a health query into the mix: green juices, keto diet, intermittent fasting, vegan diet, carnivore diet, nutrient and vitamin supplements, and the list goes on.
It’s easy to get lost in the articles promoting each of these tips and tricks, and depending on your fitness goals, some might help you. But as I said, the path to success is simple. It might not be easy, but it’s simple.
To achieve my fitness goals I need to spend 3 days a week lifting weights, 4 days a week doing at least 30 minutes of heart-rate elevated cardio, and moderate sugars from both foods and alcohols. When compared to the “top 100 fitness trends of 2019”, these action steps are thankfully simple. And knowing that they are simple, I am more easily able to take these steps each day, each week. That consistent drive along the path of success leads me to my goals.
Career
Your career is another area you need goals. Isolating one or two areas to grow will help cut down the clutter from a list of 10,000 things we could do better, and allow you to focus on those key areas. For example; my growth area that will drive future career growth, is improved communication skills. To do this, I need to make reading, writing, and speaking a daily practice.
These simple steps will help me grow, that that growth helps me tackle bigger projects and challenges in my career.
What are the simple steps that you can take in each of the 6 essential areas, or pillars, of your life? What are your goals financially, in your career, your physical health, your mental / spiritual health, your social relationships, and your romantic relationship?
Finding success in your life means achieving your goals in all of these areas. But that doesn’t have to be complicated. A few steps in the right direction each day, and you’ll be living a life of success on your journey to grow and achieve more.