Your intentions are great, but they won’t sustain any meaningful level or rate of success, let alone achieving the most important milestones in your life.
There is a wonderfully simple lesson to be found in the principle of compound interest that we can apply to our personal, economic and societal progress. We see and experience this principle playing out in our daily lives and all around us through our personal achievements, the power of new technologies, increasing equality and diversity in the workplace and much more. At a personal level, whether you have the goal of buying a home, becoming a leader in your company, starting your own business, strengthening your relationships or achieving your optimal weight and mental stability, it’s when you follow your boldest dreams and intentions with practical, sustained actions that you find the breakthroughs in your life, regardless of you having setbacks along the way.
...when you follow your boldest dreams and intentions with practical, sustained actions that you find the breakthroughs in your life.
Make a Commitment to Yourself
If you’re serious about your growth and success in life, it may seem obvious but you need to clearly define the most important areas of your life that you want to be better in.
Meaningful growth only comes when you become comfortable with the habit of working on yourself consistently. James Clear covers this topic brilliantly in his book, ‘Atomic Habits’, where he talks about the ‘Systems’ you need to create in your life that set the foundation from which you will grow. I like to call this my ‘progress framework’ that acts as a daily, weekly or monthly commitment to ‘me-time’ and can be anything from a daily 5 minute habit to a 3 hour class learning a new skill. Depending on the type of action or activity I’m intending to complete in that time.
While a 30min podcast, a 20min workout, a 10min guided meditation or a 5min review of my bank account can seem small, it’s when we complete these actions on a regular basis that we start to see the fruits of this strategy unfold. The most successful people in the world have this framework built into their MO. It’s how they remain the smartest person in the room, feel physically strong and have resilient relationships with the people that truly matter in their lives.
Meaningful growth only comes when you become comfortable with the habit of working on yourself.
Grit and Consistency is Where The Gold Lies
If you’ve read the incredible story of David Goggins in his book, ‘You Can’t Hurt Me’, you gain a valuable glimpse into the type of mindset required to push through discomfort and pain in order to be successful in achieving your goals. David’s story is remarkable and extreme in how he exhibits heightened levels of personal power through his mind.
The good news is that this strength is not exclusive to Navy Seals like David and it doesn’t always reveal itself through physical endurance. The real power lies in our ability to denounce any self-limiting thoughts and to lean into a system or framework that places personal accountability front and center and that creates the best possible circumstances to learn, adapt and become the best version of yourself.
The two most important principles you need to harness are consistency and grit. This is where the gold lies. We all have a lot going on in our lives, so the simpler we can make our approach to personal progress the better. My wife and I have twin girls and no extended family in New York. Yet with all that going on, we’re disciplined about finding 30mins of ‘me-time’ everyday to keep our balance. It’s our ‘Self-Care OOO’.
The real power lies in our ability to denounce any self-limiting thoughts and to lean into a system or framework that places personal accountability front and center.
Finding Success in Your Career
Whether you’re two decades into your career or just starting out, the world of work is moving so fast it would be career suicide to stand still. Below are a few principles that should be adopted fervently to ensure you give yourself the best chance of being successful through the value you bring to work and the world around you.
- Never stop learning: Embrace 'fluid intelligence' and learn at least one new skill per quarter
- Keep physically fit: Like really fit! Try to workout for at least 20-30min daily
- Eat well: Build a habit of thinking about what your body needs to heal and be strong
- Sleep more: You can finish that episode tomorrow. Get to bed by 10pm
- Show up brilliantly: Being fit, dressing well and bringing positivity will be your superpower
- Pay it fwrd: Never take your life for granted. Give the gift of your time and experience to others
There are so many people to learn from who have incredible experience and insights that would offer powerful insight to guide the next generation of leaders, creators and game-changers. The pandemic has helped us all to evaluate what matters to us most and where we might use our precious time to make a more significant impact in our personal lives and the communities around us. There’s always something new to learn and there’s an abundance of growth ahead for us all. Let’s go and get it.
…work is moving so fast it would be career suicide to stand still.