Define success. The word itself can mean many different things for each person you ask. Every person is unique and has different goals and motivations. Your definition of success may be different from another person you ask. Think about it, try asking somebody in their 20s to define success versus somebody in their 60s. You most likely will get two radically different responses. Although success means something different to each of us, certain core principles still make up the foundation of what it takes to be successful in life. To be successful in life is a result of the actions you took to achieve your goals that aligned with your vision of success. No action, no success. By breaking down the necessary actions needed to be successful in life, you immediately improve your chances of achieving your ultimate goal.

Before you begin taking the necessary actions towards your goal of being successful in life, first you need to define what does it mean to be successful in life to you? Is it becoming a multi-millionaire with a luxury yacht traveling the world? Maybe finding success in life means that you become a professor at a prestigious university researching the next big breakthrough. How about something more down to earth like starting a family, finding a good job, and living a peaceful life? The key activity here is that you must understand which direction you’d like to head in. You can’t arrive at the destination without knowing where it is? First, you need to define where it is you want to go before starting your drive. The pre-work matters. Define what is your vision for a successful life because the alternative is that you are going to go through life without knowing where you want to go.

Another point to mention before you begin is that you should do an audit of your current life. What are you not happy about, or what is going well for you? What resources do you have at this time? What challenges do you need to overcome to get the ball rolling? You should audit your current position and understand exactly where your baseline is before you begin your journey. Ready to start?

Start By Thinking Big 

Look back through history from notable and legendary figures that found so much success in their lives? Were any of their ideas small? Each individual like Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, and so many more all challenged the status quo and thought big. Their ideas were grand! The bigger you think regarding your goals, the better chances you have towards achieving your success. Why? Your focus determines your reality. If you have the goal to become a millionaire within 10 years, a realistic target, what do you think will happen? First, if you truly desire to become a millionaire in 10 years, you’re going to start researching how? Each day that passes, your big idea, your goal, is going to be in front of your mind. You may not realize it but subconsciously, your brain is repeating to itself, how can I become a millionaire in 10 years. You’re going to tune your senses towards opportunities that may get you there. For example, you start researching how to become a millionaire. In year 1, you determine based on your research that real estate is a great opportunity. Boom, now you’re going to start researching how to find success in real estate. Next, in year 2, you determine that flipping properties is the path that you’d like to choose. Now you’re going to start thinking about how you can begin the process of flipping properties to make your millions. Each step leads you down another door that opens to new opportunities that get you closer to your goal. The bigger your goals, the more actions you take in the direction towards that bigger goal. If you plan on flipping 5 properties in 5 years, then you’re going to only take actions that result in getting you to or close to flipping only 5 properties in 5 years. However, what if you changed your goal of flipping 50 properties in 5 years? Do you think you are going to take some different actions if that’s the case? Yes! Think big and choose large goals because even if you aim high and fall somewhere in the middle, you are still further than you would have been had you chosen a small idea or goal.

Learn From Others Failures 

You do not have to reinvent the wheel. Millions of people have succeeded or failed before you. The fastest way to succeed is by learning from others. For example, returning to our real estate example, what if you were again trying to flip 50 properties in 5 years? Do you think you would save thousands of dollars, time, and energy if you avoid some common mistakes that beginners make? Probably yes. How do you avoid mistakes? Learn from other flippers. Work with someone who has flipped hundreds of homes. Guaranteed, you will learn what you need to accelerate your success. Learning from other failures will always result in a positive for you.

Take Action

Finally, without action, nothing can be accomplished. The greatest threat to your success and ideas is inaction. Be a person of action. Start small if you must. You would be surprised at the effect doing small actions can have when you are feeling unmotivated. Action can be like a snowball effect. It grows larger and larger with each movement. If you are feeling down, unmotivated, or procrastinating, then start moving. Do something. Even if it means making your bed or taking a walk. If you do not take consistent action every day in the direction of your vision, you will never have a successful life. Nothing was ever accomplished without action.

Start Today

Think big, learn from other failures, and take action. Simple yet effective. There is no better time than today. It doesn’t matter where you are at in life or how old you are. The best time to plant a tree was 10 years ago. The next best time is now. Start taking control of your life and move in the direction of realizing what success means to you.