Some of the Smartest people I know
continuously struggle to get ahead because they forget to address a few simple
truths that collectively govern our potential to make progress. So here’s
a quick reminder :
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| Truths For Smart People |
#1 – Education and intelligence accomplish
nothing without action.
It doesn't matter if you have a Genius
IQ and a PhD in Quantum Physics, you can’t change anything or make any sort of
real-world progress without taking action. There’s a huge difference between
knowing how to do something and actually doing it. Knowledge and
intelligence are both useless without action. It’s as simple as
that. For some practical guidance on taking action.
#2 – Happiness and success are two
different things.
I know an extremely savvy businesswoman
who made almost a million dollars online last year. Every entrepreneur I know
considers her to be wildly successful. But guess what? A few days
ago, out of the blue, she told me that she’s depressed. Why? “I’m
burnt out and lonely. I just haven’t taken enough time for myself
lately,” she said. “Wow!” I thought. “One of the most successful
people I know isn’t happy.”
I also know a surfer who surfs almost
all day, every day on the beach in San
Diego. He’s one of the most lighthearted, optimistic guys I’ve ever met –
always smiling from ear to ear. But he sleeps in a van he co-owns with
another surfer and they both frequently panhandle tourists for money. So
while I can’t deny that this man seems happy, I wouldn’t classify his life as a
success story.
“What will make me happy?” and “What
will make me successful?” are two of the most important questions you can ask
yourself. But they are two different questions.
#3 – Everyone runs their own business.
No matter how you make a living or who
you think you work for, you only work for one person, yourself. The big
question is: What are you selling, and to whom? Even when you have
a full-time, salaried, ‘Corporate America’ position, you are still running your
own business. You are selling one unit of your existence (an hour of your
life) at a set price (the associated fraction of your salary) to a customer
(your employer).
So how can you simultaneously save your
time and increase your profit? The answer is slightly different for
everyone. But it’s an answer you should be seeking.
#4 – Having too many choices interferes
with decision making.
Here in the 21st century where
information moves at the speed of light and opportunities for innovation seem
endless, we have an abundant array of choices when it comes to designing our
lives and careers. But sadly, an abundance of choice often leads to
indecision, confusion and inaction.
Several business and marketing studies
have shown that the more product choices a consumer is faced with, the less
products they typically buy. After all, narrowing down the best product
from a pool of three choices is certainly a lot easier than narrowing down the
best product from a pool of three hundred choices. If the purchasing
decision is tough to make, most people will just give up.
So if you’re selling a product line,
keep it simple. And if you’re trying to make a decision about something
in your life, don’t waste all your time evaluating every last detail of every
possible option. Choose something that you think will work and give it a
shot. If it doesn’t work out, choose something else and keep pressing
forward.
#5 – All people possess dimensions of
success and dimensions of failure.
This point is somewhat related to point
#2 on happiness and success, but it stands strong on its own as well…
Trying to be perfect is a waste of time
and energy. Perfection is an illusion.
All people, even our idols, are
multidimensional. Powerful business men, polished musicians, bestselling
authors, and even our own parents all have dimensions of success and dimensions
of failure present in their lives.
Our successful dimensions usually
encompass the things we spend the most time doing. We are successful in
these dimensions because of our prolonged commitment to them. This is the
part of our lives we want others to see – the successful part that holds our
life’s work. It’s the notion of putting our best foot forward. It’s
the public persona we envision as our personal legacy: “The Successful
ABC” or “The Award Winning XYZ.”
But behind whichever polished storyline
we publically promote, there lies a multi-dimensional human being with a long
list of unprofessed failures. Sometimes this person is a bad husband or
wife. Sometimes this person laughs at the expense of others. And sometimes
this person merely takes their eyes off the road and rear-ends the car in front
of them.
#6 – Every mistake you make is progress.
Mistakes teach you important
lessons. Every time you make one, you’re one step closer to your
goal. The only mistake that can truly hurt you is choosing to do nothing
simply because you’re too scared to make a mistake.
So don’t hesitate – don’t doubt
yourself. In life, it’s rarely about getting a chance; it’s about taking
a chance. You’ll never be 100% sure it will work, but you can always be
100% sure doing nothing won’t work. Most of the time you just have to go
for it!
And no matter how it turns out, it
always ends up just the way it should be. Either you succeed or you learn
something. Win-Win. Remember, if you never act, you will never know
for sure, and you will be left standing in the same spot forever.
#7 – People can be great at doing things
they don’t like to do.
Although I’m not suggesting that you
choose a career or trade you dislike, I’ve heard way too many smart people say
something like, “In order to be great at what you do, you have to like what you
do.” This just isn’t true.
A good friend of mine is a public
accountant. He has told me on numerous occasions that he dislikes his job
– “that it bores him to death.” But he frequently gets raises and
promotions. At the age of 28, out of nearly a thousand Jr. Accountants in
his division, he’s one of only two who were promoted to be Sr. Accountants this
past year. Why? Because even though he doesn’t like doing it, he’s
good at what he does.
I could come up with dozens of other
examples just like this, but I’ll spare you the details. Just realize
that if someone dedicates enough time and attention to perfecting a skill or
trade, they can be insanely good at doing something they don’t like to
do.
#8 – The problems we have with others are
typically more about us.
Quite often, the problems we have with
others – our spouse, parents, siblings, etc. – don’t really have much to do
with them at all. Because many of the problems we think we have with them
we subconsciously created in our own mind. Maybe they did something in
the past that touched on one of our fears or insecurities. Or maybe they
didn’t do something that we expected them to do. In either case, problems
like these are not about the other person, they’re about us.
And that’s okay. It simply means
these little predicaments will be easier to solve. We are, after
all, in charge of our own decisions. We get to decide whether we want to
keep our head cluttered with events from the past, or instead open our minds to
the positive realities unfolding in front of us.
All we need is the willingness to look
at things a little differently – letting go of ‘what was’ and ‘what should have
been,’ and instead focusing our energy on ‘what is’ and ‘what could be
possible.’
#9 – Emotional decisions are rarely good
decisions.
Decisions driven by heavy emotion are
typically misguided reactions rather than educated judgments. These
reactions are the byproduct of minimal amounts of conscious thought and
primarily based on momentary ‘feelings’ instead of mindful awareness.
The best advice here is simple:
Don’t let your emotions trump your intelligence. Slow down and think
things through before you make any life-changing decisions.
#10 – You will never feel 100% ready when
an opportunity arises.
The number one thing I persistently see
holding smart people back is their own reluctance to accept an opportunity
simply because they don’t think they’re ready. In other words, they
believe they require additional knowledge, skill, experience, etc. before they
can aptly partake in the opportunity. Sadly, this is the kind of thinking
that stifles personal growth.
The truth is nobody ever feels 100%
ready when an opportunity arises. Because most great opportunities in
life force us to grow emotionally and intellectually. They force us to
stretch ourselves and our comfort zones, which means we won’t feel totally comfortable
at first. And when we don’t feel comfortable, we don’t feel ready.
Just remember that significant moments
of opportunity for personal growth and development will come and go throughout
your lifetime. If you are looking to make positive changes in your life
you will need to embrace these moments of opportunity even though you will
never feel 100% ready for them.
#11 – It is better to do Something then to do Nothing...
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