You may have heard me say it before but it’s worth repeating – success is simple.
It may be hard to achieve but the principles behind it aren’t.
Most of us already know what it takes to succeed in life, but are often looking for another way.
Just flick on the TV late at night and you’ll be bombarded with diet pills that supposedly allow us to lose weight without doing anything and programs that will make us rich all from the comfort of our own home and all sorts of gimmicks.
Why? Because we don’t want to take the time to do what’s necessary.
Overweight – eat less and exercise more. Not rocket science, and yet millions of people invest billions to avoid this fact.
Poor – earn more, spend less. Again, it doesn’t take a genius to figure this stuff out.
So if we all know what we should do, why don’t we do them?
We want results today. We want to reverse the effects of years of poor judgment to our health, our relationships and our finances in days or weeks, not years.
What’s worse is that we know deep down that the chances of these tricks working are slim, and yet still choose to buy them.
“What have I got to lose?,” is the question we ask ourselves.
My answer, “Everything.”
By continually believing in tricks and gimmicks we refuse to face the fact that we are largely responsible for who we have become and the life we live.
If we want to create success in our lives then the first thing we need to change is ourselves.
Until we change, nothing will change.
While I’ve never had any problems with my weight (thanks to my metabolism) I must say that there were times when I needed a good hard kick in the butt when it came to my decisions regarding money.
I spent more than I should have. I trusted people I shouldn’t have. I made poor investment decisions.
That changed a while back thanks to the all the information I’ve studied in pursuit of building my business and writing my book, iSucceed.
Now I know that each decision builds upon the last one and creates a ripple effect. Good creates good and bad, bad.
I have learned who I can and cannot trust.
Despite the hardships I have been through I have no regrets. I am grateful for the lessons I’ve learned but hope that people don’t fall into the same traps that I once did.
Success isn’t magical, there aren’t any tricks.
Success is simply making lots of good decisions, both big and small, on a daily basis.
Choosing to study a little more, watch a little less TV, eating healthier food, exercising more, keeping our promises, doing our job well, helping others, smiling, laughing, caring…
Making your own list of things you can do to create a better future is just the first step. Sticking to them comes next.
And then, in time, you’ll be amazed at the results.
Trust me.
Adrian Shepherd