Hands up who would like to be more successful? Keep your hands up if you also have a very clear idea of what ‘being successful’ looks like?
Tip 1: Get clear about this…
The biggest thing holding most people back from experiencing success is…drum roll please….not knowing the following…
First let’s have a closer look at this concept of ‘experiencing success’. This sort of implies that success is something we ‘FEEL’ as opposed to something we get. So experiencing success is more about ‘FEELING’ successful as opposed to having X, Y, or Z thing show up in your life.
And if you have been working with me (or following me) over the years, you know that the feelings we have are very much linked to what MEANING we give to the things in our life’s experience. So the meaning we give something actually has more impact on our feelings, than the physical thing itself.
So Tip 1. Success is a Feeling. And you can actually create the feeling (and biochemical cocktail) while still sitting in your chair as you read this.
Tip 2: Get clear about what SUCCESS means to YOU (not what others tell you so they can sell you sh_t)
Most people have no clear idea of what being successful means. They have never articulated it, and therefore have a hard time telling if they are or aren’t successful.
So what is your measure of success or being successful?
If it does not include all of the things to follow, then I strongly recommend you spend some time redefining what success really means to you. Too often we are encouraged by organisations and institutions that don’t have our best interests at heart that we need to measure success with a financial balance sheet. That is SO limited, SO shallow, and SO commercially oriented.
For me, success is also about:
– the quality of your relationships
– the difference you are making in the lives of others
– the health and vitality of your precious body
– the meaningfulness of your ‘work’
– your level of consciousness
– your level of happiness
– the daily joy you experience
– the quality of human being you are showing up as
So I encourage you to take the time to write down what ‘BEING SUCCESSFUL’ specifically looks like. Think outside of the realm of money in the bank, or assets in your portfolio, or size of your…(add your own item in here…)
Tip 3: Celebrate the small stuff
I am actually writing this for myself. It is definitely something I personally need to work on.
If success is a feeling, then stack the cards in your favour. Get really good at identifying the things that make you experience the feelings of success (including the things from the list I wrote for the last tip). Then hang out in the emotional cocktail of success for longer periods of time.
I tend to finish something (big or small) and not celebrate the achievement. I am too busy moving onto the next thing in my To Do List and I forget to feel the feelings of success for the things I have achieved.
The more times you feel these emotions of success, the more you will feel full of success or SUCCESSFUL.
So connect and hang out in the feelings of success after you have a great meeting, or helped a friend out, or figured something out, or made a difference for a client, or did that extra 1/2 of a chin-up, or remembered how to get to your friends place without getting lost, or remembered your partners birthday (this year is the year form me to get this right!), or learned a new skill, or meditated for 2 minutes longer, and the list goes on…
Success is a feeling. So connect to that feeling more often. If you ‘feel’ successful more often, then surely you would consider yourself successful. Right?!?
My final word
I know you are already successful; because there is some part of your life that you already do really well. You do it better and much easier than others. You are even MUCH better at it than that multi-millionaire you see on the TV. So who is more successful (in LIFE)?
Write your own measure of success. Get clear about what success really means, and not just in a narrow part of life called ‘finances’. Look at the whole thing called life, and see the bigger picture.
Success is a feeling. And the more we feel successful, the more we will BE successful. So celebrate things big and small. Generate those feelings a lot. Get good at finding things you can celebrate – not in a narcissistic way – but in a way that says you are proud to be you. Because – without me sounding like a hippie or free love agent – let’s face it. You are a pretty special (and unique) version of you. So let’s raise our virtual champagne glasses of goodness together and celebrate … TO US. 😉 We are so good!! Yippee!! Hoorah!! Bang!! (that was a firecracker)
If ever you want to increase your knowledge, or get perspective on what you might be doing right, wrong or otherwise, know I am only an email away. I guarantee I can help you see things you never knew were possible and take your life up to a whole new level of fulfillment.
Just reply to this email to find out more or check out www.CarlMassy.com