I read an article today on the attributes of successful people. The author, in all seriousness, stated that successful people are achievers.
No kidding? Reading that made me want to hit the author of the article with a shovel.
Nobody reading an article on what characteristics successful people share needs to be told that they are achievers.
We can all figure that one out for ourselves.
Thinking about it for awhile, and doing a little browsing past the second page on Google for more articles, I narrowed down the habits/characteristics/qualities of the successful to these few:
First, it seems to be essential that you have a phenomenal amount of self-confidence. I don't mean boatloads of confidence, I mean a whole Armada's worth. How do you get that level of belief in oneself? I suppose it wouldn't hurt to be surrounded by people who believe in you - parents who encourage your efforts, teachers that praise you for trying, friends that help you overcome difficulties, etc. I have also read it helps to fake it until you make it, so try that, too.
Second, it looks to be advantageous if you develop an extraordinary capacity for hard work. Looks like having parents who assign you chores and make you do your homework before you get to go out and play factors in with this, as does learning early on that hard work earns rewards. Hard work, apparently, is one of the keys to being able to accomplish and achieve goals.
Being single minded when it comes to a task or project, that is, focusing your attention to the task on hand and maintaining that focus until you have finished what you set out to do, is a biggie. Not allowing yourself to be distracted by the petty and irrelevant is something that a lot of successful people feel is important.
Fourth, and this one can be tricky, especially if you're a human with, what are they called? Oh yeah, emotions...Don't ever let anything get you down - stay remarkably positive, no matter what happens. In fact, stay so positive that you radiate positive energy like a reactor. Be the positive sun that everyone around you wants to bask in.
Think more than you talk. That rare ability is mentioned by a lot of the success-seminar presenters. Of course, if you're like me and were not born a great thinker, you might have to find a way to trick yourself into thinking. I found one website that claimed if you asked yourself how a famed intellect would answer a question, that short pause alone will cause people to think you're intelligent and then maybe they'll be more willing to help you succeed.
Develop whatever natural talent or ability you have to it's fullest potential. That seems to be something that ties in neatly with a few of the other qualities on this list - being focused and working hard at whatever it is you do probably leads to a great deal of confidence in your ability to do it, and therefore, success!
Seventh is another one of those traits that can fall victim to emotion. Apparently, boundless energy and enthusiasm for life is necessary for success. It's possible that you were raised by parents who greeted each day with a smile and came home from their jobs with as much energy as when they left the house that morning, and it's possible that you were genetically blessed with a high revving metabolism that never stops, and therefore have boundless energy and enthusiasm for life, but if not...well, there's always that fake it until you make it dealio.
An exceptional desire to succeed probably goes without saying when listing the characteristics of successful people, but it's listed anyway. The majority of the many, many web pages devoted to success (3,700,000 if you're curious) list desire as being not just necessary, but indispensable, on the same level as air and food. There are many suggestions as to how to increase your desire - set a personal achievement goal, fixate on acquiring a specific amount of wealth, cut out pictures of luxury items you want and tape them to your fridge, write down affirmations and tape them to your bathroom mirror, etc. Whatever it takes. Me, I've never had a problem with exceptional desire, so I got this one knocked.
Ninth, again according to a preponderance of web sites, fantastic drive and singular determination are very relevant to success. You have to find a way to push yourself constantly. I suppose it will help if you have some of the previously listed boundless energy and enthusiasm.
And finally, persevere. In the face of every obstacle, hindrance, portent-of-doom, etc., persevere. Never, ever give up. That's the top quality, right there. Perseverance. It seems that homeless shelters, tent citys, and street corners all over the world are full of talented, intelligent, capable people who just didn't persevere.
At least that's what I've been able to garner.
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