It is human nature to aim higher, to always want to be better, to strive for success and most importantly to own the joy and happiness that comes with accomplishment. You remember the feeling you had when you bought your first rusty car, from the long-term savings from your first job. It was the best feeling, right? What about when you got your promotion at work because of the long hours you spent working overtime. When your start-up business finally picked up after months of strategizing and contracts, deals and partnership proposals began to pour in. When that girl you had pursued forever finally said yes, and you led her to the altar of the church in a colorful wedding.
Even if you cannot remember these instances, maybe because they have not happened yet, you can definitely imagine them. To get to the next level in life, you need to stay motivated, to be fired up for success.
The following motivational tips are guaranteed to take your life to the next level.
1. Be fearless, take risks
We always fear to fail and therefore we choose not to try something new. We’d rather stick to what we know. Take a risk, it creates new possibilities. If you risk nothing, you risk everything. Man was able to set foot for the first time on the moon even with the nagging thought that they might not return. Be fearless in your endeavors, years from now you do to want to regret that you did not act on a great business idea.
Fortune favors the brave. If you have to quit your job or end your education to chase a great idea and have the absolute conviction, your guts tell you that you can succeed, then, by all means, do it! It is this risk that great companies such as Microsoft and Facebook were built on.
2. Focus on training your focus
It is hard to achieve focus without the motivation allure of a reward or someone constantly monitoring your progress. You do not have to depend on an external factor to be motivated. Train keep everything in focus always, you will have to train your focus. You will not get to your next level in life without intense laser focus. The moment you walk out of your front yard, many things line up to steal your attention. You need to think about who you want to be not sometimes, not most of the time, every time.
The more you think about your next goal, the more ideas and plans you will develop for it. Take one goal at a time and throw the weight of your energy on it. When you achieve it, you will be more motivated to move on to the next challenge. The best way to train your focus is to condition your brain and your body to physical exercise. Do a twenty-minute meditation every evening to put your thoughts in line and take runs in the morning to improve brain power.
3. Work with the negatives
How many mistakes can you make in a day? What about a month? A year perhaps? All these are valuable motivational lessons, do not brush them aside and hide them. Look at the following examples;
- Some businesses have failed and run bankrupt so many times and still end up in magazines’ success stories.
- Some people have had terrible marriages that have ended up in a series of divorces, and yet they still get married and live happily until their old age.
It was never a matter of chance; these people learned what not to do to fail. Face failure and from that you can breed success. Every mistake is an opportunity to learn. Embrace them, work with the negatives. They would take you closer to your next level in life.
4. Be honest with yourself
Everybody knows their true potential. When you are in the wrong place, you will know it. There’s always an inner voice that tells you, “I can do better than this,” I deserve better” Listen to that voice, be honest with yourself and pursue that which really matters to you. Most people who are dishonest with themselves get into the situations and fail to get out;
- They hate their jobs, and they continue to suffer in silence because they have to pay their bills. Your happiness is worth much more.
- They are in an abusive relationship, and they choose to be more tolerant. You are not helping anyone by growing a thick skin.
Own your life do not let somebody else own it for you. You know where you will be happy and what would make you happy. Do not be afraid to pursue it. Being honest with yourself will motivate you to do what satisfies you and makes you happy. It would put you on the next level of spiritual fulfillment and emotional wellbeing in your life.
5. Inspect your plans and strategies
Your goals may be just fine, but there may be a deficiency in the plans and strategies you formulate to get to the next level of success in your life. Constantly redesign your plans by making choices and decisions and then making amendments to your choices and decisions until your plans work. For instance;
- If you are a manager in a small business, you may need to make the decision of firing staff members that do not contribute to the success of the company and hire an additional
- If you are the head of a sales team, you may need to change your sales and marketing strategies to get more clients to buy your products and subscribe to your services.
- You may need to erase your entire network of friends and adopt those that help you achieve your goals. It’s not selfish. Everybody want what’s best for themselves.
Decisions like these are terrifying to make, but they are a significant motivational step towards success.
6. Step out of your comfort zone by accepting criticism
The best way to smoke yourself out of your comfort zone is to welcome critics in your life. It is motivational to surround yourself with people who point out your shortcomings instead of ‘yes men’ and ‘yes women’. The people to approach for constructive criticism are those who are have done what you are doing and have succeeded in the long run. It takes discipline to learn to accept criticism. You will turn out to be a more tenacious when you face obstacles and persistent in your ambitions. You will grow in character as a person, and that would enable you to reach the next level in your life.
7. Be unsatisfied with your current level accomplishments
In 2005, the co-founder of Apple- Steve Jobs, gave a commencement speech at Stanford University advising the students to stay hungry for success. The unsatisfactory nature of human beings is what has led to groundbreaking innovations; the advent of the steam engine that drove industrialization and the invention of the computer that has made life easier today. You should apply the same model to motivate you to achieve more. Challenge yourself, aspire to do greater things. The sky is not the limit; there are no limits. Stay hungry for success, and you will always move a level higher in the ladder of achievement.
8. Set high standards for yourself
If you set common goals, you will land at mediocre achievements. Most people don’t make a breakthrough in life because they failed to dream big. To a look at the following possibilities;
- Your single fast food joint could become a global franchise like MacDonald’s.
- Your medical research could become the next cure or vaccine for a terrible illness.
Think positively about your ambitions. Don’t give others people the power to control your thoughts and emotions. Anything can be achieved if you set your mind to it. When you set high standards for yourself you set high standards for your school, your workplace your society and humanity as a whole. Even if you do not reach them, you always fall somewhere better in between which will motivate you to try even harder. That is the real meaning of aiming for the stars to get to the moon. To set high standards also means thinking in the long term, setting long term goals and allowing for time to approve or disapprove them.
9. Take Continuous Action On Your Dreams
Once you have your plans set just right, it’s time to take action. Your plan should be to stick to the plan. This is the only secret that will get you to the next level in life, not words or thoughts but actions. This would require you to
- Organize your daily routines in the direction of your goals.
- Wake up with a schedule and mark the actions that you have already achieved as you go to sleep.
If your dream is to get published and become a renowned author, then you have to set up a time to read and write. Be consistent in your pursuit, do something daily and you will get to the next level in life.
10. Forget the Past, welcome the Future
Extra baggage from the past weighs you down emotionally. If you failed and you failed others too in the past, you need to forgive yourself so that you can see the possibilities of success ahead of you. Everybody makes bad choices and holding onto regret only draws you back. Get rid of anything from the past that isn’t useful to your life so that you can move on to your next level of accomplishment.
How would it feel like to get where you want to be? To get to the next level of accomplishment in your career, social life or personal growth, you should always chase that feeling. It is your sole responsibility to improve yourself. Get motivated today and take your life to the next level with these motivational tips. There is always a better you inside waiting to be awoken.
Featured photo credit: Zac Durant via unsplash.com
