Life is full of questions. What will I wear today? What will I have for lunch? Whether it’s the small questions we face on a daily basis, or the larger, life-changing ones, they cannot be avoided.
Powerful and successful people ask themselves certain questions every day in order to meet their goals. These people understand that nothing in life is constant, and to make it to the top they have to regularly re-assess their lives and tactics. It is only through asking questions, like the ones listed below, every day that they are able to reflect on how far they have gone, who they have become, and what they want to achieve. And if their actions don’t line up with their goals? They make the necessary adjustments so they will be successful.
Take the time every day to ask yourself these 8 questions, and you can achieve the success you are looking for.
1. What do I want to accomplish today?
Most of us wake up in the morning and go through the day without any focus or objective for that particular day. It’s the “wake up, survive, go back to bed” kind of lifestyle. Their main motivation for the day is just to run through their daily routines, avoiding much thinking and simply getting through the day. Half of their brain wishes to still be asleep.
Successful people differ greatly from these people. They value their mornings, and they use them to set the mood and motivation for that day. They wake up in the morning, reassess themselves, look into their lives, remind themselves what their main focus is and set their objectives for that day. They focus on the things they want to achieve before the sun sets. That’s why they see great improvements ultimately.
2. How much time should each task take me?
Time management strategies are paramount in the road to success and, unfortunately, many of us are poor at this basic skill. We all have got 24 hours each day, no more no less for anyone. The difference between successful people and those who are not is as a result of what we do with the 24 hours and how we spread that time out over all daily tasks. Winners identify the priorities in their life or businesses and allocate them earlier and more time.
3. Are my actions with my end goals in mind?
Actions indeed speak louder than words. Things you do are what determine if you will achieve the goals you have set. Successful people will stop once in a while and ask themselves if the things they are doing are aimed at meeting their bigger picture. In fact, they will put everything else away except the things that will help them achieve their goals.
4. What bad habits can I avoid?
Let us agree on one thing: everyone has his or her bad habits. Habits make us who we are. We know these habits are not pleasant, but because they make us feel good, we end up continually doing them. Powerful people, however, understand that bad habits are exactly that–bad, and they should be avoided. They will keep reminding themselves that they have these habits and regularly ask which of those, if not all, can they avoid long enough so they are no longer habits.
5. What mistakes should I learn from?
We all make mistakes. They are part of our lives, a part of our learning experience. The biggest problem is repeating the same mistakes again and again, and expecting different results. Powerful people will learn from not only their mistakes, but the mistakes of others. They will keep reminding themselves of these mistakes and the lessons they learnt from them. They never make assumptions.
6. Am I still on the right track?
Evaluation is important in our lives. Sometimes we get so entrenched in so many things that are happening in our lives that we lose sight of the road we are following. If we do not evaluate ourselves, we might find ourselves far from the road we ought to be. To be successful, we should keep re-evaluating ourselves and asking if we still are on the right track and if we are heading in the right direction.
7. What sacrifices am I willing to make in pursuit of excellence?
Success is all about sacrifices and not so much about finding happiness. On our journey to success, we will be faced with decisions we need to make. Most of these decisions will put us in situations that we will be forced to choose one of two, or more, options. Most people will choose the easy option. Successful and powerful people understand that to move on to the next level, they have to forget something. These are the sacrifices that they have to make and they make the right decision.
8. What risks will I take to achieve my goal?
Life is all about taking calculated risks. Powerful people will tell you the risks they have taken to reach the position where they are at now. They will evaluate the opportunities in taking those risks and weigh them against what they could lose. Depending on which outweighs the other, they are able to make a calculated decision. That’s what makes them successful.
