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By Stephanie Bruce
October 26, 2016 • Fact checked by Dumb Little Man
4 Signs That You’re Making Positive Progress in Life
Whether youโre hoping to start a successful business or simply looking to live a fulfilling life, progress is an important indicator of current and future success.
But whatโs progress to one person may not be progress to the next, so how can you know for sure that youโre making true progress in your life?
Fortunately, there are a few solid indicators that youโre making progress. Outlined below are five of them.
1. Youโre Able to Look to Your Mistakes and Learn From Them

Mistakes arenโt the monsters that we make them out to be. Instead, mistakes can help us learn a lot about ourselves and the path weโre taking in our lives.
When youโre on a path of progression, your mistakes are an opportunity for change. You can use your mistakes to ask yourself some thought-provoking questions such as what things can be done to correct them, what might you be able to do differently in the future to prevent making them again, and what lessons can be learned from them.
2. Youโre Genuinely Happy for Others
You know how much hard work goes into achieving your dream, which is why youโre no longer jealous when those around you reach their goals. When youโre progressing on your own path, you donโt have any ill feelings for those who are doing the same even if they happen to be further ahead than you.
3. You Know that Success Only Happens When Youโre Open to Failure
How are you to work out the finer detailsโand all the kinks involved in successโif you arenโt willing to put yourself out there?
Progress means to continually move forward, even if that forward motion may be met with a bump in the road or an exceedingly high wall. Failure can certainly be scary and itโs okay to feel fear and anxiety!ย But,ย openness to failure is the only way you can continue towards success.
See Also:ย Why You Should Forget Success And Strive to Failย
4. Youโre Willing to Reassess Your Current Situation

Itโs easy to trick yourself into thinking youโre making progress when, really, all youโre doing is treading water. If youโre progressing toward your goals, youโre willing to reevaluate the path youโre using to get there.
Of course, this reevaluation takes courage and honesty, because who wants to admit to themselves that they arenโt as far along as theyโd hoped? But creating a bit of discomfort in your life by constantly reviewing, rethinking, and revising your goalsโand your path towards themโis truly worth it in the end.
5. Your To-Do List is Heavily Influenced by Your Life Goals
You know that change doesnโt happen overnight and empires arenโt built in a day. So, when your life goals make a frequent appearance on your to-do list, you know youโre doing something right.
As previously mentioned, reevaluation of your path is vital to your progression. There is a way to keep yourself in check without going too far off the path, however, and thatโs by incorporating your life goals into your daily (or weekly, or monthly) to-do list.
Obviously, you canโt add โreach the summit of Mount Everestโ to your daily to-do. Instead, break that life goal down into daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly chunks so you can build up to completing it successfully in the end.
For example, you should probably summit a few smaller mountains before even thinking of attempting Mount Everest, and even further, you should probably train daily to get into peak physical shape for such endeavors.
If you want to continue progressing, then youโll have to understand how to make goals that you can actually stick to. Donโt know how? Henrik Edberg over at The Positivity Blog, has some excellent tips on setting attainable goals.
See Also:ย How to Set Personal SMART Goals To Succeedย
If you arenโt sure whether youโve been making progress, then consider how well the above 5 signs align with you and your actions and adjust your mindset accordingly. And remember, no matter where you are on your journey in life, itโs important to always keep moving forward.
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Stephanie Bruce
Stephanie is the founder of Beginner Bliss, a personal development site where she helps her readers to create lives filled with happiness, purpose, and fulfillment. Get started creating a life you love with 31 Days of Bliss: Guide and Workbook, a FREE ebook for personal development beginners.
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