There are four steps you can take, every day, to help bring fulfillment into your life, achieve happiness and help you attain success. Though it may seem impossible, taking these four steps will actually help set you up to achieve these goals and, even more importantly, will help you become a better person and define your own legacy to those around you.
Take a few minutes to read this list, and more importantly commit the time everyday to undertaking each of these. You will find that if you are persistent, once you have made an effort to do these things each day that after a short while it becomes second nature – you are actually doing it without thinking about it! That is how a person truly grows when they no longer have to think about doing what is necessary to achieve their goals; they just do it as part of who they are!
- Step 1. Visualize
Where have you been in your life? How did you get to where you are today? How will you get where you want to be tomorrow?It is important to understand where we’ve come from and how we are going to get to the next step in our lives. By visualizing where you want to be, you start helping your mind formulate ways to achieve that next goal in your life. It’s a powerful tool and one that many successful people have used to find their own happiness in life.By reviewing what you have done in the past, you can also make sure that you don’t repeat the same mistakes in the future. Similarly, you can also take the things that worked well in the past and apply them to help you achieve your goals in the future. Remember the old saying about those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it?
- Step 2. Take Responsibility
You are responsible for your actions – or for your lack of actions. All too often we blame others for our failures or missed opportunities when we have nobody to blame but ourselves because we failed to take the steps necessary to achieve a particular goal.
Taking responsibility also helps you become a better person and earn the respect of those around you. We all make mistakes, and when we own up to them, that builds trust in those around us. They know that when we do mess up we are going to make it right and take action to make sure that it doesn’t happen again. We aren’t going to blame our failure on somebody else.
- Step 3. Learn
Learning is a goal that everyone should have in their life. Not only though formal education, but also through the life process itself. Life is chaotic, and that is one of the best parts about living – the experience! Keep your mind open to changes and new ways of doing things. We live in a time where change happens every minute of the day, and successful people embrace change instead of trying to fight against it.
By learning all we can in life we find that knowledge gives us the tools to help us build a better life. We are able to fully understand how the world works and the different types of people in the world. It helps us discover a new way of living that we may not have realized exists out there.
- Step 4. Appreciate
When is the last time you said “Thank you” to the bagger at the supermarket? When was the last time you thanked a colleague for helping you finish a report on time? It seems that in our busy lives nowadays many of us have forgotten how to appreciate others. We forgot the two most powerful words in the English language – “Thank you”.
Appreciate what others bring into your life and how they help shape your life. Be grateful of the opportunities you are given, and those that may be given to someone else. Being appreciative of the challenges and opportunities you are given helps you to achieve new goals and opens your mind up to new ways of thinking. Make sure that you use some of that energy to pass along the kindness and appreciation as well.
It only takes a few days for you to implement the ideas in this list. After a few days I guarantee that they will become a part of everything you do. You are teaching yourself to adopt new habits – positive habits. Visualize what you want to do in life, take responsibility for making sure that you achieve your goals, learn from others around you and from the mistakes you have made in the past and appreciate those that have helped you along the way. By doing this you will setup the perfect recipe for happiness in your life – and will be a better person because of it.
Written by David B. Bohl of Slow Down Fast.