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By Kyle Young – theLadders

Do you have big goals you long to achieve?

Do you feel like you’re behind schedule? Fear you might not have what it takes?

You’ve been tricked by a bogus lie. That success is reserved for a chosen few.

The truth is … normal people who consistently make winning choices can enjoy massive success.

How do you make winning choices?

They come from winning thoughts. Here are 8 paradigm-shifting quotes to power up your thinking.

1. Don’t give up.

“ … if you really look closely, most overnight successes took a long time.” — Steve Jobs

In her research study, Dr. Angela Duckworth found that Grit, “perseverance and passion for long-term goals,” predicted success “better than any other predictor.”

It makes sense. No one who quits a goal achieves it.

Plus, we’re way more likely to give up than to encounter a truly unbeatable obstacle.

What could we accomplish if we simply didn’t quit?

2. Be consistent.

“Successful people are just those with successful habits.” — Bryan Tracy

When you’re chasing a big goal, the kind that takes months or years to accomplish, your biggest enemy will be complacency — letting days go by without any forward motion.

Set yourself up for daily progress with productive habits. Instead of cramming when you feel like it, do a little every day.

In one year, a person working only 15 minutes every day will invest almost twice as much time as someone cramming in a two-hour session every other week.

Small wins lead to big results.

3. Failure is normal.

“Success is the ability to go from failure to failure without losing your enthusiasm.” — Winston Churchill

We’re raised to believe that some people are born for success while others are born for failure. But the truth is, everyone is born for failure. And the people who learn how to win with failure, get to enjoy success.

Today, Sir James Dyson has an estimated net worth of $4.2 billion, but when he was trying to invent the bagless vacuum, his first 5,126 prototypes failed to produce the results he wanted.

Dyson learned from each experiment, and on his 5,127 attempt, he found the design he was looking for.

Successful people fail more because they try as long as it takes. Are you willing to do the same?

4. Ego stunts growth.

“It doesn’t matter how many times you fail. You only have to be right once and then everyone can tell you that you are an overnight success.” — Mark Cuban

The world’s greatest inventors, innovators, storytellers, and entrepreneurs have all walked a similar path.

They looked incredibly stupid until they looked incredibly smart.

If you want to succeed faster, start looking stupid.

Try things. Learn things. Failure is the tuition you pay to become a master.

As Sanctus Real sings, “Cool is just how far we have to fall.”

5. Reject imaginary limits.

“All you need in this life is ignorance and confidence, and then success is sure.” — Mark Twain

According to the science of self-efficacy, believing you can accomplish a goal is a crucial first step to achieving it.

Everyone has areas of strength and areas of weakness.

Your weaknesses won’t disappear overnight, or maybe ever.

But normal people accomplish amazing things every single day, in spite of their weaknesses.

You start by believing you can.

6. Own your results.

“The best years of your life are the ones in which you decide your problems are your own. You do not blame them on your mother, the ecology, or the president. You realize that you control your own destiny.” — Albert Ellis

If you feel trapped by the burden of unmet potential, stop waiting to be rescued and start planning your escape.

Don’t wait for support. Seek it. Don’t wish for more talent. Cultivate it. Don’t hope for a lucky break. Prepare to capitalize on the breaks each of us receive.

Do we control everything? Absolutely not.

But how much do we control?

By my math…less than we’d like and more than we think.

7. Do what you love.

“Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.” — Herman Cain

Although Cain is a controversial figure, I wholeheartedly agree with this quote.

Ted Dekker is a New York Times bestselling novelist who has sold over 10 million copies. But his first five books went unpublished.

Writing a novel is tough. Ted did it five times with nothing to show. No one would have blamed him if he’d just given up. Why didn’t he?

Ted explains, “Writing gives me clarity.”

While no job is 100% fun, to persevere through setbacks and failures, you need to find meaning in the work, not just the outcome.

8. Live boldly.

“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.” — Hellen Keller

Why do we play everything safe?

What are we protecting?

Life is short. Pride is stupid.

Will you work for what you want this week, especially when it scares you?

 

Want to go deeper?

 

Do you have big goals you long to achieve? The biggest threat to your success is simply giving up.

 

 

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