You've probably heard it a thousand times – your success ultimately depends on your habits.
There are certain things that 99.9% of all successful people do. Habits they develop that make them effective.
I came up with this list of 7 Important Habits that you need to develop to be successful.
Make sure you check out my YouTube channel for more on this topic.
1. Win The Morning
It all starts here. If you can win the morning, you can win the day.
What does it take to ‘win the morning'?
You need to wake up early. Set your alarm the night before – and NEVER hit the snooze button. We're all guilty of doing this from time to time – sometimes you just don't want to get out of bed at 5 a.m. STOP. It takes discipline to become successful, and waking up with your alarm is the first step towards that.
Have (and keep) a solid morning routine. What does that look like?
Make your bed as soon as you get up. Take a shower, brush your teeth, eat a healthy breakfast, go for a run.
It all depends on you – what tasks are important to have in your routine? What are some new things you haven't tried yet, but want to give a shot? Try them out and see if they fit with your morning routine.
2. Plan Your Day
This is a bit different from having a routine. You need to have a solid plan and a schedule for yourself every day.
A good idea is to start planning your day the night before. Think about what tasks you need to complete the next day and list them out. Make sure you review that list each morning and block off time in your schedule to complete those tasks.
Make sure you schedule everything. It helps you to avoid wasting time and being ineffective. If something isn't on your schedule and it's not absolutely imperative that you get it done ASAP, don't deviate to get it done. Add it to your list of tasks for the next day, and schedule it then.
Don't forget to schedule breaks for yourself! You don't want to get burned out because you have a packed schedule that leaves no time for self-care.
3. Read (or Learn) Every Single Day
Successful people keep their minds active. You should always make a point to read for at least 10 minutes a day.
“But Dave, I'm terrible at reading!”
Then LEARN SOMETHING. Sure, reading isn't for everyone, but you can still make an effort to learn something new. Study. Expand your mind.
TAKE NOTES. A lot of times when we read or learn, we come across something that jumps out at us, something we want to remember. But then it just slips our mind, we move on to something else, we forget about it. Keep a highlighter and some post-its handy. Write down the words or ideas that make an impact on you. You could even keep a separate journal for taking notes on what you're reading or learning.
Each night before you go to bed, look over those notes. Remind yourself what you learned that day. This way, it will stick with you.
4. Exercise
Now I know you've all heard this one before. Exercising is such an important habit to keep as a part of your daily routine. It's not just about keeping a healthy body, but a healthy mind. Exercising for just 20 minutes a day can improve your memory as well as your brain's ability to process information.
Exercise can also stimulate your brain's plasticity, which as we know, is an important part of rewiring your brain for success. Research shows that exercise increases growth factors in the brain, which makes it easier for your brain to grow new neural connections.
Physical exercise is great. It has tons of benefits. But when you couple that with mental exercise, something amazing happens. Which is why it's important to also…
5. Clear Your Mind
Throughout the day, our heads can get cluttered with all sorts of thoughts and ideas that might not be beneficial to us. You should take time every day to clear your head.
That can mean making meditation a part of your daily routine. It can also mean practicing mindfulness throughout the day.
Meditation has a ton of proven health benefits. Most people know that meditation helps to reduce stress and anxiety, but did you know it can actually lower your blood pressure? Meditation can also lengthen your attention span and reduce memory loss as you get older.
Meditation also helps you to be more mindful, which is a great trick to keep distracting thoughts away and focus on being effective with your time.
Another benefit of meditation that can really improve your level of success is that it promotes healthy sleep. A good night's sleep makes all the difference.
6. Take Care Of You
Self-care is hugely important. You need to be taking care of yourself.
For some people, it can be simple things like getting enough sleep, getting a massage or a manicure, or relaxing through meditation. For others, self-care can mean focusing on your mental and emotional health – getting therapy, joining a support group, spending quality time with your family.
Spirituality can also tie into this. Staying grounded in your spirituality can have a profound effect on your mental health. Now, I'm not just talking about religion and faith here – everyone has a different meaning for spirituality. I'm just saying it's important to keep strong ties to that part of your life. Taking care of your mind, body, and spirit is essential.
Another way you might take care of yourself is to stay off social media. Did you know that using social media actually makes us less happy? It increases feelings of social isolation keeps us comparing our lives to others. It's also a huge time-suck. You can waste so much time scrolling through various social media apps – time that could have been better spent.
I'm not saying to go and deactivate your Facebook account. Start by trying to limit your social media time. Make it a goal to spend less time scrolling and more time focusing on what's important.
Speaking of goals…
7. Set and Track Progress Towards Your Goals
Keeping goals is a huge part of success. If you want to accomplish anything, you need to be setting goals.
If you're not used to setting (and reaching) goals for yourself, start small and be specific.
Make sure you set SMART goals – goals that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-bound. When you use this filter to set a new goal, it makes that goal so much easier to achieve.
It's good to have both short-term and long-term goals. Set several smaller goals you can focus on while working towards your big goal. A big goal is like a trophy at the finish line – it's there to motivate you to keep going for the long-haul. The smaller goals on the way help you to feel like you've actually accomplished something, which will keep you from losing the drive to keep pushing forward.
Even after you hit your big goal, keep setting goals for yourself. Successful people don't stop pushing themselves after they become successful – they keep moving forward. Of course, your goals will start to change as you progress on your journey. As you grow and change, so will your goals. That's okay – just keep striving to achieve something more.
Are you committed to developing better habits to help you succeed? Making big changes takes a lot of work, but in the end, it is so worth it. If you continue to develop healthy habits like these, your life can look completely different in 6 months.
Don't limit yourself to just this list! While I consider these some of the most essential habits for success, there are many others that can help you on your path. It's about finding what's right for you.
Can you think of any healthy habits necessary for success that I might have missed? Let me know in the comments below!
