Top Tips For Growing A “Do-Whatever-It-Takes” Mindset
I came to this country at the age of nineteen with only $92 in my wallet. I went on to become a top realtor and the founder of the largest business training company in North America. To what do I owe my success?
I believe I had what I call the “emigrant edge” – a combination of key traits, one of which is what I call having a “do-whatever-it-takes” mindset. Life favors the persistent and the willing. It’s not just about doing your best – it’s about having a certain attitude that enables that critical push to success.
But attitude alone isn’t sufficient; to get where you want to go, you must have a solid action plan based on a set of written goals. Without them, you’ll get nowhere – and every year, countless small businesses fail because of this simple oversight.
Often we become so busy juggling our day-to-day commitments that our goals seem more out of reach than ever. When that happens, you must remind yourself of your prescription for success. Are you clear about what you’re trying to accomplish? Is your target distinct and measurable? Is your time frame realistic?
A top tip is to keep your plan simple! Leonardo da Vinci once said, “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” When it comes to reaching your goals, nothing could be truer. Many people struggle because they don’t have the confidence and humility to keep the path to their goals simple. To succeed, you don’t need intricate tactics or expensive, sophisticated tools; you just need a solid plan and a commitment to be all in. That way you can be a goal-getter with purpose and focus. Here are some more tips:
- Schedule it out
If something’s not in the schedule, it just doesn’t happen. We can have the best of intentions when it comes to getting things done, but intentions alone won’t ensure we get to where we want to go. A good schedule prevents you from getting distracted by a never-ending to-do list and neglecting your priorities. Remember: the bulk of your day must be committed to activities that will help you achieve your goals. By the way, remember to schedule some “me time” in there too—that’s non-negotiable unless you want to experience exhaustion and burn out.
- Create and stick to your to-do list
Daily habits are critical to financial success, most especially in how we manage our time. It’s all too easy for hours to slip by answering emails and becoming distracted by social media. To keep on track, create and diligently stick to a to-do list. Schedule appointments and build time blocks for high-priority activities in your daily planner. If you make these tasks non-negotiable, you will consistently achieve your priorities.
- Remember Routines
In a world when we’re faced with what seems like a million decisions every day, routines and habits minimize the choices we have to make. The more automatic something is, the more likely it is to happen, and with minimal effort. You may think you’re not a disciplined person, but you already have routines in place in your daily life. It’s just that they’ve become so ingrained that you no longer notice them, like brushing your teeth.
- Track and measure
If you have no formula to measure your success, then you will have nothing by which to monitor your progress—or lack of. Write down your goals, determine what you have to accomplish every day to reach them, and then consistently track your activities. This is a great way to see what you’ve achieved and how far you’ve come, helping to keep you red up and motivated. If you don’t track your progress, then you can easily drift off course.
Of course, many distractions and obstacles will come up. Often, our attempts to form good habits can be overwhelmed by the volume of things on our to-do list. Sometimes it can feel like you’re constantly putting out fires. This is something you need to learn to cope with because, ironically, the more successful you get, the more res there will be to put out.
The key to handling hiccups like this is to deal with them on your terms. Build some time into your schedule to address them. When you relegate difficulties to a specific time block, they won’t hijack your entire day. Since you know you’ll deal with them during a certain time, you won’t have to divert your attention from the more productive tasks that are calling for your attention. Being proactive about controlling the time you spend problem-solving is a small step that will have a big impact on your success.
I can’t overstate how important it is to write down your goals. If you’re struggling with goal writing, try this simple exercise that I have taught to thousands of real estate professionals who use our referral systems every year. Make a list of ten-day goals, writing down just one specific item in the business, financial, family, spiritual, and personal circles of your life. At the end of the ten-day period, your life won’t have miraculously changed. However, you will have had a good stretch of solid productivity and progress, and you’ll have taken a major step in the right direction toward future success. It only takes twelve of these ten-day stretches to optimize an incredible one-third of your year and create the habit of winning. There’s power in a goal and, when you have one, there’s power in you!
Adapted from The Emigrant Edge: How To Make It Big In America (Howard Books) by Brian Buffini. Copyright (c) 2017 by Brian Buffini. All rights reserved. This book is available at all bookstores and online booksellers.
This guest post is courtesy of Brian Buffini. He is the author of THE EMIGRANT EDGE: How To Make It Big In America. He is one of the nation’s top business experts and founder of Buffini & Company, based in Carlsbad, California.
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