Success, however you choose to define it, can only be achieved in the presence of a few critical factors.
Persistence is one. Deciding to look and move beyond the challenges that inevitably arise.
Purpose is another. Having a deeply personal ‘why’ paving your way can be the penultimate source of personal strength.
There are other qualities we could mention, like decisiveness or passion. Many of them are consistent in high-achievers and extremely important for reaching success in any endeavour.
However, there is one quality that rules above all the rest as a principal success determinant.
This one thing is responsible for the majority of your success in any area of your life.
That linchpin success-bringer is self-awareness.
noun
”Conscious knowledge of one’s own character and feelings.”
Knowing the depths and edges of your inner orbit is where the real progress begins because it’s what steers the application of all the other factors.
Why would you persist if you don’t value what sits on the other side of difficulty or don’t know what your threshold is? How do you move with purpose if you don’t stand for something or have ever explored what matters to you?
Ask yourself: What do you want, and why? Why is that important to you? What are your values? What fills you to the brim and what drains you out? What are you willing to work for, and what are you willing to let go of to grab a hold of that thrashing, moving target called success firmly with both hands?
If you know what your strengths are you can exploit them. If you know your limitations and defaults, you may be able to cut off the usual narrative or begin to dismantle habits of self-sabotage.
Knowing yourself is the root of your power.
Let’s start small, and scratch the surface a little. Leave a comment below and tell me something about yourself. It can be just one word or as many as you like.
What’s one thing that’s important to you right now?