7 simple habits that will make you more successful than 99% of your competition

Success, in its truest form, goes beyond mere accumulation of wealth and status. It’s about thriving authentically, living in alignment with our deepest values, and leveraging our unique gifts to make a positive impact in the world.

However, this kind of success doesn’t just happen by chance. It’s the result of cultivating certain habits that empower us to take full responsibility for our lives, tap into our creative potential, and contribute meaningfully to society.

These habits aren’t just for the elite few but are accessible to all of us. Here are 7 simple habits that, if practiced consistently, can make you more successful than 99% of your competition.

1) Embracing creativity

In the realm of success, creativity is not just a luxury; it’s a necessity. This powerful tool brings innovation to life, solving problems and paving the way for new opportunities.

Creativity isn’t exclusive to artists or inventors. It’s an innate ability that lies within all of us, waiting to be unlocked. It’s about being open to new ideas, challenging the status quo, and finding unique solutions in unexpected places.

For instance, consider Steve Jobs. His success wasn’t solely due to his technical expertise. It was his creative vision that revolutionized the tech industry and transformed our everyday lives. He saw potential where others didn’t and dared to think differently.

Embracing creativity means encouraging curiosity, fostering a growth mindset, and not being afraid to take risks. It involves stepping outside of your comfort zone, embracing failure as a learning opportunity, and continuously seeking ways to improve and adapt.

By cultivating this habit, you can tap into your creative potential and set yourself apart from your competition.

Ultimately, the key to success isn’t doing things better than others, but doing them differently.

2) Taking full responsibility

In our journey towards success, it’s easy to focus on external factors – the economy, competition, and market trends. But true empowerment, I’ve found, comes when we shift our attention inward and take full responsibility for our lives.

This is not about blaming ourselves for every setback. Rather, it’s about acknowledging our role in shaping our reality and recognizing that we have the power to influence the course of our lives.

This habit involves being accountable for our actions, attitudes, and responses. It’s about owning up to our mistakes and learning from them, using them as stepping stones towards growth and improvement.

Taking responsibility empowers us to make changes, take control of our destiny, and strive for success on our own terms. It’s about choosing to be proactive rather than reactive.

This habit of taking full responsibility is not just about personal success, but about becoming better versions of ourselves and contributing positively to the world around us.

3) Cultivating self-awareness

One of the most powerful habits that will set you apart from the competition is cultivating self-awareness. This isn’t just about recognizing your strengths and weaknesses, but about understanding your values, your motives, and how you impact others.

A strong sense of self-awareness allows you to navigate life with a clear sense of purpose, make decisions in alignment with your deepest values, and cultivate authentic relationships. It’s also crucial for personal growth, enabling us to confront our fears, challenge our limiting beliefs, and cultivate self-compassion.

Self-awareness isn’t something that can be achieved overnight. It’s a journey that requires continuous introspection and reflection. To assist you in this journey, I’ve created a transformative mirror exercise featuring five powerful questions to enhance self-love and improve your relationship with yourself.

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These questions are designed to help you gain a deeper understanding of your inner strengths and boost your self-confidence. By regularly practicing this exercise, you can cultivate the habit of self-awareness and use it as a stepping stone towards success.

If you found this video helpful and want to join a community of over 20,000 others exploring living life with more purpose and freedom, feel free to subscribe to my YouTube channel.

4) Aligning financial decisions with values

Financial success is often equated with the accumulation of wealth. But to me, prosperity goes beyond that. It’s about aligning our financial decisions with our deepest values and using money as a tool for positive change.

This isn’t always easy.

The pull towards conventional definitions of success can be strong, and societal pressures often push us towards prioritizing wealth and status over purpose and values. But when we align our financial decisions with what truly matters to us, money becomes a tool for creating a life of authenticity and meaning.

This habit involves making conscious choices about where we direct our resources. It’s about choosing to invest in businesses and initiatives that reflect our values and contribute to a more just and sustainable world. It’s about recognizing that every financial choice we make is a vote for the kind of world we want to live in.

It’s not just about being successful – it’s about being successful in a way that aligns with who we are and the impact we want to have on the world. This approach to financial success is not only fulfilling but also contributes to a greater sense of purpose and overall well-being.

5) Embracing obstacles as opportunities

Success is often seen as a smooth ride to the top. But the truth is, it’s filled with obstacles, setbacks, and failures. How we respond to these challenges determines our journey toward success.

I’ve learned that embracing obstacles as opportunities for growth and learning is a powerful habit that can set you apart from your competition. It’s about choosing to see failure not as a setback, but as feedback and an invitation to adapt and evolve.

This perspective shift isn’t always easy. It requires resilience, adaptability, and a deep belief in our ability to learn from our mistakes. But it’s a habit worth cultivating because every challenge contains within it the seeds of creative possibility.

If you’re feeling trapped by the corporate 9-to-5 system or unhappy in your work, you might find my video on how having a job can make you feel like you’re a slave useful. It explores the importance of embracing challenges and finding fulfillment in the journey, not just the outcome.

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After all, success is not about avoiding failure but about learning from it. As the saying goes, “The only real mistake is the one from which we learn nothing.”

6) Prioritizing community and relationships

In our pursuit of success, it’s easy to become singularly focused on our personal goals and achievements. But the truth is, no one succeeds in isolation. The value of supportive communities and authentic relationships cannot be underestimated.

This might seem contradictory in a competitive world where individual achievement is often prized above all else. But the reality is, that our connections with others provide the courage to pursue our dreams, the resilience to overcome challenges, and the joy of shared experiences.

This habit involves investing time and energy in nurturing relationships, seeking out supportive communities, and contributing to them in meaningful ways. It’s about recognizing that our success is interconnected with the success of others.

By prioritizing community and relationships, we not only enhance our own success but also contribute to a more collaborative and compassionate world. After all, the richest people are not those who have the most, but those who have touched the most lives.

7) Being a force for positive change

Success, in its truest sense, goes far beyond personal gain. It’s about leveraging our unique gifts to make a positive impact in the world. This might seem like an ambitious goal, but it’s a habit that can make you stand out from your competition.

Being a force for positive change involves living in alignment with our values and utilizing our skills and resources to contribute to something greater than ourselves. It’s about recognizing that our individual success is tied to the well-being of our communities, society, and the planet.

This habit could manifest in various ways – from launching a social enterprise, contributing to charitable initiatives, or advocating for social justice. It could also be as simple as making ethical decisions in our everyday lives, such as being a conscious consumer or choosing to invest in sustainable businesses.

By dedicating ourselves to being a force for positive change, we not only enhance our own success but also contribute to creating a more just and sustainable world.

As Mahatma Gandhi famously said, “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” This habit is about embodying that change, one action at a time.

Success: A journey of growth and authenticity

Success, as we’ve explored, isn’t a destination but a journey. It’s about continuously growing, learning, and evolving. It’s about aligning our actions with our values, embracing challenges as opportunities for growth, and leveraging our unique gifts to make a positive impact in the world.

These habits may seem simple, but they hold the potential to transform your life and set you apart from 99% of your competition – not by outshining them, but by outgrowing your former self.

Each step on this journey brings you closer to living a life of authenticity, purpose, and freedom. It’s about finding success on your own terms – not defined by societal standards or external validation, but by your sense of fulfillment and contribution.

As you embark on this journey towards success, I encourage you to reflect on these habits. Ask yourself: How can I incorporate these habits into my daily life? What changes can I make today that will bring me closer to my version of success?

For more insights into living life with more purpose and freedom, feel free to subscribe to my YouTube channel. Join a community of over 20,000 others exploring how to live a more authentic and fulfilling life.

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Justin Brown

Justin Brown is an entrepreneur and thought leader in personal development and digital media, with a foundation in education from The London School of Economics and The Australian National University. As the co-founder of Ideapod, The Vessel, and a director at Brown Brothers Media, Justin has spearheaded platforms that significantly contribute to personal and collective growth. His deep insights are shared on his YouTube channel, JustinBrownVids, offering a rich blend of guidance on living a meaningful and purposeful life.

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