Tony Robbins has a fantastic quote,
“Our beliefs are like unquestioned commands, telling us how things are, what’s possible and impossible and what we can and can not do. They shape every action, every thought and every feeling that we experience.”
In short, your beliefs are what set the tone for your life. Through your thoughts and ideologies is what determines what you can or cannot do. As Henry Ford has said,
“Whether you believe you can, or you can’t, you are right.”
Michael Jordan had similarly said, “You have to expect things of yourself before you can do them.”
Herein lies the difference between those who personally succeed and those who don’t. Specifically, successful people hold these 5 uncommon beliefs.
1. “My past does not dictate my future.”
“Your path is not about what you’ve done or where you’ve been; it is about where you’re going and who you are becoming.”-Reyna Aburto
While most people allow their failures or successes of the past to cloud their emotions and actions in the present, the most successful people are using their past as solely information and not emotion.
They know that what has been done does not have to dictate what is to come. If they simply accept their past for what it is and create a new narrative around their future, then they know they can move beyond it.
As Benjamin P. Hardy has said, “The past is not prologue.”
2. “If they can do it, why not me?”
“The question is the one form of thought that always actively leads us out of the past and into a bigger future.” -Dan Sullivan
Most people look at the lives and accomplishments of others with jealousy and envy. They see what other people have and assume that can’t be them.
Those who succeed and create their own reality, however, are looking at the lives of others with curiosity and excitement. Rather than seeing someone with a million dollars and saying, “That’ll never be,” they instead ask, “Why not let me?”
It seems a subtle difference, however, it leads to great effect for the questions you ask yourself determine the outcomes of your life. As Robert Kiyosaki has said,
“A question opens the mind. A statement closes the mind.”
3. “Everything is happening for me, not to me.”
“Life is simple. Everything happens for you, not to you. Everything happens at exactly the right moment, neither too soon nor too late. You don’t have to like it… it’s just easier if you do.” -Byron Katie
When something doesn’t go their way, most people react rather than respond to the situation. They immediately curse the world. They say things like, “This is just my luck,” “Why did I ever think things would work,” or “I give up.”
However, successful people know they get to decide the meaning. If things don’t go their way, they turn it into a lesson, not a failure.
For them, there is no good or bad, there’s only what they make of it. As Ryan Holiday writes,
“There is no good or bad without us, there is only perception. There is the event itself and the story we tell ourselves about what it means.”
4. “I don’t have all the answers, but I can learn.”
“If you’re the smartest person in the room, you’re in the wrong room.” -Marissa Meyer
Most people would rather be right than successful. For them, it is about status and approval, not growth and fulfillment. They’d rather look good than be humbled in their ignorance.
However, those who truly succeed have no problem in admitting their failings and shortcomings. They happily surround themselves with people who humble and inspire them for it pushes them to the next level.
As Benjamin P. Hardy has said, “Your level of talent and “potential” are irrelevant if you’re surrounded by people who don’t help you realize it.”
5. “There is no competition but me.”
“There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self.” -Ernest Hemingway
Most people believe the competition is outside of them. They think the rewards lie within beating and looking better than others.
Those who succeed, however, know the competition lies within them. It is the bad habits they keep, the knowledge they neglect to learn, the relationships they fail to build and the time they kill.
Thus, they forget about what’s going on around them and simply focusing on doing the best they can do. Said Ryan Holiday,
“Ignore what other people are doing. Ignore what’s going on around you. There is no competition. There is no objective benchmark to hit. There is simply the best you can do.”
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