The Best Habits of Consistent High Achievers
If you are a solopreneur – when the business is YOU- you might wonder what others are doing to increase their success!
When you are a solo owner, there are no water cooler chats, no board meetings bringing the team up to speed, there is no H.R. hiring staff to help you – YOU ARE IT!
Statistics tell us that 15 million Americans were full-time self-employed in 2019.
This number is according to the Fresh Books entrepreneurial statistics, which estimates that by 2020, America will have 27 million self-employed professionals (almost doubling). One in five workers plans to completely change her career once she gets into entrepreneurship.
We know that more and more independent workers are going this route to cut through red tape and get their services or products directly into the hands of their consumers faster. But what are current successful owners doing that brings maximized results?
Here is a sampling of seven successful solopreneurs who know what it means when it comes to achieving unwavering results with solid daily habits – so what the heck are they really doing to make that possible??
1. Manjit Minhas. When I had the good fortune of speaking at a conference in Banff, Alberta I was sitting behind Manjit just before the day started. I leaned over and said hello and as we chatted, I asked her if she and her brother were big on ‘Vision Boards’ to direct them towards their goals?
She told me that they had exchanged writing vision boards for writing business plans. Their plans are actionable and have become their vision manifested. They have taken the vision board idea one step farther as their success has increased.
When you are new to business you might start out with your dreams and intentions displayed on a board but as you reach your goals this could morph into a more serious and action-oriented Business Plan. At the beginning of every year, smart business owners implement a habit of spending a set amount of time to write out the Business Plan – and the really smart ones re-visit mid-year to measure the results!
2. Keith Hanna [executive coach to Canada’s Dragon, Brett Wilson]. This well-known coach that does his best work behind the scenes with his high-level clients sat down with me one day and shared how so many solopreneurs become discouraged and get blocked. He said “When struggles are at your door, don’t take them as a sign of defeat, take them as a sign to steel your resolve in the face of adversity” – think about that for a minute!
Every roadblock that gets in your way might not be there to stop you! In fact, most of them are there to help you!
Next time you are tempted to slip into habits of retreat when things get hard, change your habit to facing your fear and discovering new possibilities you hadn’t noticed before.
3. Barbara Corcoran says in a recent social media post that To-do lists are her secret weapon for staying organised. Each day, she writes her list and labels everything with an A, B, or C. “A” tasks are the priorities, while some ‘C’ tasks may get pushed on to the next day or even completely wiped off the list.
Prioritize your to-do’s!!
Barbara is not the only one who keeps a steady pace with to-do lists, Stephen Covey wrote a whole book about prioritizing your daily tasks [The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People], and his description of quadrants makes the lessons easily memorable.
4. This habit recommended by great minds like Albert Einstein and Leonardo da Vinci is one I personally adopted before I even started my own business. Plan your day the night before!
This has been a game-changer ever since I adopted it and I know it works for others too. Just 10 minutes at the end of your day before bed can set you on the right foot instead of spending precious morning energy on tedious scheduling.
5. Rocky – find a way to make yourself do what you don’t want to do, to keep trying UNTIL! Sly Stallone was speaking from his heart when he wrote Rocky – it is the ultimate achievement movie! It plays on two levels, the story in the film and the real-life of Stallone. “Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows. It’s a very mean and nasty place and I don’t care how tough you are it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life.
“But it ain’t about how hard ya hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done!”
― Sylvester Stallone, Rocky Balboa
6. Deepak Chopra. As I listened to an interview from Oprah when she had invited Deepak on to her show, I was as surprised as she was that he meditates every morning! What a great habit to start your day off right! Deepak meditates from 4-6 am [*note that his children are grown!!]
I will mention that I did try this after hearing him, but I confess that my meditation turned into sleep every time, lol.
He also shared that once a year he goes on a retreat of silence. I think that the habit of regular silence and meditation can be very powerful. To be able to sit with yourself and just ‘be’ can bring a world of revelation and confidence.
*BONUS
8. When is the last time you read the ‘Good Book’? Or something of a more spiritual nature? We can benefit from the habit of reading for entertainment, education, and inspiration!
What the words in a book can say to you in a particular situation or even crisis, can be life-changing.
In the bible they say that it’s words are ‘rhema’ words, which means they are alive and when you read them they can come alive to you for your situation and they can speak to you to open your eyes and reveal ideas and insight you may not have been able to see on your own.
Hope these HABITS have helped, as I always say “Your daily habits will determine your yearly results!”