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What are SMART Goals and How do they help you?

If you are looking for the answer to this question, What are SMART Goals? Then you are in the right place. In this blog post, you will find what are smart goals and how they help you. You will also find how to know whether the goals you set for yourself are Smart goals or not. So, stay till the end.

Happy Reading!

Everyone sets goals for a better future. 

You make plans, you make strategies to make everything work perfectly, but life doesn’t always happen the way you wanted. 

You work so hard to make things happen and to get results, but sometimes you fail to achieve the goals you set for yourself. You make several excuses for why you failed, why things didn’t work out, what didn’t work out, and so on.

But have you ever wondered that it might be the point you started was wrong which eventually led you to get no results? 

Tell me one thing… Can working in the wrong direction lead you to the right results? It cannot happen, Right? It’s like pushing a wall and expecting it to move. It’s a waste of effort. 

Think about it this way, if you want to reach a destination and because of X reason you put the wrong address in Google Maps. Now can you expect to reach your destination without troubling yourself? No, you cannot. The same is the case with Goal setting. 

this image is about setting smart goal

Goal setting is the most important exercise that everyone must do if they want to accomplish something in their life. I don’t know why, but many people don’t pay much attention to this, and then complain about not getting quality results. I mean it’s foolish.

Goal setting and most importantly smart goal setting is the most crucial part when it comes to getting good quality results. And in this blog post, we are going to talk about the same. 

Let’s start with figuring out what actually smart goals are. 

SMART Goals are nothing but the goals that are set to achieve quality results in a given period of time. Usually, they are a group of small tasks, which together help you go one step ahead to achieve the major goal you have in your life. 

Let’s get into this a little deeper, imagine your goal is to write an article. Now, there are several things that come into consideration when we talk about writing, and that are research, case studies, keyword research, grammar check, making the article inspiring, and so on. 

Now, if you sit to do everything at once, you will go nuts and nothing valuable will come out of it. So it’s better to divide this goal into smaller tasks or short-term goals which eventually contribute to writing the article. 

These small tasks that you set for yourself like keyword research are what we call a smart goal. Now the question is, how will you find out if the goal you are setting is a smart goal or not? 

There are 5 criteria that come into consideration when we talk about setting smart goals and it’s nothing but this acronym

S – Specific

M – Measurable

A – Achievable

R – Realistic/Relevant

T – Time-bound

How to know if the goals you set are smart goals or not?

S – Specific

The goal you set for yourself should be specific. This is the first and the most crucial part of setting a smart goal. It’s like, if your aim is not right, then how can you expect to get the right results?

Now, let’s talk about what makes a goal Specific. 

Imagine you have a website and you want people to come and visit it which will eventually contribute to the growth of your business. Now, if you plan and strategize to increase your website traffic then it will just be a goal, but if you want to make it specific then switch it and decide the number of visitors you want on your website. Is it 5000, 10000, or 50000 visitors per month? Just select a number and start working towards it. 

If your goal is not specific that means you don’t have clarity about what you want to achieve. In a situation like this, you won’t be able to decide what to do, and when to do and you will get nothing in the end. Setting a specific goal basically gives you a clear direction to where to land. 

M – Measurable

this image is about measurable goal

The goal you set for yourself should be measurable.

When I say measurable, that means getting the results that you can count in numbers. As we all know numbers are very easy to track and you can use them to figure out what’s working and what’s not. According to this analysis, you can make the necessary changes to your plan. 

If we take the previous example of increasing your website traffic, then setting a goal to get 5k, 10k, or even 50k visitors is a great way to track your growth. You can track the no. of visitors to your website using Google Analytics which is a free tool used by almost every marketer in the world. By tracking the no. of visitors to your website, you can make decisions on what to do next. 

A – Achievable 

The goal should be achievable. 

Set a goal that you can achieve by putting in your efforts and hard work. Don’t set a goal that is unachievable because it will do nothing but make you feel horrible when you fail. 

Like setting a goal to get 5 million subscribers on YouTube overnight. It’s not achievable and to some extent, it’s insane. Yes, you can do it providing you post some extraordinary content that goes viral and makes you a star overnight. But in 99.99% of cases, it doesn’t happen. So don’t set a goal is which you cannot achieve. 

If you really want 5 million subscribers on Youtube, then plan everything in advance. Put in all your efforts and make good quality content, built-up your audience, and then scale it over time. You surely can do it providing you do all your work perfectly. 

R – Realistic

The goal should be realistic and relevant. 

You cannot set a goal that is impossible to achieve like becoming a swimmer who can breathe underwater. Obviously, you can do it with all those oxygen cylinders that you can carry with you but you cannot do it on your own. It’s beyond human potential. It’s not realistic. 

Setting an unrealistic goal is just a waste of time and effort. You don’t get results and you feel bad about it too. So, what’s smart about it? Just think to yourself.

T – Time-bound

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The goal you set for yourself should have a time limit. When you set a goal without any time limit, you are more likely to fail to achieve that goal. 

When you set a goal and have no time limit, you tend to procrastinate and keep delaying it because you don’t have any pressure on yourself to take action. It’s not your fault, it’s human nature. You will get involved in your daily household chores and will find gazillions of reasons why you couldn’t take action. But let me tell you this doesn’t help you get any further to achieving your goal.

If your goal is to write a book then set a time limit and commit to yourself that you are going to complete the first chapter in a 2 or 3-month period. Because if you don’t do that, you won’t be able to complete that book ever. It’s a fact, and it doesn’t matter how much you are committed to writing that book. 

So whatever your goal is, set a time limit to complete that goal and try to follow up with that.

How setting SMART Goals can help you?

this image is about setting smart goal

Setting smart goals can help you in many ways. 

It gets you quality results

I believe this is the main difference between setting a goal and setting a smart goal. Smart goals help you get quality results. You can track them and can tell what’s working for you and what’s not. And then you can make changes to your strategies accordingly. This is what you cannot do by setting a random goal.

It increases your productivity

You often have heard from others that they can’t find momentum and the rhythm to keep going. But when you set a smart goal and get quality results for yourself, what actually happens is you create momentum for yourself. 

You put in the right efforts and you get quality results and the cycle goes on and on. Though it’s not as easy as it may sound but it’s not impossible too. 

It gives you mental peace

When you are stress-free, it gives you mental peace; there is no doubt about this fact. You feel a great level of satisfaction when you are stress-free. 

Smart goals are easy to achieve because it is not something that’s unrealistic. You can achieve them without any stress on your mind. It works like this, you set a goal, you achieve it and then you move forward and this just keeps happening, providing you don’t miss putting in the effort. 

Conclusion

Goal setting is the easiest and the most difficult thing, both at the same time. If you know what you are upto, then it’s the easiest and if you don’t then it’s the most difficult thing to do. 

In the above post, I talked about what are smart goals and how to know whether the goals you are setting are Smart goals or not. Also, we discussed how they can help you. 

Now, do let me know in the comments below, what your takeaways are and what techniques you use to set the goals that work for you. 

Keep Hustling!

Here’s what you should read next

By Nisha Kohli, ago

5 Secrets to achieving goals 

Achieving goals…Sounds like a hell of a big deal. Isn’t it? 

Many people get scared just by the thought of it, which eventually makes them give up so easily on the goals they have. They get so overwhelmed and intimidated by this whole thing and they go like, Ohh… It’s not my thing. I can’t do it.

But tell me one thing, do you want to be one of them? I know you don’t want it and so do I. I don’t want you to be one of those who give up so easily because it sounds scary. 

Yeah… it does sound scary. You can also say it’s hard and sometimes very very hard but it’s not IMPOSSIBLE. You can achieve anything you think of; you just have to believe it. It’s like the first rule when it comes to achieving your goals. Because if you can’t believe it, you can’t achieve it. 

After all, if YOU don’t believe in your goals and dreams, how could you even think that someone else will? No one will give a damn to it. 

Here in this blog post, I will give you 5 secrets that will help you achieve your goals. Know that these secrets are not actually secrets but the mental shift that you have to do within yourself and obviously putting on effort. 

These 5 mental shifts might sound easy to you at first but it’s not. I’m not trying to scare you by saying this but think of it yourself if this would be so easy, then everyone would have been successful by now and they would have accomplished all their goals. So first, prepare yourself for this mental shift, and let’s begin with 

1. Mindset

There are two types of mindsets. The first one is Fixed Mindset and the other is Growth Mindset. And the main difference between them is, the belief that YOU CAN. 

This image is about changing your mindset

People with a fixed mindset always get excuses about how NOT to do something, and on the contrary, people with a growth mindset find ways how to do the same thing. 

Now ask yourself, which one of them is you? What type of mindset do you have?

To save you some time, let me tell you this, it doesn’t matter what mindset you carried till now, you can always change it. And to accomplish your goals and become successful, you have to develop a growth mindset. 

The growth mindset starts with this belief that everything you think about and everything you want to achieve in your life is actually possible. You can do or get anything in your life if you set your mind to it. It’s the starting point of everything you wish to achieve, before even starting it. 

It doesn’t matter how big or small your goals are, mindset is the first thing that you got to develop because, without that, you cannot even imagine starting anything.

Here are some books that you can read to develop a growth mindset.

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2. Grit

Everyone wants to accomplish their goals and want to live the life of their dreams, but why are only a few of us able to actually make it possible? 

How are these people different from the others? What do they do that others are not doing? What is it that actually makes them different from the crowd?

There can be so many answers to these questions. One of them is Grit. Grit is the sense of mind that a person develops in him/herself to not give up at any cost. It tells that it doesn’t matter what challenges you are facing in your journey toward success, you got to be courageous enough, become fearless and fight against them.

If you are a person who is losing sleep dreaming about the goals that you wanna accomplish in your life, then you gotta be gritty. You have to become a person with a strong mindset who says no to giving up. A person who is passionate about his/her work and is ready to take risks and become limitless.

3. Perseverance

this image has a quote explaining the relation between failure and success

Where failure lies, success flows.

The journey to success cannot be completed without failures. They are like twin sisters. You cannot expect to become successful without failing. Every successful person about whom we read in books and listen to their inspiring stories today, failed once, twice and so many times. 

We all know J.K. Rowling; she got rejected 12 times before she got Harry Potter published. Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, they are the world’s most successful and wealthiest people. They didn’t get success in one go. They tried and they failed; some even faced huge losses too. Their stories are surely different but one thing is common between them and all the other successful people on the planet. That’s Perseverance. 

When you Google the term perseverance, you will get this: to keep putting effort without regard to discouragement. If you really want to accomplish your goals then you have to keep pushing yourself, even after failing multiple times. Learn from the mistakes that you made in the past and keep going. Always keep an eye on your goals and envision them becoming true one day. 

You can read stories of people who went from failures to successes here.

4. Resilience

this image says learn from failure

As you now know that failures are part of your journey towards success, you have to learn to deal with them. You cannot sit and cry for the mistakes that you have made or for the things that didn’t work out the way you wanted. 

Problems and difficulties are part of your life, they are gonna come whether you like it or not. Now it’s up to you, how you take them. Do you let them affect you or will you stand strong and fight against them? The choice is yours. 

Life always gives you two choices at every given point. Leave it or Live it. Many people just do the first one, they leave it, and then they complain about how things are unfair to them. But the people who choose to live it are the ones who are incredible. They are the ones who create wonders, they are the ones who are different from the rest of the crowd.

You have to learn to make yourself comfortable with the loss and the mistakes of the past. You have to make yourself comfortable dealing with these uncomfortable situations. So, don’t lose hope. Fight against the odds and be resilient.

5. Discipline

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Discipline is one of the most important things when it comes to achieving your goals. If you have big dreams and goals, you have to be disciplined enough to pursue them. 

Let’s take an example of a boy who aims to become a world-class swimmer. Now, being consistent or disciplined means that he has to make an effort every single day that will help him get one step ahead of his goal. Being disciplined or consistent applies in every part of your life, whether personal or professional. 

I know it is very difficult to develop the habit of making efforts continuously, especially when you are just starting out and you don’t see any results coming. But you have to fight against this battle going inside you. Commit to yourself that no matter what, you just have to take action. 

Many times we just focus on our goals and plan everything but fail to execute it. In such a case, instead of focusing on the theoretical end which includes all the planning and structuring, focus on developing the habit to take action. If you want to become a writer, then nothing will help you achieve that goal but to practice writing; and to practice writing, your clear goal should be to write every day. You have to be disciplined to write every day which eventually helps you become a master of writing.

Here’s a quote by Tony Robbins, he says, Repetition is the mother is the mastery. So, be disciplined and consistent enough to pursue what you dream of.

Conclusion

Let’s end this blog post with this quote, 

Success is no different than any other skill. Duplicate the actions and mindsets of successful people and you will create success for yourself.

– Grant Cardone

You just have to find the ways that HOW you are going to do it, what you want to do. And in today’s digital world with Google and YouTube, it’s not that difficult. Also, read a lot of books to learn from someone else’s experiences.

But the HOW part is secondary when it comes to achieving goals. First, develop a mindset that will lead you to take action. Because without taking action, there will be no difference between you and the one who doesn’t even know what we are talking about.

So, which of these mental shifts are you going to try first? Do let me know in the comments below.

Here’s what you should read next.

  1. How to develop a strong mindset to become successful
  2. 5 things to do to change yourself to achieve your goals
  3. How to become an Entrepreneur in 2022
  4. 5 qualities every entrepreneur must have

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By Nisha Kohli, ago

5 reasons why writing is crucial for your growth

Have you ever tried writing? If not, then you should. 

Don’t worry, I’m not telling you to become another Shakespeare and write novels. Just try writing what’s inside your brain which they call Brainwriting.

If you ever attended educational seminars, webinars, or even conferences, you would know that it’s very important to take notes so that you don’t forget things and scratch your head later. It’s a very common practice to write to not to forget.

Studies have shown that writing things can increase memory power by upto 70%. When we start writing things with our hands, the sensory nerves push that information to get stored in our brains in a detailed way for a long period of time.

That’s a reason why people make a to-do list that helps them to remember important things. Tools like Trello or Asana help them with that.

Here’s a quote by Brian Tracy, he says it quite often by the way.

When you think it, ink it.

– Brian Tracy

Writing not only helps you with your memory but there are other benefits too. Here are 5 reasons why you should start writing that will help you grow.

1. Tracking progress

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Tracking your progress is very important for your professional growth and personal growth too. Whether you are working out and pouring out your sweat in the gym or sitting in a chair trying to solve a problem, it is very necessary. And the habit of writing can really help you with that. 

Writing your weekly or in many cases, monthly data or stats helps you figure out the leaks(if any) so that you can cover them up on time. 

For example, if you want to become a world-class swimmer and break records, you should practice competing with yourself first. You surely have seen a timer-clock the coaches have when their trainees are practicing, they keep records that help their trainees track their progress so that they can improve their performance. 

Also when you are a business owner or an entrepreneur, tracking how your business is doing is very important to grow. Tools like Google Analytics help you track your performance for a period of time that helps you to make necessary decisions. 

2. Reduce stress and anxiety

Studies have shown around 73% of the world’s population suffers from mental health issues and stress and anxiety are two of the main causes. There can be several reasons that can cause stress and anxiety including unhealthy work-life balance, lifestyle, career issues, personal & emotional issues, relationship problems, health issues, hereditary, etc.

This image is about stress

Now don’t feel intimidated by this scientific data because every problem has a solution. It’s just obvious when your problem gets solved, you become stress-free. And in this case, writing will help you do that. 

Take a piece of paper and write down your problems on it. Now, try to find solutions by writing every thought that comes to your mind, you will also notice that as you start writing, your mind will get clarity and you will be able to see things from different angles. As your problem will get solved, so do your stress and anxiety.

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3. Enhances creativity

If you haven’t tried doodling, then you should. It really helps you enhance your creativity and it’s another benefit that writing can provide you. This is a very effective technique to keep your creative juices flowing out of your head. 

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Artists use this technique all the time to create masterpieces. They create one piece of art and doodle it with something else to create another. The same thing happens with the non-artist group, they get ideas by writing down what’s already in their head. Brainwriting is always better than brainstorming. 

4. Decision-making

Decision-making is one of the most performed tasks in our day-to-day life. Each and every part of our lives includes decision-making from deciding what to have for dinner to making important decisions for your business. 

But in today’s hectic world, our minds are always busy. There is always something roaming around in the barren streets of our minds related to our work, personal life, and stuff that does not even have any value. It makes us can’t even think properly which affects our thought process and ultimately our decision-making ability.

But don’t worry, writing can help you with this, on a massive scale. 

This image is about decision-making

Take a notepad or a piece of paper and try writing everything that is making you crazy or things that you want to make a decision with. Now, write the pros and the cons of every idea and fact that you came up with, regarding the problem you have, and then make a decision that suits you the best. This practice will give you clarity and soothes your mind, which helps you make the decision on a factual basis.

5. Dear Dairy

This image is about writing

Everyone feels sad and lonely sometimes, no one can deny it. And it’s fine, it’s just an emotion like we have others such as happiness, joy, cheerfulness, shock, surprise, etc. 

You might be thinking, am I crazy or what? Comparing positive emotions with negative ones. But believe me, life is incomplete without them.

Can you imagine yourself just being happy? I don’t know about you… but I can’t. Life is all about experiencing different kinds of emotions and feelings. 

What do you think inspirational books are about? It’s all about a person experiencing certain things in his/her life, and writing them down in a form that others can read and learn from it. I’m not telling you to write a book and showcase it to the world (which you actually can, if you want to), but do it for yourself. 

Write down how your day went, good or bad; any fears you overcame, fighting with the odds, how good you felt after an achievement, or in short, what you experience in your day-to-day life. 

Writing every feeling, emotion, or experience in a diary helps you to fight against the upcoming fears and challenges in your journey towards growth. You can just read them afterward when you feel low or whenever you need them.

Conclusion

There is a saying that every problem has a solution, you just have to look for it at the right place, and in many cases, the answer lies within ourselves. Writing down stuff out on a paper really helps, 

We looked at the 5 benefits writing can provide to you. Let’s recall it once again, they are

  • Tracking your progress
  • Reduces stress and anxiety
  • Decision making
  • Develops gratitude
  • Enhances creativity

Don’t keep everything in your mind, put it on paper and let your mind relax. 

Here are some related posts that you might like

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By Nisha Kohli, ago

How to boost your self-confidence?

Self-confidence is one of the most important traits to have as a human being, whether it’s in your workplace, at home, or in your everyday life. It counts everywhere.

But do you even know what makes a person confident? Well, there is no one-stop shop where you can get the recipe and all the ingredients that you will need to prepare the food item called self-confidence. 

Then what is it, that matters the most when it comes to being self-confident? It’s the personality you carry, it’s the way you behave or act with the general public.

Have you ever been in a situation where despite being capable and talented, you didn’t get the opportunity to lead a group of people? I know it feels really bad when you have the capability but still, it happened. 

You know, the reason lies within you.

There might be a possibility that you are not very good at dealing with people and your boss knows it. Therefore, he decided to give this job to someone else and not you. 

These little but huge things together make you feel that you lack self-confidence. But don’t worry, here are 5 ways that will help you boost your self-confidence. They are basically little shifts that you have to make in how you see and visualize things, and you are good to go.

1. Know your worth

Self-esteem is one of the most important factors when it comes to increasing your self-confidence.

Oftentimes people don’t see themselves as worthy enough to do what they feel. They don’t really believe in themselves which makes them dependent on others. People with low self-esteem don’t celebrate their life, they are the one who always feels that everything bad is happening to them only. 

Well, I want to tell them, it’s not true. Here is a quote, that goes like this

Life is happening for you and not to you.

– TONY ROBBINS

Know, that you are one of your kind and your views and opinions matter too. Think of yourself as a unique personality who is provided with unique gifts by the universe. Know, that there is something that only you can offer to society and you have the power to make a change. So, know it. Know your worth.

2. Learn when to say no

Have you ever been in a situation where your boss wants you to take on certain responsibilities for an upcoming project and despite being tight on schedule and having a lot to do on your list, you just say YES to him because you don’t want to sound rude? 

It happens to a lot of people. You are not alone.

A lot of people feel hard to say no to others for things they don’t want or feel like doing. And because they want others not to hate them or like them even more, they just nod in their favor, even if it costs them a lot. They might not see the consequences but they are putting themselves in trouble only by doing so, by being the people pleaser. This puts them into stress; the stress of how will they manage everything properly, or what if they won’t be able to, or what if, what if, what if.

Saying a clear ‘NO’ acts as a lifesaver in situations like these. I’m not saying you to be rude to your seniors and say no directly to their faces. But you can tell the truth; you can tell them politely that it would be very nice to be a part of this project but you have a lot of other stuff to do and you won’t be able to do this as your top priority. 

This way you can come up with a clean-green signal. And even if they push you to take that responsibility anyway, you won’t be the one who would be responsible for the mess. You know what I mean.

This is not applicable in just workplaces but in your everyday life too. It works with everyone whether it’s your friend or one of your family members. Just say no when you feel it; it gives you a tremendous amount of self-confidence, and it increases your self-esteem too. 

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3. Don’t take discouragement seriously

You often have heard this saying, you cannot please everyone and it’s an absolute true fact. By the way, in my opinion, you should not even try to please everyone around you, it’s just a waste of your time and effort.

Studies have shown that women are the ones who have more of this people-pleasing instinct compared to men. Roughly about 7 out of every 10 women have this. 

Discouragement is a part of living, don’t take it seriously. You cannot expect anyone literally anyone, whether it’s your family, friends, colleagues at the workplace, your spouse, children, or any other dear one, to encourage and appreciate you all the time. There will be times when they don’t and there is no need to feel bad about it. Instead, take this as feedback and improve accordingly.

If you take it seriously, then there will always be this thought in your mind, what if they don’t like it? And guess what, this thought won’t let you be yourself. You will always try to do things that make them happy and not you, which is not good.  

And when it comes to self-confidence, these things help to lower it down and you absolutely don’t want it.

4. Talk to yourself

This image says talk to yourself.

Have you tried self-taking? If you haven’t then you should do it. Self-talking comes out to be a very good way to increase your self-confidence and it also helps manage your stress levels.

Everyone talks to themselves in their mind, but when it comes to increasing your self-confidence, you should consider talking to yourself – OUT LOUD.

It’s a very effective way to let everything that’s in your heart come out which by the way is very necessary. Talking to yourself increases your self-confidence and gives you mental peace, as now you have yourself to whom you can talk about anything you feel like.

You can practice talking to yourself in the mirror for about 10-15 minutes every day. This practice will give you an effective boost in your confidence as it’s you only whom you are talking to. You know what your flaws are and you can work on them accordingly. 

5. Stop doubting yourself 

Often times people say certain things that they truly believe in and think about it the very next moment. Their mind goes like, Oh…did I say it right? Did I do the right thing? I shouldn’t have said that. 

And some are even worse, they don’t believe in themselves. They don’t believe that they can be right, that they can have a unique point of view. People like them don’t really expect themselves to be good at something. They are always doubting themselves which sometimes makes others take advantage of them.

This image says believe in yourself.

I mean come on people, you haven’t done anything wrong. So, just stop questing and doubting yourself. Just be brave enough to stand strong. Take a stand for yourself and fight for what you believe in. If you don’t take a stand for things that you believe are right, you will just find yourself doing what others want you to do.

If you don’t believe in yourself, then how can you expect others to believe in you? No one even cares how good you are at what you do, they only care about how you present yourself and get them the results. 

So, just be bold and brave, you haven’t done or said anything wrong. If you believe in certain things, then just be courageous and take a stand for yourself. 

Conclusion

There are actually no typical steps that work for everyone that you can also follow and it will boost your self-confidence to the sky. No, it doesn’t work like that. Every individual is different and hence their strengths and weaknesses are too. 

A person might feel it hard to talk to others confidently while the other may not. They both might have different points of view when it comes to being confident.

And here, the 5 ways that I talked about, are more on a broad-level basis to help as many people as possible, which are

  • Know your self-worth
  • Learn to say ‘NO’
  • Don’t take discouragement seriously
  • Talk to yourself 
  • Stop doubting yourself

Hope this will helps you to boost your self-confidence. What are the others ways that you apply to your life that boost your self-confidence? Do tell me in the comments below.

Here are some posts that you might like to read next.

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By Nisha Kohli, ago

7 effective ways to double your productivity

Hey, do you struggle when it comes to productivity? Do you need a lot of time for completing a small task? Are you the one who is always been asked to complete things on time and gets to listen: Hey, how much more time do you need to complete this small thing?

If any of them is you, then this post is for you as I’ll share 7 ways that are super effective and will double your productivity at your workplace and in your career in general.

Now, if you are among them, the very first thing I want to say to you is, don’t worry; there is nothing in this world that you can’t improve. There are so many people in this world who work their a** off to get things done but don’t get the desired results on time. You are not alone, we together can figure this out or should I say it as Marie Forleo do, Everything is Figureoutable.

Now, let’s talk about those 7 effective ways that will help you double your productivity.

1. Setting clear goals

There is no need to say why setting goals is important to get things done. But it doesn’t help to just set goals when it comes to productivity. You have to set clear goals if you want to work faster and increase your productivity to get things done on time.

You might be wondering what’s the difference. Well, setting goals is for overall growth but setting clear goals is basically for one particular day or for the next couple of hours doing a particular task. In other words, creating boundaries for your daily tasks. 

Think of it this way, you have an article to write about increasing stress and anxiety in today’s world. Now, there are several small tasks that come into consideration when you create something like that including research and development, keyword research, working on grammar, making the article inspiring, and XYZ.

Now the main goal is to write the article but the clear goal is what you are going to do in order to achieve your main goal. What clear goal/s are you going to set for yourself to work on for the next couple of hours that will take you one step ahead?

Let’s say you have decided to work on making the article inspiring, so it becomes your clear goal now. Therefore, when it comes to increasing your productivity focus on setting clear goals instead of setting random goals.

This graphic show the difference between setting goal and setting clear goal

2. Do one thing at a time

When you finally sit and start your work, there is a lot of stuff (both work-related and non-work-related) comes to your mind, like pending tasks, upcoming tasks, problems to be solved, new thoughts & ideas, and other kinds of crap; and it becomes very difficult to concentrate on your work which eventually affects your productivity in a bad way. It also makes you feel overwhelmed, and overburdened and it makes you go nuts.

In a situation like this, you should try to focus on just one particular thing at a particular time. Imagine yourself working on a presentation but along with that, your mind is telling you about the upcoming tasks that you have to do, which actually doesn’t let you focus on that presentation. 

Usually, it would take around 2 hours to complete that presentation but with all the stuff in your mind, it took you 3 hours to complete the same. This is how lack of concentration decreases your productivity on a huge level. Now in this same case scenario, if you manage to train your brain and focus on the stuff that matters, you win. 

Focus on one thing only and not even think about other stuff until you are done with the prior one. Commit to yourself that you are not going to consider anything before you are done completing this one. 

PRO Tip: Focus on completing the important tasks first, it will take a big chunk of the burden out of you.

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3. Using the U-I matrix

Prioritizing your to-do list helps to increase your productivity and categorizing your to-do list using the urgent-important matrix is a great way to do the same. If you don’t know what the urgent-important matrix is, then there is no need to worry. It is a 2X2 grid matrix that looks like the graphic given below.

This is an image of urgent important matrix.

This matrix is used to set priorities by categorizing the tasks into 4 parts and that is,

#1. Urgent and important: Task/s under this category must be done immediately,

#2. Not urgent but important: You can plan or schedule the tasks that fall under this category,

#3. Urgent but not important: don’t waste your time and energy on these tasks and hire someone else to do them for you,

#4. Not urgent not important: eliminate these tasks from your list.

By doing so, you can focus on the things that need your time and energy the most and eliminate those that don’t. You can use apps like Trello, Asana, etc. to make the list.

4. Taking breaks 

Taking small breaks in the middle of the work is very important. It helps your mind to relax and think clearly. 

The Pomodoro technique is the best way to increase your productivity. It says to work with total concentration for 25 minutes and then rests for 5 minutes. Repeat this cycle four times and then take a long break for 15 minutes. You can also grab a cup of coffee or an ice tea if you want to. The graphic below shows exactly what you have to do.

This graphic shows how the Pomodoro technique works

If you want to know more about The Pomodoro Technique then you can check out this blog post: The Pomodoro Technique Explained.

5. Write

Writing is a great way to clear your mind and thoughts. Studies have shown that a human brain generates around 6000 thoughts in a single day which is a blend of everything including stuff that is important, urgent, crap, fun, sensible, non-sensible, and god knows what else. With this much going on in your mind, focusing on one thing and talking about productivity is next to impossible. And this is where writing can help you and save you a lot of time.

The pen is the tongue of the mind.

– Horace

Writing helps you prioritize your tasks and take the burden out of your mind. It also helps you filter your thoughts which is a must for making important decisions. Tracking your progress and growth also becomes easy when you start writing.

This is an image of notepad and a pen

Get a journal or just a normal notepad, and start to write what’s going on in your mind. Then categorize everything based on the typologies you might have. When you start to write and develop it as a habit, it will also help boost your self-confidence and give you the opportunity for positive self-talk.

6. Take a good amount of sleep

This is an image of a sleeping girl

Sleep plays a crucial role when it comes to productivity. The sleep you take has a direct connection to your mind and body; you tend to feel dizzy and your body doesn’t respond very well if you don’t take a proper amount of sleep, which ultimately affects your productivity. 

Most people stay up late at night watching Netflix or scrolling on social media which makes their minds tired when they go to sleep and it’s not healthy for your subconscious mind. If you don’t know how your subconscious mind works, then I would suggest you read this book called The Power of your Subconscious Mind by JOSEPH MURPHY.

You might have observed how your productivity decreases when you didn’t take a proper amount of sleep. You feel sleepy all day, your mind keeps telling you that you’re tired and you need to rest. 

According to science, a sleep of around 6-7 hours is considered healthy for an adult. The best time for healthy sleeping is between 10 pm to 5 am. 

Did you know? There are 3 stages of sleep: Deep sleep stage, Alert stage, and Dreaming stage. Each stage lasts for 90 minutes and the sleep is considered sound sleep when you complete this whole cycle(90×3) twice without any interruptions.

7. Change the environment 

The environment you work in affects your productivity a lot. You cannot expect to give your best and get great results by being in an environment that is not work-friendly. 

There are several ways that you can make the workplace work-friendly that will give you working vibes.  

Keep your workspace neat and clean; using a minimum no. of items at your desk really helps focus on a particular thing only. Instead of using warm colored lights which give the feeling of comfort and coziness (which is a big no at the workplace), using blue lighting can help promote alertness and helps you concentrate. 

Using colors or shades of 

1. Orange which helps to concentrate, focus, and increase your creativity,

2. Blue which encourages the performance and brain’s thought process, and

3. Green at the workplace helps you to relax and refreshes your mind to clear your thoughts.

Conclusion

There are several factors that come into consideration when it comes to increasing your productivity. You have to experiment a little bit by trying several tricks and techniques and find the one that works best for you. No one can tell you that better than you do. 

Which of these 7 ways that we talked about, resonates with you the most, and which are you going to try the first? Do let me know in the comments below. 

Here’s what you might like to read next.

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By Nisha Kohli, ago

6 habits of successful people that you can copy 

Everyone desires to become successful one day. But how many actually become one? 

A handful of people. 

But have you ever wondered what makes successful people successful, what makes them different from others, what habits they have, how they work, or how they do everything? If this is something that makes your heart says hell yeah! then you are in the right place. In this blog post, I’ll share 6 habits of successful people you can copy and paste into your life to become successful in your industry. 

Disclaimer: There are several other factors that come into consideration when it comes to becoming successful, and habits are one of those factors only. 

Now, the definition of success can vary from person to person. One might consider being successful by losing some weight, others might consider earning X amount of money and say proudly that they are successful. But it doesn’t matter what’s your definition of success, the procedure is all same. 

Here is a quote that goes,

Success is no different than any other skill. Duplicate the actions and mindsets of successful people and you will create success for yourself.

– GRANT CARDONE

Now, let’s talk about those 6 habits of successful people that you can copy and paste into your life.

1. Reading

Books are like soul mates for the people who are successful in their industry. They read, read, and read a lot. 

Elon musk, the world’s richest man who created SpaceX. Whenever anyone asks him how he learned to build space-traveling rockets, this is his three-word answer: “I read books.” Warren Buffet, one of the most successful investors in the world. He said once, he spends 80% of his day reading books and the rest 20% doing other stuff. This is how much books can impact your life.

This is an image of books

There is no wonder how books can benefit you as they are full of knowledge, motivational & inspirational stories, and whatnot. Learn from industry experts who have given many years of their lives to learning and doing things that you desire to do now and books can surely help you with that.

There are books available on every topic you can imagine whether it’s science, nature, health, fitness, mindset, psychology, food, technology, just name it. Develop a habit to start with one book per month and you are good to go. 

2. Setting goals

Goal setting is one of the main things you must do when you desire to become successful in a certain area. How do you think, you can achieve your goals when you don’t plan for them? 

Here’s a saying that goes, a goal without a plan is just a wish. 

Setting a goal is like setting your aim. If you are thinking about how it matters then think of it this way, when you don’t have a goal, what do you think you will work for or in what direction? Goals give you a way to proceed in a certain direction so you don’t get lost.  

Plan your long-term goals on a quarterly if not yearly basis then cut a particular task into smaller actions and plan them on monthly basis. If you are not a long-term planner, then just plan your next day or maybe for a week and take action accordingly. 

This technique will help you achieve your goals and also you can track them and make necessary changes (if any).

3. Don’t care about the society

One of the most common reasons why people fail to follow and accomplish their dreams is because they care about what others will say/think a lot. But let me tell you, people who are successful today are not successful because they do the same, but because they do the exact opposite. 

This makes them stress-free and contributes to their good mental health. There is no doubt and it’s actually needless to say why one should take care of their mental health. 

Related: 6 super easy ways to stay mentally healthy

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4. Value their time above everything else

Time is the most valuable and precious asset we have as humans. And People who are successful and experts in their industry know this very well. They know that they can’t afford to lose their time, no matter what.

Normal people tend to worry about their money a lot. They give a good amount of thinking on what to spend their hard-earned money on but when it comes to time, most people don’t even consider giving it a thought. This is exactly what makes successful people different from common people, they think of their time as money. 

Use the urgent-important matrix to manage your tasks and take charge of your time.

This is an image of Urgent-Important matrix

PS: You can always earn more money, but it’s not true when it comes to time. You can’t get the time you wasted ever again. So, use your time well. 

5. Writing 

Writing is one of the most effective techniques successful people use to take the burden off their minds. Studies have shown when you write something, you are more likely to remember things and it also promotes your tendency to take action. 

When you are working on a particular project there are too many things going on in your mind including ideas, pending tasks, long-term goals, and some other important stuff that you don’t want to miss. Writing everything really helps in such situations. 

When you think it, ink it.

– BRIAN TRACY
This image shows a writing pad and a pen

Take a piece of paper and a pen and just start to write everything inside your head, don’t worry about organizing and managing things at this point. Once you are done writing everything, then only start to categorize things. If you try separating things at the start you might go nuts as I do. You can also use apps like Trello and Asana for this.

6. Never stop learning

Learning is a crucial part of your journey toward success and it should not end with your schools or colleges. If you want to become successful in any part of your life, you must keep learning. 

When you are open to learning new things, you actually welcome new opportunities and new possibilities for yourself which eventually contribute to your growth. Usually, new opportunities come along with uncomfortable actions, for which skillset is necessary.

Now, one thing that you have to pay attention to is that, don’t get too overwhelmed when you start learning something new. Remember all the experts today, started as a student only; they repeated and repeated what they learned which make them now masters and experts in their industry.

Alison, Skillshare, edX, Udemy, etc. offers a wide variety of courses to learn and upgrade your existing skills. The courses on these e-learning platforms are both in paid and free versions, choose what suits you the best.

Conclusion

Becoming successful is a journey, you have to learn and unlearn a lot of things throughout your whole journey. And to start with developing habits that successful people have, can be a good start for you. 

Let’s recall what we have talked about one more time, so as to get this inside your head.

  1. Reading more and more books
  2. Setting goals
  3. Don’t care about the society
  4. Value your time
  5. Writing
  6. Never stop learning

Now, there must be several other habits and routines successful people follow that help them to be who they are. Do you know any of them? Tell me in the comments below.

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By Nisha Kohli, ago

How to work on yourself to give your best, every time

Do you want to give your best shot every time you play?

Well everyone does, but not everyone is able to make it. Do you know why? Because it’s not as easy as it may sound. Well, it’s not really about it being easy or difficult, it’s something else.

The problem with most people around the globe is that they don’t want to change anything and expect things to change for themselves, which is an absolute B S.

Here is a saying that goes, ‘If you want things to change for you, you got to change yourself first.’

You got to work hard and make changes in your lifestyle, your habits, your strategies, and so on if you want them to work for you. You can’t just be sitting around thinking about doing your best and getting the best without even moving an inch.

Now, you might be wondering, if you are gonna give your best shot, is there a guarantee that you are gonna win? Well, sorry to tell you; but it’s a No. Let me take you back to childhood when you were a kid.

Do you remember yourself in the first grade? When you were so afraid of losing the cycle race at school that you didn’t want to even participate. I guess everyone does remember, who can forget those days? But do you remember what your parents and teachers said to you, if not, it goes something like this, “It doesn’t matter if you win or you lose, but what matters is your participation and giving your best shot.” 

Life is exactly the same. It doesn’t matter if you win or you lose, but it does matter to participate and to live life to the fullest. Here are the 5 tips that you can follow to give your best shot and get the best out of yourself in any field of your life.

#1. Push your limits

This image is about pushing your limits

Oftentimes you couldn’t perform your best and there are several reasons to explain the same. One of them is having limitations & boundaries. You are bound by certain limits and boundaries that don’t let you give your best shot. They are the main reasons why you settle for less than you actually deserve.

You might have heard of this saying that goes, ‘Your only limitation is the one that you set for yourself.’ and this is damn true. When you set certain beliefs in your mind and say I can’t do it, there is a 100% guarantee that you won’t do it. 

There are no such things as limitations and boundaries when it comes to fulfilling your dreams and achieving your goals. You are the owner of yourself, you own yourself and your only limitation is you. 

So, it’s time to push all your limits and give your best. If you want something that bad, push yourself harder and harder to get that damn thing. Allow yourself to face every challenge you may face in the journey towards your goals. 

#2. Focus more on putting effort 

Tracking your results are very important for the health of the project or task that you are working on. Without that, you won’t be able to make the necessary decisions, making it very challenging to reach your desired goals. 

But it’s also crucial to balance it out with other things. Oftentimes people are worried about the results more than the work or efforts they are putting in. It’s good to put an eye on the results but not on a regular basis or it will drive you crazy. 

Tracking the results on a quarterly or half-yearly basis is a good strategy to have when you try to give your best and achieve your goals. Also putting more and more effort to improve your work is what you must take into consideration. You must focus more on what you put in rather than what you are getting.

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#3. Try different things

Great ideas come to those who dare to think differently.

Many people complain that they couldn’t give their best because they lack in generating good ideas. They often put the blames on others and say things like they are not as brilliant as Person X, or they could not be Person Y, he is too smart. But do you know, what makes these people better than you? It’s the way they think.

The way Person X or Y thinks and the courage they have, to do things differently makes them the best in their industry. And if you want that too, you got to find some ideas, thoughts, and strategies that are unique to yourself. If you are doing the same what every other person is doing in your industry then what makes you different from them? Nothing, right?

Now, you might be wondering, how will you find your unique move? So let me tell you this, you won’t find that by doing the same things, again and again. You got to try different things, from different angles; you got to do what others are not doing, you got to pay attention to things others are avoiding, and this way you will find the best and most unique move for you. Keep going and don’t be afraid to try new and different things.

#4. Taking breaks 

Sometimes you get your brain frozen and stuck on one thing; no matter how hard you try, you are just unable to make it. This usually happens when you keep yourself so busy and involved in one such thing making it harder for you to get them out of your head.

This image shows a person with a cup of coffee.

Taking breaks at regular intervals helps you declutter your brain and think clearly. It also promotes the generation of new ideas and thoughts resulting in giving the best of yourself.

Try The Pomodoro Technique, which talks about 5 minutes break over 25 minutes of work, and then a 15 minutes break after completing the cycle 4 times. It helps increase productivity by getting things done and not feeling tired.

#5. Research & Development

Your brain is like a manufacturing machine and you can get anything you want from it, providing you put the right raw materials into it. Research and development are like those raw materials that you put into your brain to keep manufacturing new thoughts and ideas. 

It helps you learn new things, hone your problem-solving skills and develop your risk-taking abilities. If you want to give your best, learning and developing your existing skills is a MUST to do. You cannot expect to grow without desired skill sets.

Google and YouTube are the best sources when it comes to searching and learning new things. Also, e-learning Platforms like Alison, edX, Skillshare, Udemy, etc. offer a wide variety of courses where you can learn anything you want and develop your skill set.

Conclusion 

Thinking about giving and getting the best is what anyone can do, but taking action is what makes the best different from the commoners. In the post above, I talked about 5 ways that can help you give your best at anything, and to remind you they are:

  • Push your limits
  • Focus more on putting efforts
  • Try different things
  • Taking breaks
  • Research & Development

Again, it doesn’t matter if you win or you lose, but it does matter to give your best every time. Now, I would like to ask you, What strategies do you use to give your best shot? Do let me know in the comments below.

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By Nisha Kohli, ago

5 qualities every Entrepreneur must have

Anyone can become an entrepreneur, including YOU. Yeah…it’s true. 

YOU can be the next successful entrepreneur in any industry you want, regardless of what skills you have, what strengths and weaknesses you have, or which career stream you are from. It doesn’t matter at all. It doesn’t matter if you are shy, if you lack confidence, or even if you are afraid of talking to people or in front of them. 

You might be thinking how is that even possible? So let me tell you, this is possible because all the skills I mentioned above are learnable. You can learn them and not only those but you can learn any skill you want. You can learn anything you want if you have the Desire to learn them. 

When you consider becoming an entrepreneur, learning new skills & upgrading your existing ones is one of the main things that are going to be on your list of actions. It’s okay if you don’t have the right knowledge or information about something; no one does and there is nothing bad about it, but what’s good about it is that you can always learn it. 

Today there are several online learning platforms like Alison, edX, Skillshare, Udemy, LinkedIn, etc. where you can learn, explore and upgrade your skills. There are teachers from all around the world and they are brilliant.

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But besides skills, there is so much more that you should work on if you are a struggling entrepreneur. Being an entrepreneur is not a cup of tea. It requires tremendous effort, patience, hard work, discipline, determination and so much more to be one. Mentioned below are 5 qualities that you must have if you are an entrepreneur or considering becoming one. 

1. Perseverance

This image says do it now.
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It takes time to build a business from scratch. You cannot become successful overnight, it’s a true fact. It takes years and years of hard work, patience, courage and so much more to make it possible.

You surely have heard of this saying – “Great things take time”, and building a business is one of those ‘things’. It’s not something you have started one day and then just put things on auto-pilot mode for the rest of your life. It doesn’t work like that. It comes up with a lot of challenges that you cannot even imagine and obviously cannot avoid. It’s not like you have planted a seed in a pot and just waiting for it to give you fruits the very next day. You have to give it the time that it requires to become a plant.

Running a business is not any different and perseverance is the top most quality an entrepreneur must-have. Actually, it is the most common reason why people who don’t have it, fail to achieve their goals because they quit so easily when temporary failures hit them. 

Talking about perseverance, what does it really mean? Well, a person who has perseverance, continues putting in the effort and the good work without taking care of discouragement. He/She keeps on taking the desired action to keep the ball rolling till they see results. He/She doesn’t care what others might say or how they might react, they never stop, they keep going.

2. Resilience

Success without failure does not exist, it is part of the journey. Not a single person who is successful today is successful without failing, they failed so many times before they made it possible. 

It is the part of the process; you try something, you suck at it, you learn from it, and then move on, that’s how it works. When you try and test different ways to get things done, you are not going to succeed at everything. And getting used to these temporary failures is what resilience is all about. 

Being resilient means having the mental ability and the strength to recover quickly from failures and mishappenings. When you try something new, there is a 50 % chance to succeed and 50% to fail, well not exactly 50-50% but you get the point. Right? So why even worry about something that you have known from the very beginning. You just have to train your brain to always be ready for situations like this and be okay when something doesn’t work out.

When you fail at something, you just need to ask yourself

  1. The reason why you failed/What you have done wrong?
  2. What are the lessons that you have learned from the failure?
  3. What are you going to do next?

And after that stop thinking about what happened in the past and focus on the future. Start taking action based on the answers you just got from questing yourself. 

3. Creativity

This image says get the creativity flowing
Source: Unsplash

There are hundreds of businesses starting up every day but how many of them become actually successful? A very few of them. A handful of people are able to convert their start-ups into successful businesses and then into brands. 

Creativity is one of the answers to how they make it possible. They are creative enough to create a product or a service that is different from everyone else in their industry. They come up with their own USP which stands for Unique Selling Proposition, which separates them from the crowd. This is one of the main reasons why they are able to create an audience of their own who is ready to buy from them every time.

Creativity is what you need to stand out from the crowd. If you are doing the same things other hundreds of people in your industry are doing, then how are you different; why will anybody buy from you and not from your competitor? Think about it.

4. Flexibility

Entrepreneurship is a journey with a lot of ups and downs, highs and lows and you have to deal with each of them if you want to be successful at what you are doing.

It’s like riding a never-ending roller coaster and it’s turning left and right, up and down, and you are moving along with it(obviously). Now in such a case, a person with a flexible body will say WwooHhooo!!! and enjoy and a person with a non-flexible body will complain about backache, stomachache, throwing up, etc. So, what type of person do you want to be?

Obviously, the flexible body wins and you want to have one. Being an entrepreneur is kinda similar to it. You need to be flexible if you want to win. But in this case, being flexible means having the ability to adapt to challenges and become versatile. Flexibility talks about the ability to fight against the challenges you face throughout the journey and pivot yourself accordingly to keep growing.

Challenges and problems are going to come, that’s for sure. You can do nothing about them, but face them and become flexible.

5. Problem-Solving 

This image is about problem solving
Source: Unsplash

Although it’s important for a business to run profitably all along, it doesn’t happen. No business can run smoothly all the time, speed breakers and pit holes always come up throughout the journey. 

But you know what, they should not be there for a very long time. It’s not healthy for your business. The problems you face need to be solved on time; as you cannot move ahead without the same. That’s why it’s a must for an entrepreneur to be a problem-solver. 

Everyone knows there is always a solution to every problem, but not everyone is able to see it. A problem-solver on the other hand not only sees but is also able to give solutions real quick. It needs good observation skills to analyze the problem and come up with great solutions accordingly.

They focus on the root causes of the problem such as why and how the problem arises, the basic elements involved in the situation, what makes the problem out of control (in case), etc., and then give multiple solutions and find the ‘situation saver’ solution that works for their team. They don’t panic when a problem arrives, they stand up there and face it.

Conclusion

Being an entrepreneur is not as easy as it may sound. It takes a lot of effort to be one. 

When you are an entrepreneur, you are like SUPERMAN for your team who is powerful and have all the answers to every question they have. They rely on you for almost everything. So, it’s your duty and responsibility to be a Superhero if not SUPERMAN, and even if you are a solopreneur, it’s your responsibility towards yourself to succeed in something that you have started.

Since there are several qualities that you must have if you want to become a successful entrepreneur, I mentioned 5 of them and to remind it again they are 

  1. Persistence
  2. Resilience
  3. Creativity
  4. Flexibility
  5. Problem-solving

Now, which of these qualities do you have? Tell me in the comments below.

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By Nisha Kohli, ago

5 things to do to change yourself to achieve your goals

Everyone wants to achieve their goals and wants to live the life of their dreams. But not everyone could make it possible. Do you know why? Because for your life to be changed, you need to change yourself first. 

And in this post, I’ll share 5 things that you need to change, if you want to accomplish your dreams and achieve your goals and live your life your way. 

Happy Reading! 

Change. It is a crucial part of life. It’s gonna happen, whether you like it or not. No one can stop it. And you can’t even imagine your life without changes.

It’s an old saying, ‘Change is the only constant thing in the world’.

And I can bet on this, that there would be something in your life that you want to change.

It can be anything. It can be as small as changing the route which takes less time to your work or as big as changing your career. You might want to change a bad habit and want to develop a good one. 

It can be anything that just clicked your mind a few days back or something that you are thinking about for a very long time, but somehow you couldn’t make it. 

Let’s say, you are not feeling motivated to get started or you might want someone to give you a little push or maybe you are just procrastinating and wasting your time watching those cat videos.

And after giving so much time thinking about it, you decided to get up and take the first step. So now you start exploring the internet. The HOWs, the WHYs, the ways to get this, the ways to get rid of that, and whatnot. 

But if you are just watching videos after videos for the sake of getting motivation. And taking a hell lot of courses to develop a skill or a habit, but are not taking any action. Then I’m sorry to tell you that it ain’t gonna happen. Yeah, it’s never gonna happen.

Here’s a reason why you couldn’t make it. It’s because of this fact that says, ‘If you want to change something in your life, you have to change yourself first.’ 

Many people are scared of change. It’s true, no one likes change. But this is not how a person who wants to achieve his/her goals would think. Don’t you think so?

If you want to get success whether it’s personal or professional, you gotta change yourself. Here are 5 changes that you must do within yourself if you want your dreams to be accomplished and you want to be successful in life.

1. Decide

When it comes to making a change. First, you need to decide ‘WHAT’. What do you want to change in your life? 

Is it making a schedule for workouts? Is it following a healthy diet routine? Or is it about quitting a bad habit or developing a new one? Sometimes there are a lot of things that you want to change in your life but couldn’t make it because you are so confused. You don’t get how and where to start. 

So first, you must decide what you want to change.

This image says decide what you want to change

Deciding what change you want is the same as defining your aim. How would you take an action, if you don’t know what it is for? How would you take the first step, if you don’t know where to go? 

Therefore, deciding what you want to change in your life is going to be the first thing you do.

If you are someone who has a long-term vision, then don’t worry. You don’t need to decide each and every step at first. Just decide what are you going to do first and focus on that only. Rest, just keep them at the back of your head and work out later in the future. 

Always set short-term goals and analyze the progress quarterly, half-yearly, or after a particular time period. It will also help you to increase your productivity. 

2. Say no to excuses

Making an excuse is the easiest thing a person can do. You can make excuses for anything, literally anything. But this is not what the achievers do. Right?

In general, people make excuses for something, they don’t like to do or they are bad at, or things that make them suffer in some way. 

There is a reason why you do it. It’s because the human brain always finds a way to survive. It is designed this way. Every time you are stuck somewhere, it will try to save you from the upcoming trouble and pokes you to ignore the problem. That’s the reason why we do it.

That’s the reason why you always find ways to ignore the problem, rather than solve it. But if you practice and train your brain to go to the next level and find the solutions to the problem, you can achieve anything you want. 

You have to muscle up your brain to get the most out of it. Make your brain feel excited and involved in the task that you are doing. This way your brain will work harder on its own and finds new ways to solve a problem.

So, next time when you are stuck somewhere, don’t make excuses to ignore the problem but try to find the solution. 

3. Believe in yourself

Question: What type of person are you? 

The answer to this question totally depends on what types of beliefs you have. 

Beliefs are so powerful. Your beliefs are something that has the power to make or break you. If you want to change yourself and achieve your goals and become successful in life, you must believe in yourself. Believe in each and every possibility that you see for yourself.

Start by reminding yourself that you are capable of achieving whatever it is that you want to achieve in life. You have the ability to do it. You have the power to make things work in your life the way that you want them to.

Don’t let anyone or your own insecurities let you down and make you give up on your dreams. 

Never say things like ‘I’m not good at this, I can’t do that, or I won’t be able to make it happen.’ When you keep saying things like that, your brain starts to absorb it and makes you believe what you just said. So, never say negative things, not even in a joke. Rather say, ‘I’m able to achieve anything I set my mind to.’

Practice this for a week, and you will start to observe the difference in the way you feel, and that ultimately will change the results.

4. Switch to positivity

If you want to change yourself to achieve your goals, then you need to switch your thoughts to the positive. This is the most powerful tool that you have.

This image says stay positive

If you think positively and practice gratitude regularly, you are more likely to do and feel good and positive in every situation of your life. You will experience the same energy and vibes everywhere you go. You attract the same things into your life. 

On the contrary, if you think negatively, similar things start to happen to you. You see negativity everywhere. You will start to pick up only negative things in everything you come around with. And without even realizing it, you will be a statue of negativity.

This is because of the Law of Attraction. According to which, whatever you think and give yourself into, similar things start to happen to you. The universe provides you with the same kind of things. So, when you think and feel good, good will happen to you. And when you do the opposite, you know the results now. It’s very simple. 

5. Become fearless

Being successful is a journey and failure is part of it. You can never be successful without failing. 

Every person in this world, who has accomplished their dreams and are successful today, is because they failed so many times. But that’s not what matters, what matters is how many times you failed and stood up to try one more time. 

You have to develop a thick skin for this and commit to yourself that you are not going to give up. Think of it this way, if you failed at something, it means you actually came one step closer to your success.

If you fail, try something else; again you fail, try something else; again you fail, try something else, and so on until you find a solution to the problem.

There is no one recipe for success, there are a lot. Every individual is different, and so is their way of thinking and analyzing stuff. And your job is actually to find your way to success.

You sure have heard of the saying, ‘Diamonds are made under pressure.’ And it’s so true. If you wanna become that person that you’ve been dreaming of your whole life; if you wanna shine like diamonds you have to bear the pressure. 

Conclusion

Only you have the power to change yourself. You must have heard the saying which goes like, One small change can make a big difference. So, change yourself and achieve whatever you want in life. 

Are you ready to do whatever it takes to be what you want to become? Are you ready to change yourself to change your life?

Let me know in the comments below.

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50 Motivational Quotes from 5 Successful people

If you are someone who is stuck somewhere in your life and needs motivation then this post is for you. Here is a collection of 50 motivational quotes from 5 successful people.

Let’s start with the quote itself. 

People often say motivation doesn’t last. Neither does bathing. That’s why we recommend it daily.

Zig Ziglar

Oftentimes, life doesn’t happen as you wanted. It’s like riding a never-ending roller coaster which is sometimes smooth and sometimes full of ups and downs, highs and lows, and a lot of crap. 

But let me remind you this, life is a beautiful journey so better to enjoy it and learn from your mistakes rather than whining and complaining about them. 

There’s always a solution to every problem you are facing, you just have to keep digging. 

Here I have gathered motivational quotes from 5 successful people that are full of inspiration, motivation, and whatnot. 

Now, let’s hear it from the people who’ve made it to the top. 

1. Elon musk

Elon Musk
Source: Fortune

Elon Musk is the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX. He is the founder of The Boring Company and co-founder of Neuralink and OpenAI. With a net worth of around $273 billion, he is the wealthiest person on the planet. 

Wanna know more about Elon Musk? Read books like 

  • Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX and the Quest for a Fantastic Future by Ashlee Vance
  • Zero to One by Peter Thiel
  • Elon Musk: A Biography of Billionaire Entrepreneur Elon Musk by Robert Hanson

Motivational Quotes by Elon Musk:

  1. When something is important enough, you do it even if the odds are not in your favor. 
  2. Persistence is very important. You should not give up unless you are forced to give up.
  3. I think it is possible for ordinary people to choose to be extraordinary. 
  4. Don’t confuse schooling with education. I didn’t go to Harvard but the people that work for me did. 
  5. Failure is an option here. If things are not failing, you are not innovating enough. 
  6. Take risks now and do something bold. You won’t regret it. 
  7. Constantly think about how you could be doing things better, keep questioning yourself. 
  8. Life is too short for long-term grudges. 
  9. Your will is the most accurate way to predict the future.
  10. I could either watch it happen or be a part of it. 

2. Warren Buffett

Warren Buffet
Source: Fortune

Warren Buffet is the chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. He is one of the most successful investors of all time and has a net worth of over $125 billion as of April 2022, making him the world’s fifth-wealthiest person.

He has also been referred to as the ‘Oracle of Omaha’ by global media. Warren Buffet developed an interest in investing at a very young age and bought his first stock at the age of 11. 

He is a philanthropist who has pledged to give away 99 percent of his fortune.

Source: Wikipedia and Forbes

Motivational quotes by Warren Buffet:

  1. Honesty is a very expensive gift. Do not expect it from cheap people
  2. Someone’s sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago. 
  3. It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently. 
  4. If you don’t find a way to make money while you sleep, you will work until you die. 
  5. Money is not everything. Make sure you earn a lot before speaking such nonsense. 
  6. The most important thing to do if you find yourself in a hole is to stop digging. 
  7. We don’t have to be smarter than the rest. We have to be more disciplined than the rest. 
  8. It is not necessary to do extraordinary things to get extraordinary results. 
  9. You can’t make a good deal with a bad person. 
  10. The best investment you can make is an investment in yourself… the more you learn the more you’ll earn. 

3. Grant Cardone

Grant Cardone
Source: Mail Tag Blog

Grant Cardone is an American entrepreneur, real estate investor, sales coach, motivational speaker and author of The 10X Rule, and creator of 21 bestselling business programs. 

He owns and operates 7 privately held companies, named as the #1 marketer by Forbes. He is also the founder of The 10X Growth Conference which is the world’s largest business and entrepreneur conference. 

Books by Grant Cardone: The 10X Rule, Sell or be Sold, The Millionaire Booklet, If You’re Not First, You’re Last, etc.

Source: Grant Cardone 

Motivational Quotes by Grant Cardone:

  1. You will not have a successful life, surrounded by negative people. 
  2. I failed a 1000 times and no one knows it ’cause I refused to quit. 
  3. Never lower your target. Increase your actions 
  4. The world isn’t going to come and make your dreams come true. 
  5. Success is no different than any other skill. Duplicate the actions and mindsets of successful people and you will create success for yourself. 
  6. You can’t reach your potential without haters. 
  7. You can’t get rich thinking poor.
  8. People will say that your dreams are ridiculous but that’s only because they have given up theirs. 
  9. Cut out the nonsense. Remove activities that can’t reward you. 
  10. 10 times the actions, 10 times the goals, and you’ll get everything you’ve ever dreamed of.

4. Richard Branson

Richard Branson
Source: CNBC

Richard Branson is the founder of Virgin Group which today controls more than 400 companies in various fields. 

He expressed his desire to become an entrepreneur at a young age. At the age of 16, he made his first business venture with a magazine called Student. In the 1970s, he founded Virgin Group. 

Books by Richard Branson: 

  • The Virgin Way: Everything I Know About Leadership
  • Like a Virgin: Secrets They Won’t Teach You at Business School
  • Business Stripped Bare: Adventures of a Global Entrepreneur and many more.

Motivational Quotes by Richard Branson:

  1. You’ve got to take risks if you’re going to succeed. I would much rather ask for forgiveness than permission. 
  2. If your dreams don’t scare you, they are too small. 
  3. Screw it. Let’s do it. 
  4. Don’t be embarrassed by your failures, learn from them and start again. 
  5. Building a business is not rocket science, it’s about having a great idea and seeing it through with integrity. 
  6. Every risk is worth taking as long as it’s for a good cause, and contributes to a good life. 
  7. Whatever your goal is you will never succeed unless you let go of your fears and fly. 
  8. If you spot an opportunity and are really excited by it, throw yourself into it with everything you’ve got. 
  9. There is no greater thing you can do with your life and your work than follow your passions in a way that serves the world and you. 
  10. You don’t learn to walk by following rules. You learn by doing and falling over. 

5. Gary Vaynerchuk

Gary Vaynerchuk
Source: CNBC

Gary Vaynerchuk is a Belarusian-American entrepreneur, speaker, author, and Internet personality.

Gary is the chairman of VaynerX and the CEO of VaynerMedia. He has been featured in The New York Times, Inc., Entrepreneur, Fortune 40 under 40, Forbes, and many more. 

He is also the author of books like Crush It, Crushing it, Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook, Twelve and a Half, etc.

Source: Gary Vaynerchuk

Motivational Quotes by Gary Vaynerchuk:

  1. It’s simple, be a good person. And good things happen. 
  2. Look yourself in the mirror and ask yourself, what do I want to do every day, for the rest of my life? Do that. 
  3. Stop whining, start hustling.
  4. Ideas are nothing. Execution is the game.
  5. Spend 0% of your energy on things that don’t matter. 
  6. Even if your ambitions are huge, start slow, start small, build gradually, build smart. 
  7. Do what the 99% are not doing. 
  8. Whether you are 9 or 90. Stop trying to fix the things you’re bad at and focus on the things you’re good at. 
  9. Stop hanging around people who don’t want to win. 
  10. There’s is no reason to do shit you hate. None

The list doesn’t end here. There’s a bonus for you. Some more quotes by huge personalities. 

  1. It always seems impossible until it’s done – Nelson Mandela
  2. If you can dream it, you can achieve it – Walt Disney
  3. The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination. – Albert Einstein
  1. If people are doubting how far you can go, go so far that you can’t hear them anymore. – Michele Ruiz
  2. Everything you can imagine is real. – Pablo Picasso
  3. Do one thing every day that scares you – Eleanor Roosevelt
  4. Your passion is waiting for your courage to catch up. – Isabelle Lafleche 
  5. The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing. – Walt Disney
  6. The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. Eleanor Roosevelt
  7. Do what you feel in your heart to be right- for you’ll be criticized anyway. – Eleanor Roosevelt
  8. No matter how hard the past, you can always begin again. – Gautam Buddha
  1. Working hard for something we don’t care about is called stress; working hard for something we love is called passion. Simon Sinek
  1. Don’t be afraid to give up the good to go for the great. – John D. Rockefeller
  2. No one is to blame for your future situation but yourself. If you want to be successful, then become successful. – Jaymin shah
  3. Keep going… everything will come to you at the perfect time. – Gautam Buddha

Look, It’s never enough to keep listening to quotes, podcasts, attending events, watching TED talks, etc. It’s never gonna happen if you don’t take action.

Feeling low or down is temporary, don’t make it permanent. It’s gonna come and go like…. It’s better to get used to it and don’t let it affect you. Just keep going and I know you’re gonna make it. 

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