Success Has Seven Enemies

Success has seven enemies, all of which can be found in your belief system. I’ve been studying the mindset of successful people for decades, and they share a set of common beliefs. People who struggle to produce the results they want also have shared beliefs, beliefs that are in stark contrast to the beliefs of more successful people.

Here are seven enemies that alone or together destroy the mindset necessary to succeed and reach your goals.

1. Fear of being judged: Success hides from people who fear being judged by others. The critics aren’t the people for whom you do your work. Success comes to those who “put themselves out there.” Most people won’t care what you do; they’ll ignore you. The people who do care will applaud you for doing what you do. The critics will never love you no matter what, so ignore them and get moving.
2. No Vision: Without a vision of what your future result looks like, there is no drive, no motivation to do what is necessary to move towards it. Your vision becomes your reality. Develop a vision of where you want to be in three years. Dream big. No one is compelled by a small vision.
3. Learned Helplessness: Belief that you can’t do something or that you can’t learn to do it will repel success from you. Success knows that what one man can do, another man can do. Inoculate yourself from this belief by getting your hands dirty and trying the things you struggle to do well. Over time, your competence will grow.
4. Victimhood: The belief that the world is acting on you and that you are powerless to shape your future is the victim’s mindset. Success in any endeavor comes to those who believe they have the power to act and the power to change things. Make a list of your challenges, and then make a list of what actions you can take to produce the results you want. Couple that with a list of resources available to you, and get help where you need it.
5. Apathy: A lack of enthusiasm, or a more general indifference, is the surest path to mediocrity. Success, and the results necessary to bring it has to be passionately pursued. Cure yourself by developing a bigger mission, a bigger reason “why” you must succeed. If you struggle, make a list of the people who are counting on you.
6. Ungrateful: Without a sense of gratitude you will never develop the mindset that brings success. A lack of gratitude is the seed of negativity and cynicism. Destroy this enemy by answering the question “What are you grateful for right now?”
7. Lack of Discipline: To have what you want tomorrow you have to forgo what you want today. Success comes to those who are willing to suffer a little now and delay their gratification. Make a list of daily disciplines, and keep those disciplines. This is the surest path to success: the daily commitment to act to further one’s goals.

Which of the seven enemies will you do battle with this week? Which one of these is preventing you from producing the results that you want from your life? Know that each of these seven enemies is rooted in some fear that lives inside you? What is it you fear?