1. Decide To Be Successful: Make the conscious choice to be successful. Own it now! Deciding to do something is the first step towards success. This is a critical step which is often overlooked.

2. Focus Your Mind: Get clear on what you desire. Ask yourself: What do I truly want? What does success look like to me? How will this achievement change my life, business or career? How can I use this success to make a difference for others? Understand what you want, why you want it, and what it will do for you.

3. Set Clear Goals: You may have heard of SMART goals before. The standard definition of SMART goals is as follows: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Time Sensitive. I prefer the following definition: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Resonant, Thrilling. Learn more about How To Set and Achieve Goals.

4. Commitment: Make a commitment to yourself to have success. Find an accountability partner or hire a coach to help you stay on course. Remember, Tiger Woods has multiple coaches. The “best” surround themselves with support.

And there is no “trying” in commitment. As Yoda once said to Luke:

Luke: "All right, I’ll give it a try" - Yoda: "No. Try not. Do… or do not. There is no try."

5. Belief: This is sometimes the greatest challenge for some people to overcome to be successful. Most people have an entire series of self-limiting beliefs that will hold them back from success. Thoughts like, “I’m not good enough” or “I’m not smart enough” or “I can’t do this” are just a few of the self-limiting beliefs that people will often hold. I help my clients identify these thoughts and to shed these non-supportive beliefs, and replace them with beliefs that will help them to accomplish their goals.

6. Take Action: Put everything into play and execute your plans! Don’t let paralysis by analysis set in. Dive in, don’t hold back, and get started.

Article Source: Red Eye Chicago, A Chicago Tribune publication, redeyechicago.com, By Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz

They’re young, powerful and successful-you may be surprised how they reached the top of the career ladder so fast.

Julie Smolyansky was 27 when she became a CEO. Her father died suddenly of a heart attack, leaving her to run the publicly traded yogurt company he’d founded 16 years before. ”The outside world didn’t believe I could handle it,” Smolyansky, now 34, recalls. “But failure was not an option.”

For the next three years, Smolyansky said, she slept an average of three hours per night as she worked to save Morton Grove-based Lifeway Foods. It paid off.

Last year, the company’s revenues were more than triple what they were when she took over, having risen from $12.2 million in 2002 to $44.5 million.

Smolyansky, who lives in Lincoln Park, credits her success to her instinctive knack for marketing, a dedicated staff, some strategic product initiatives–and most of all, a genuine belief in the product.

“You have to live it, love it,” she said.

Every now and then, you come across a young person who seems to have sprinted up the career ladder. A 27-year-old CEO. A 26-year-old high school principal. A 28-year-old congressman.

For the masses toiling at more modest posts, such a swift upward trajectory is met with a mix of awe and envy. How did he or she get there so quickly? What is it about this person’s talent, work ethic, connections or luck that propelled him or her to such prestigious heights so early?

And what am I doing wrong?
While there’s no magic formula, young Chicagoans in high places say good mentors, positive attitude, willingness to work every waking hour and humility are among the secrets to their success.

That’s not exactly groundbreaking insight, but it bears repeating as job dissatisfaction rates sit at 35 percent, according to a survey published this year by salary.com, with Millennials reporting the most job dissatisfaction (65 percent).

Jeremy Ulmer, a Chicago coach, said he gets a range of clients, from recent college graduates to CEOs, who are seeking support or looking for a sounding board in order to be more effective, attain higher leadership roles or get a lift out of the quicksand of their stagnant careers.

Sometimes, he said, it’s hard for clients to answer the most important question of all: What is it that you really want?

“If you can find what you love to do, it doesn’t even feel like work,” said Ulmer, 32. “When you’re that passionate about it, the likelihood of success is 10 times greater.”

Talking to young Chicagoans with impressive career paths, passion is the common ingredient.

“It’s about love,” said Eboo Patel, 33, who recently was appointed to the Advisory Council of the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships. Patel founded the Interfaith Youth Core when he was 22 and continues to spend “every spare moment” working on the nonprofit, which brings together young people of different faiths for community service projects to highlight the goodness of religion.

Patel ran the organization with no budget for four years, working as a professor to make a living, before he got his first grants for the Youth Core, totaling $100,000. This year, he said, his budget is $4 million.

Of course, love isn’t all you need. In Patel’s case, a prestigious Rhodes scholarship and substantive knowledge of religion and foreign affairs helped win him supporters and funding because they allowed him to smartly and seriously convey his vision. Mentors also are key.

Read the rest of the article here.

What Does It Take To Be Successful In Business?

This list is an attempt to shine a spotlight on what it takes to achieve great success in business. Please add your ideas in the comment section below. Which of these would make your list and what should be added?

(These are listed in no particular order)

• Follow Your Passion and Dreams
• Be Genuine and Authentic
• Practice A Great Work Ethic
• Surround Yourself With Successful People
• Be Enthusiastic and Passionate
• Enlist Support From Coaches, Peers, and Mentors
• Maintain Focus and Discipline
• Create Well Defined Goals
• Exhibit Internal Energy and Drive
• Create A Positive Attitude
• Grow and Learn by Experimenting
• Do Not Be Afraid To Fail
• Keep Your Business Aligned With Your Values
• Maintain High Standards
• Visualize Your Goals and The Future You Want
• Believe In Yourself
• Exhibit Self-Discipline and Self-Management
• Take Risks
• Develop Your Emotional Intelligence
• Make Your Health a Priority
• Recognize Your Strengths and Weaknesses
• Dream Big
• Be Persistent and Assertive
• Celebrate Your Successes
• Live In The Moment
• Follow Through With Commitments
• Learn To View Challenges From Different Perspectives
• Maintain Optimism
• Develop Your Communication Skills
• Be Likeable
• Laugh At Yourself
• Learn New Things

Are you ready to make a breakthrough and take your business and life to the next level? Contact Me for a Free Consultation.

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