Now my life has consisted of many ups and downs, but I firmly believe that with God's help, we can all live a life that honors Him and serves others, and that to me is the definition of a successful life.
So without further ado, here are my six traits shared by successful people (with an emphasis on the life of Andrew Carnegie):
1. Serve Others
Those who look for ways to serve others through their talents, passion, and skills will more than likely succeed in growing their business, as well as their client list. If you seek what is best for your clients, versus looking out for your own best interests, and you deliver a worthwhile service at a fair price, your business, and your legacy will continue to grow.
For example, In 1849, Andrew Carnegie went to work at the Ohio Telegraph Company, earning $2.00 a week as a messenger boy. There he met Colonel James Anderson, who let working boys borrow books from his personal library, a privilege Carnegie used to the full. He resolved that if he ever became rich, he would give other working boys the same opportunity.
Fast forward thirty-one years, In 1880, Carnegie started giving away his massive fortune. One of his first efforts was to build more than 2,500 libraries in the United States, Canada, Britain, and elsewhere. The first, not surprisingly, was in his hometown of Dunfermline, Scotland. By the time of his death in 1919, about half the public libraries in the United States had been built by Andrew Carnegie.
2. The Value Of Positivity
One afternoon, a young man walked into Andrew Carnegie’s office to interview him about his success. Carnegie could have told the young man about his journey from poverty to riches, his selling of U.S. Steel for over four hundred and ninety-two million dollars, or about his wild dealings with John Rockefeller. But instead, Carnegie talked about something else.
Positivity.
Carnegie said the most important thing in his life was his “ability to shed trouble and to laugh through life.” He said that seeing life through a lens of positivity was worth more to him than millions of dollars. “Young people should know that it can be cultivated,” Carnegie said. “The mind, like the body, can be moved from the shade into sunshine.”
Ask yourself: do you sometimes slip into pessimistic thoughts and negative self-talk? Are you missing opportunities because you let your mind fall under “the shade”? How much would your business grow if you taped a note above your desk that reads: “Seek To Move Your Mind Into the Sunshine”?
3. They Take Responsibility For Their Actions
Regardless of how many excuses they make, successful people know that it will not change the outcome. Even justified excuses will not make a project or person successful. When things go wrong, the successful person sees it as an opportunity, not an insurmountable hurdle.
Unsuccessful people spend a lot of energy and time making excuses, blaming the economy, the customer, prices or competition. Even if the "excuses" are all true, it won't improve the outcome, and successful people know this. They take responsibility for anything that goes wrong and share the credit for good things with others. When your team knows that you will shield them from blame (if possible and applicable) and reward them when goals are met, you will not be able to measure the loyalty this trait will inspire.
4. They Focus on Their Goals Daily
Successful people are always focused on success. For instance, the first thing that I upon arriving at my office is write down my goals for that day—and I’ve been doing this for years. It's my experience that if I can stay focused on what I want, I am far more likely to achieve it, no matter how absurd the goal. Dream about the things you want and haven't yet accomplished and make those thoughts so real in your mind that they become real in your world.
Less successful people seem to allow anything to drift into their environments—they aren't controlling what they focus on. The average American consumes seven hours of digital content through their phones, TV's, and computers, each day! I think you would agree that most of us have time each day to organize and plan our day, versus being reactive to whatever comes our way during the course of our day. Remember, each day presents an opportunity to set and reach goals regardless of how large or small they are. A goal without a target is a wish.
5. They Are Willing to Fail
The old saying, “no risk, no reward” really applies to those who are successful. These people go for it almost with a willingness to fail. Of course, they aren’t interested in failing, but they know that if they don’t put themselves in a position to fail, they'll never create the ability to win. At some point in life, you'll have to go for it or you'll live the rest of your life regretting not doing so.
Unsuccessful people play it safe. They don’t speak up or offer ideas because they operate from a place of fear. They're afraid to fail because they're overly concerned with the judgment of others so they do the minimum and try to “fly under the radar.” Never be afraid of failure because behind every mistake is an opportunity to learn.
Success people tend to live with the rule of the nine-tenths. You see, our brains have a tendency to dream up the worst-case scenarios and act accordingly — yet most of those almost never happen. So why spend your time fearing the nine-tenths outcome, which is more than likely never going to happen, versus investing your thoughts in what you do want to happen!
Be honest with yourself: Do you get caught up on the “what if’s”? Would your life be better if you followed the rule of “nine-tenths” and reminded yourself that most of those problems won’t actually happen? Fear is simply worry that has been infused with your imagination. Don't give in to this habit, seek to fill your mind with scriptures, promises, and grateful thoughts that will replace the fear with thanksgiving. Are you willing to make a commitment right now to live by that rule?
6) The Power of Enthusiasm
Andrew Carnegie's primary business was the Carnegie Steel Company (which later became US Steel). An interesting fact was at one point, Carnegie Steel had 50 people in its management team, all reporting to Carnegie himself. That's a large executive team - even by today's standards. However, the reason for this was that Carnegie believed that most people really only excelled in one thing. He sought out and hired the best expert possible in any given area - even if he or she knew little else about his business enterprises!
One of the people that served on this management team was Charles Schwab, (Yes, that Charles Schwab). In fact, Charles Schwab was one of the first people in U.S. history to be paid a million dollars by Carnegie, because of Schwab's sole ability to "arouse enthusiasm in his people". The talent to motive, encourage, and infuse people with enthusiasm was one of the most valuable traits that Carnegie sought out when hiring leaders for his business empire.
Begin to willingly do these six things, and I believe that you will soon see how things change for the better in your business and life. But remember, if being successful was easy, everyone would do it. Work first, play later, and embrace doing the hard things in life and chances are good things will follow.
