Often, you’ll hear coaches and gurus preaching that you should always, ‘set yourself up for success.’
‘Success,’ in this case, usually means financial success, but you can apply the philosophy to anything.
So what does it mean then, to set yourself up for success?
Aside from working as hard as we can and taking every opportunity we get the chance to, we have no control over whether we succeed or not, right?
Not necessarily.
And don’t worry.
This article isn’t going to be about the power of positive thinking and ‘manifestation.’
If that’s what you’re about then hey, that’s cool, but that’s not what we’ll be diving into today.
So, with that being said, let’s dive into what it takes to set yourself up for success and discover how your thoughts, beliefs and actions can get you on the right path to success.
Success Starts Here: How to Set Yourself Up for Success
What does it mean to be set up for success?
What exactly does it mean to be set up for inevitable success?
Well, in a nutshell, setting yourself up for success just means that you are creating the best possible conditions to thrive and excel with whatever your goal is and avoiding the trap of self-sabotage, whether consciously or subconsciously.
Getting yourself set for success means getting clear about what you want and mapping the best possible route to your end goal.
It’s also being aware of what obstacles could crop up along the way, because when you know what might get in your way, you can plan for them and end up avoiding or overcoming the problems more easily.
It is a combination of all of the above that will create the best chance for your eventual success.
Planning For Success
Knowing how to set up for inevitable success doesn’t guarantee success 100% of the time.
However, if you don’t plan and map out the exact steps to take to get where you want to go, success is less likely to happen.
Planning isn’t just about knowing what you want to achieve. It’s about knowing exactly how you will get there.
For example, when I had the idea to start this site, I knew that I wanted to start a website about business, but I needed to write down a solid step-by-step plan of what I needed to do to get there.
The list went something like this:
- Think of a domain name
- Buy the domain
- Find a website host
- Install WordPress
- Consider branding – which colours to use etc.
- Install a theme and customise the site
- Create a logo and tagline
- Do keyword research for article topics
The list went on, but the important thing to take away is that I had to break down my goal into actions that I could take in order to get me closer to achieving that goal.
Without a plan, you’re way more likely to hit unexpected stumbling blocks, and so you could say that planning for your success is probably the easiest way or the fast track to the finish line.
How Your Personal Beliefs, Thoughts and Actions Lead to Your Results
Your Core Beliefs
Did you know that whether or not you achieve success could be ultimately traced back to your personal philosophy?
Your personal philosophy – in other words, what you believe to be true about the world – includes subconscious programming from childhood as well as what you have believed to be true throughout your life.
One of the best ways to set yourself up for success is to have a check-in with your belief system.
Some core beliefs that could be impacting you without you even knowing it include:
- People are bad/not to be trusted
- Money is the root of all evil
- I am never going to succeed
- I am always going to be broke
- The world is unfair
These core beliefs are often so deeply ingrained into our psyches that we don’t even question them. We just take for granted that they are correct.
Your Thoughts
Think for a moment and check in with your core values and what you believe to be true about yourself and the world around you.
It is super important that you understand what these core beliefs are, as these beliefs are responsible for every thought you have about the world and your place within it.
Do you have thoughts that are empowering or do you believe that you’re not capable of experiencing success?
What are your thoughts about money as a benchmark for success?
If your belief is that money is the root of all evil, it will feel as if you’re breaking some inner moral code in striving to create wealth.
If you believe that you’re never going to be rich and that wealth is only for other people, then this might lead to self-sabotage, whether you’re aware of it or not.
Your thoughts are constantly forming in your mind, seemingly without your control. In fact, research shows that we each have over 6000 thoughts every single day.
Unless your underlying core beliefs are of a positive nature, most of these thoughts will automatically be negative, and unless we are looking out for them so that we can stop those thoughts in their tracks, they often continue on, uninterrupted, until they eventually shape our actions.
Your Actions
Your behaviour and actions are controlled by your thoughts.
Every single thing that you do is the result of a thought that you have, and as we’ve just established, every thought you have it a result of the core beliefs behind it.
So then, your philosophy is responsible for your thoughts and your thoughts are responsible for your actions.
Your thoughts are also responsible for what you choose NOT to do – your inactions.
For example, believing that you will never succeed so not even giving something a go, or not putting yourself forward for an award because you don’t think that you’ll ever win.
This can also explain why some people stay in bad relationships – their core beliefs are telling them that they will never find someone better because they deserve to be treated badly, or that all relationships are miserable.
As the age-old saying goes, the best predictor for your future behaviour is past behaviour, and the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.
We’re all guilty of this. So much so, that most of the time, we don’t even know we’re doing it.
In order to get a different outcome, have it be sustainable and keep those results coming, you need to go BACK to your core belief system and examine any negative philosophies that may be holding you back.
Force your brain to believe in yourself, your inevitable success and, most importantly, that you are worthy of success.
Most people never do this. Most people will jump right into action, hoping to create a new result without ever looking deeper into their personal beliefs.
However, anchoring new action steps with a belief that you are worthy and deserving of success is necessary to get the results that you want.
A Word of Caution
While getting set for success involves addressing your core beliefs and thoughts that result from them, no amount of self-reflection, coaching or TED Talks will bring you success if the thing that you are trying to achieve just isn’t possible.
While self-belief and positive thinking are essential for living a happy and successful life, oftentimes, scammers will not hesitate to use them against you in order to get you to sign up for their ‘opportunity call’ or network marketing company.
People trying to rope you into a shady business opportunity will constantly talk about how all you need to succeed is a positive ‘money mindset’ and that if you’re failing, it’s because you aren’t ‘believing’ in the opportunity enough, but you have to learn to see through what is good advice and what is a manipulation tactic by somebody trying to make money off you.
Getting Set for Success | Final Thoughts
Once your personal philosophy is examined and you’ve let go of any old limiting beliefs or assumptions, you’re ready for a plan, a system, and action steps, free from unconscious biases that may previously have been holding you back.
Of course, going into things with a positive mindset does not guarantee success, but it certainly gets you off to a good start.
Do you have any thoughts? Share them in the comments section below!
XOXO
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[…] This one is pretty obvious, but you will fail to communicate effectively if you don’t get the timing right.Broach something too early, and you won’t create a sense of urgency.Broach something too late and, well, you’re too late.We see this every day in romantic relationships. One partner is desperate to relay something, but the other partner is in the middle of making dinner, or preoccupied with a work call they have to make.By timing our communications right, we are setting ourselves up for success. […]