Founder of Zero to Skill, Mr Zdravko Cvijetic believes that to become successful and be the person you can be, you need to give up some things instead of adding more.
He lists down some of the things that can be given up:
- Give up on the unhealthy lifestyle
If you want to achieve anything in life, everything starts here. First, you should take care of your health, and there are only three things you need to keep in mind:
- Quality Sleep
- Healthy Diet
- Physical Activity
2. Give up the short term mindset
Successful people set long-term goals, and they know these aims are merely the result of short-term habits that they need to do every day.
These healthy habits shouldn’t be something you do; they should be something you embody.
There is a difference between: “Working out to get a summer body” and “Working out because that’s who you are.”
3. Give up on playing small
“Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people will not feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone, and as we let our light shine, we unconsciously give others permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”
— Marianne Williamson
If you never grasp opportunities or allow your dreams to become realities, you will never unleash your true potential.
So voice your ideas, speak out and don’t be afraid to fail. You only succeed after failing multiple times.
4. Give up your excuses
“It’s not about the cards you’re dealt, but how you play the hand.”
― Randy Pausch, The Last Lecture
Successful people know that they are responsible for their life, regardless their starting point, weaknesses, and past failures.
When you realize that you are responsible for whatever happens in your life, you realize that you are your only obstruction to reaching your goals, because excuses limit and prevent us from growing personally and professionally.
5. Give up the fixed mindset
People with a fixed mindset think their intelligence or talents are pre-determined traits that cannot be changed. They also believe that talent alone leads to success — without hard work, but successful people invest their time on a daily basis to develop a growth mindset, acquire new knowledge, learn new skills and change their perception so that it can benefit their lives.
Mr Zdravko believes that who you are today is not who you have to be tomorrow.
6. Give up believing in the “Magic Bullet”
Overnight success is a myth. Success is the result of many small steps taken over a long period of time.
Successful people know that making small continuous improvement every day will be compounded over time and give the desired results.
That is why you should plan for the future, but focus on the day that’s ahead of you, and improve yourself each day, even if it is just 1% improvement.
7. Give up your perfectionism
Nothing will ever be perfect, no matter how hard you try.
Fear of failure restricts you from taking risks and exploring your creativity. However, opportunities will not keep coming to you if you keep rejecting them because of the fear.
8. Give up multi-tasking
“Most of the time multitasking is an illusion. You think you are multitasking, but in reality, you are actually wasting time switching from one task to another “
— Bosco Tjan
Successful people choose one thing and then beat it into submission. No matter what it is — a business idea, a conversation, or a workout.
Being fully present and committed to one task is indispensable.
9. Give up your need to control everything
We need to know how to different things that are up to us and things that are out of our reach. Detach from the things you cannot control, focus on the ones you can, and know that sometimes, the only thing you will be able to control is your attitude towards something.
Remember: nobody can be frustrated while saying “Bubbles” in an angry voice.
10. Give Up On Saying YES To Things That Don’t Support Your Goals
Successful people know that in order to accomplish their goals, they will have to say NO to certain tasks, activities, and demands from their friends, family, and colleagues.
In the short-term, you might sacrifice a bit of instant gratification, but when your goals come to fruition, it will all be worth it.
11. Give Up The Toxic People
The people you surround yourself with adds up to the person you become.
If you spend time with those who refuse to take responsibility for their life, always find excuses and blame others for the situation they are in, your average will go down, and with it your opportunity to succeed.
However, if you spend time with people who are trying to increase their standard of living, and grow personally and professionally, your average will go up, and you will become more successful.
Take a look at around you, and see if you need to make any changes.
12. Give Up Your Need To Be Liked
There will be people who like you and people who don’t. No matter what you do, there will always be people who bring you down. This is completely natural, and there’s no need to justify yourself.
The only thing you can do is to remain authentic, improve and provide value every day, and know that the growing number of “haters” means that you are doing remarkable things.
13. Give Up Wasting Time
“The trouble is, you think you have time”
— Jack Kornfield
You only have this one life. Which is why you owe it to yourself to become the best possible version of yourself. You need to ditch meaningless time wasters and stop allowing them to be an obstruction or distraction from your most important goals.
You need to prioritize and have control over your actions and focus on your ambitions.
Remember that you will one day be gone, so never stop creating your legacy and doing the things that will enrich your life.
