We all learn from the past, but that doesn’t mean we should dwell on it. Do you find that you kick yourself over and over again for things you’ve done wrong in the past in your business? Do you allow yourself to move on or do you punish yourself for failing to follow through or for making mistakes? It’s time to make some changes.
Yes, we should all learn from the past. We should get used to analyzing our mistakes and process so we can do better next time. The most successful marketers make an incredible number of mistakes— many of them costly. But they don’t dwell on those mistakes. They don’t allow those mistakes to hold them back; they only allow them to push them forward.
What’s your mindset? Are mistakes a horrible thing that will destroy your business or are they something you can turn into a process to become even more successful?
It has to be the latter. In fact, you should look forward to the mistakes you’ll inevitably make in the future because it will make you that much smarter.
So while it’s important to learn from your mistakes, it’s more important to enjoy the present and look toward the future. Don’t be satisfied with what you have today because you’re destined for more. But allow yourself to be happy with what you have in the moment. We only get one life so we may as well enjoy it.
Take a look at everything you have going for you right now. You have a roof over your head, the chance to take your business even further, and whatever success you currently enjoy. You also have control over everything that happens to you from this point on. That’s a powerful, and uplifting, feeling.
You’ll be able to accomplish a lot more if you’re happy and if you allow yourself to enjoy life. Don’t force yourself to work constantly— remember; that will make you less productive anyway. Do focus on things that are going well and how pleased you are with your current path.
The past is in the past. There’s nothing you can change about it, you can only learn from it and move on. Enjoy your present and look forward to your future. This is part of having a mindset of success.
One of the absolute best ways to move forward—and to get excited about moving forward—is to challenge yourself. So, that’s what we’re going to talk about next.
Let Yourself Be Challenged
You can’t grow and leave the past in the past if you’re not being challenged. Just as you have to learn, read, and absorb new information on a frequent basis, you also have to challenge yourself to do new things. This means taking risks, doing things that are out of your comfort zone, and trying things no one has ever tried before.
Very successful marketers tend to be creative and innovative and learn from their mistakes and past experiences. They do things that set them apart in life and business. That’s not always easy— even if they make it look like it is. Are you ready to take risks and challenge yourself if it means being richly rewarded in the future?
If you’re not pushing yourself to do new things, you’ll stay stagnant. If you’re not as successful as you’d like to be right now, it means you need to grow. You can’t grow in business if you’re not challenging yourself.
How do you challenge yourself? You can try new things, attempt something that is very risky but can pay off with major rewards, you can invent things and make them better, you can try a new skill, you can do whatever it is you’re drawn to do… as long as it terrifies you.
Not everything you challenge yourself with will pay off, and that’s okay. Remember how much there is to be learned when you make mistakes. But some things will pay off in major ways, making you a greater success, seemingly overnight.
There’s a major rush that comes from trying something new. You’ll feel alive in a way you’ve never felt before. It can give you a total, instant mindset shift that will help you become much more successful. This rush and feeling of accomplishment is all you need as proof that your opportunities for success are limitless.
How to Challenge Yourself
There might be something that springs to mind right away when it comes to challenging yourself. Is there a new strategy you’ve been itching to try? Now is the time. Make a plan and follow through with it.
If you’re stuck for ideas, study the processes of those you idolize. Maybe you’ve come across a great marketing method that you thought was pure genius but you never thought that you could do it. It’s easy to be in awe of the amazing things other people accomplish. It’s hard to put yourself in the driver’s seat to realize that there are amazing things you can accomplish too.
The people who are more successful than you are not better or smarter. The only thing that sets them apart is that they’ve taken a different series of actions than you have. Their internal mindset is different and they know they are destined to earn even more over the course of their life. There’s nothing they have that you can’t do as well. You must remove the barriers you’ve set up for yourself.
So, brainstorm something you can do that might be a little risky but that can pay off big time. Is your heart beating a little bit faster? Do you feel the rush of adrenaline? That means you’re on the right path. Be smart about how you challenge yourself but make sure you follow through and make it happen.
Become More Self-Disciplined
Many reading this are self-employed or want to be. Many of the most successful people are self-employed or own their own company. They are self-led and self-directed. Does that describe you?
A lack of self-discipline is one of the biggest problems plaguing people who want to be more successful and move beyond the mistakes they’ve made in the past. It’s hard to push ahead when you don’t see immediate rewards. It’s much easier to do “just enough” to have a minimum level of success. But you clearly want more. It’s time to become more self-disciplined so you can.
You won’t always have people looking over your shoulder, telling you what to do. If you want to be truly successful, you must control what you do and how long you do it. You must set goals and plans and follow through. Is that something you had trouble with in the past?
This is difficult for those who thrive under pressure. Some people feel that they need some external pressure to stay productive. If they’re left to their own devices, they tend to falter. They work hard when they need money or when they know they’re falling behind. But when things get easier or that pressure isn’t there, they back off— whether they’re conscious of it or not.
Successful people don’t have this pattern. They are always productive and they always follow through with their plans. They have excellent self-discipline and no longer need that external pressure.
Don’t worry that you’re a lost cause. Just because they’re like that now doesn’t mean they were always like that. You can teach yourself to have more self-discipline and to be more productive. It can be hard— we all lose control sometimes. But you must practice, develop good habits, and have enough motivation to power through your to-do list and accomplish your goals even when you don’t have that external pressure.
If you’re disciplined enough to carry through every day, who knows what’s possible. You’ll become a master of efficiency and you’ll be able to accomplish so much more. You’ll be able to challenge yourself and move beyond your past. What’s best of all is that you’ll always get to make your own rules. You can work for yourself doing whatever makes you happy. Finally, you can achieve your goals, no matter how long you’ve been trying or what your struggles have been.
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