8 Things Successful People Only Do Once

Successful people are quick learners. Like the goose that lays the golden egg, they seem to figure out life, rinse and repeat, and pop out another golden egg whenever they like. They may be proactive, hard-working, positive, and compassionate with themselves and others, but there are 8 things that successful people do once, and never again:

Ride On Someone Else’s Coattails

There’s a saying that goes something like this – if you don’t decide where you want to go in life, life will decide for you. While a successful person can ride on someone else’s coattails for a brief moment, they won’t be inclined to do this for long, because it keeps them from finding and following their own journey.

While successful people learn from those who’ve hacked their machetes through the jungle, they also know that they’re going to have to do some of their own weed whacking if they want to forge a new path that reflects their own personal highest Self.

Believe that All Work is a Grind

Successful people work like dogs – that is, they find the one thing that they would do automatically, even if no one was paying them, and do it over, and over again. You don’t have to tell a dog to chase squirrels or cars. They’ll do it even after a hearty scolding, then go have a nap.

Smart people realize that what they love will be a knee-jerk reaction, and figure out how to get paid for that.

In relationships, they’ll choose people who appreciate these traits in them, instead of individuals who want to change them.

Go for Immediate Gratification

If you are truly doing what you love, you will be gratified by the more tedious tasks involved in obtaining your goals; however, a successful person will only once settle for short term comfort instead of putting in the sweat and tears to realize their bigger dreams.

Some of the most gratifying parts of life require steps which are time-consuming, unforgiving, and personal-boundary stretching.

Only Go for the Hole in One

I’m not an avid golfer, but I have friends who are on the PGA circuit, so my analogy should at least be somewhat spot-on here. Many people only shoot for the hole-in-one. They think, “If I make this one shot, I’ll be home free” – but this isn’t how successful people approach life.

Actualized people realize that while there may be a few miraculous holes-in-one on a rare occasion, most often you win just by getting your ball on the green more often than everyone else does.

You can have big dreams, but instead of shooting for the recording contract or the CEO position, get on the green. Write the song, or get your foot in the door at the company that makes you salivate when you think of working for them – or start your own venture!

Ignore Due Diligence and Accept Things as They Seem

Dogs are great at doing due diligence. They sniff out their comrades and know if they should be friends, or run the other way. They never look at a pretty poodle or Labrador retriever and think, “Oh, they’re perfect!” Or at least, aside from the anthropomorphized way in which I’m portraying them, they don’t NOT sniff the shit and the dog.

A successful person looks past pretty appearances, and sees who people truly are before allowing them into their energetic space.

Get Distracted from the Big Picture

Any successful person you talk to will tell you that they had a dream to do something since they were five years old, and finally achieved that goal. They kept their eye on the prize – they didn’t let small things distract them from the Big Picture.

If there are people in their lives that dissuade them from living their dreams, or work that they love, they’ll work diligently to change that reality – again, keeping their eyes on the Big Picture.

Return to Things that Didn’t Work Before

Unless they’ve done some serious changing on their own, successful people don’t revisit business deals, relationships, or personal habits that have not served them well in the past. All of these things — whether it involves closing million-dollar business deals, following their dream to quit a 9-to-5 and start their own art studio, or falling in love —  are done with great abandon and risk-taking once, but when it doesn’t work, the successful person looks at why, and vows not to repeat mental habits or physical actions which don’t bring them closer to their dream-life.

This doesn’t mean that they don’t take new risks. They do, but all risks are calculated with the end in sight.

A successful person doesn’t break up with someone just to enter into another relationship that looks exactly like the one they were just in. They give themselves time to grow and learn from it, and then apply their newly found knowledge to the next emotional endeavor.

A successful person also doesn’t work with someone who breaks their trust in a business deal or prove that they don’t have the needed skills or integrity, only to enter into another business deal with that same person. That would be a waste of their time and energy.

Forget that What Goes on In Their Heads and Hearts is What Creates Reality

A truly successful person might forget that the outer always reflects the inner once, but they don’t do it again and again. They don’t blame other people or circumstances for their misfortunes, because they understand the outer world – the amount of money they have, the number of friends they have, or the intimacy in their relationships, can only reflect their own internal beliefs.

When things aren’t going how they want them to “out there,” a successful person checks into their internal dialogue and sees what might be amiss, and fixes it.

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