There is a specific mantra to success, and we all read about it on and off. It comes as no surprise that you can find a hoard of articles telling you the new habits you should follow, or the changes you can bring about in your life. You follow them for a couple of days and then one day you go, “nah! chuck it”.
The secret recipe to it is not guarded in Fort Knox. Success requires a specific routine, and they do not budge an inch from it. There are no apologies or any shortcut to success. A glance into the spirit of any successful person and you will recognize that there are certain things they swear by are their go to lifesavers.
Catch that Morning Sun
What you take as your inability to become a morning person is nothing but a lie you have been telling yourself for years. It is time you break out of it. The morning routine gives you a clarity that you cannot possibly achieve at 9 pm. To get your brain to run first thing in the morning is all the mental exercise you need to get through the struggles of the day.
Often it seems difficult to keep up with a set routine when you have to put in long hours. What suffers the most is your sleeping pattern. It is easy to tell someone to have at 6-7 hours of sleep when we are all competing in the rat race. To avoid burning yourself out you can adopt a Polyphasic sleeping pattern. Instead of a single sleeping block, you can make the required REM sleep in multiple sleeping blocks, i.e., 20-30 minute naps in every 3-4 hours. Geniuses like Jefferson, Da Vinci, and Tesla were ardent followers of it during their life.
Avoid being a couch potato
You cannot expect to see the shining stars sitting on that couch from morning until midnight. A couple of exercises in the morning will benefit your health in the long run. First thing in the morning, make it a point to take a glass of water and go for a run. Stretching your body amidst the cool brisk air is the best means to obtain your blood pumping. No wonder it gets thumbs up from every successful person ever.
Time and Tide wait for no one
We all swear by the ‘Indian time’ that we adopt, and no, it is not a reference to the IST. This is what differentiates the successful from the average and the mundane. It is not a subject of fun and frolic when you pass for your scheduled appointment late by 15 minutes and laugh it away saying that is how Indian clock works. All it does to show is your neglect of anyone else’s time. Being punctual is not outdated. It is the clear-cut way to show your commitment and passion for your work.
Eat your way to a Healthy Life
The long sitting hours in the office, parties, and your run of the mill hectic schedule is sue to give you an unhealthy dietary habits. Who doesn’t love a cheesy pizza, with a drink in hand, as you enjoy your favorite shows/movies? When you are not looking, all that cheesy goodness is going to slow you down when obesity knocks on the doorway. A well-planned eating schedule that keeps tabs of your body requirements is necessary. You can obviously set out one day as a cheat day, but that is all the indulgence your body can afford if you want to get in the game.
A trick of the trade
Aristotle stated, “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”
In accession to a healthy lifestyle, a number of actions can elevate your story from a mediocre aspirant to a successful role model. To tick off a few of these which you all know, for instance-
Having a planned agenda, not only by weeks or months, but also on a daily basis.
Not everyone is a skilled multi-tasker, so do not get lost in the herd. What is good for the goose may not be good for the gander.
Getting your priorities straight. The journey is different for everyone and the hurdles may vary, but a fixed destination is all you require. It’s about keeping your eye on the target.
In your battle to get ahead, do not forget to devote time to the most important person, yourself. Pick up a hobby or two, and keep the mind juices flowing. Try not to have these habits revolving around a laptop or a smartphone. Give yourself a break from the digital life.
Reflect on your life’s decisions. That does not entail living in the past, pining over what is lost, and what you have earned. Rather, learn from all your faults and fix them a lesson for the times to come.
The mark of a successful person is not only his achievement, but also what he is underneath all that fame and glory. Savor the fruits of your hard work, but don’t forget to pay your fair share to the community and the society as a whole. The crux of the successful man lies in his humanity.