“Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out.”
― Robert Collier

Good habits build a good life. Work on these habits to rise above average.

1. Pray and meditate
2. Prioritize
3. Exercise
4. Invest
5. Batch process tasks

“I love those who can smile in trouble.”
― Leonardo da Vinci

Smile when things go as planned. Smile when they don’t.

Smile when you’re up. Smile when you’re down.

Smile when you receive. Smile when you give.

Smile when you play. Smile when you work.

Smile when you win. Smile when you lose.

Smile when it’s easy. Smile when it’s hard.

Smile when it begins. Smile at the end.

“There is always, always something to be thankful for.”
― Unknown

Happy Thanksgiving! May God bless you and those you love!

“If you don’t know where you are going, you might wind up someplace else.”
― Yogi Berra

The questions we ask ourselves are often more important than the questions we ask anyone else.

• What do I want?
• Who do I want to be?
• Where am I wasting time?
• Does this action move me closer to my goals?
• Are these friends building me up?
• If I couldn’t lose, what would I do?
• What if I try a different approach?
• Is there an easier way?
• What problem am I trying to solve?
• What’s the one thing causing most of my stress?

There are obviously many more great question to ask yourself. The key is to ask yourself questions that challenge your assumptions. The answers, or the lack thereof, will quickly change your persepctive.

“If you are going to achieve excellence in big things, you develop the habit in little matters.”
― Colin Powell

Everyone knows that many successful people get up early, exercise regularly, meditate, and read (a lot).

Great. Develop those habits, and you’ll rise to the top. Right? Not necessarily.

I’m not saying those habits aren’t helpful, but I do believe the usual lists are incomplete.

So, without further ado, here are six less known habits of successful people.

Spend money.

Successful people aren’t carefree with their money, but they’re also not afraid to invest in themselves. If they can spend to level up their life, they do it without hesitation.

Wear the same outfit.

Wearing the same outfit simplifies daily decisions and saves time. Who says you need to be unique everytime you leave the house?

Pursue less profitable projects just to prove the doubters wrong.

Let’s face it. A chip on your shoulder can be a great motivator. Successful people don’t yield to their ego all the time, but they regularly use it as a motivator to help them push through. Some of those crazy projects end up big wins.

Ask “stupid” questions.

Do you care about looking smart or being smart? Successful people don’t care what anyone thinks about them.

Cheat (honestly).

To be clear, I’m not talking about anything unethical, illigal, or immoral. This is about approaching problems differently, questioning assumptions, and finding shortcuts.

Treat everyone with respect.

It’s unfortunate that some successful people are jerks, but that’s usually a losing formula. Most successful people know they’ll go further with kindness than arrogance.

“Mistakes are always forgivable if one has the courage to admit them.”
― Bruce Lee

It’s never fun to apologize, and when you think about it, it’s never fun to receive an apology. If an apology is warranted, something went wrong. No one wants that.

But we all make mistakes. We all screw up from time to time. Sometimes the consequences are minimal. Sometimes they’re significant. Regardless, when things go wrong, we need to humble ourselves and try to repair the damage. An apology won’t set everything right, but it can help with the emotional side of things.

A good apology might help you keep a customer, save a friendship, or restore trust. On the other hand, a bad apology will push people away and destroy trust.

Here are a few tips for forming good apologies.

Don’t:

• Make it sound like it was “just an accident.”
• Say this doesn’t usually happen.
• Imply that mistakes are inevitable.
• Suggest that someone else shares the blame.

Do:

• Recognize the impact.
• Admit the mistake.
• Acknowledge that it was preventable.
• Take responsibility.

“A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort.”
― Herm Albright

A good attitude is something everyone should want. If you can maintain a good attitude no matter the circumstances, you’re pretty much unstoppable.

On the other hand, a negative attitude can destroy even the strongest person. Once negativity takes over, it’s a real challenge to stay on target and get back on track.

So, how do you build and keep a good attitude?

The simplest way is to increase positive inputs and decrease negative inputs. Of course, that’s easier said than done. Let’s focus on what you can do right away to get some immediate wins.

Increase positive inputs

• Start your day with gratitude.
• Spend time with winners.
• Learn to enjoy the process.

Decrease negative inputs

• Quit complaining.
• Avoid negative people.
• Limit your consumption of news media.

“You don’t have to respond in real time.”
― Tim Ferriss

Asynchronous communication has a lot of advantages. It Reduces interruptions, increases flexibility, and enhances collaboration. Async isn’t appropriate for every situation, but it can be excellent when used effectively.

That said, when used poorly, asynchronous communication creates chaos and confusion.

So what does poor async communication look like?

It looks a lot like an email with half the company CC’d. I’m sure there are a lot of other problems I could focus on, but let’s start here.

When you CC everyone under the sun, you create more problems than you solve.

First, it makes responsibility and expectations unclear. If you CC’d me, do you want me to file the message away in case I need it later, review and respond, or take a different action?

Second, it wastes time. I don’t have time to read through every email i was copied on, “just in case” it’s important. If I ignore those messages, I may miss something important until it becomes a big problem. Either way, time wasted.

Now, of course there are some emails that need everyone CC’d. Maybe an update about the company dental plan requires everyone to take some action. Perhaps a big announcement from the boss should include everyone so everyone can enjoy the win. These emails should be few and far between.

Think about why you’re CC’ing someone before you send that email. Is it just the default? Is there another way to communicate with the group? Am I afraid to leave someone off for fear they won’t think I’m doing my job?

If everyone needs this information, perhaps there’s a better tool than the CC field, for example, a shared project document, a kanban board, the next standup meeting, etc. We have software like Basecamp, Pivotal, or even Google Docs that can help.

Use the right tool for the job, and use CC sparingly.

“I attribute my success to this: I never gave or took an excuse.”
― Florence Nightingale

“I didn’t build it.”

“My boss won’t let me.”

“It’s good enough.”

“I don’t get paid to deal with this.”

“It might not work.”

“They control that system.”

“I’m not in charge.”

It might not be your fault, but it’s your problem. This is your chance to make an impact.

Excuses don’t solve problems.

“Shallow men believe in luck. Strong men believe in cause and effect.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson

Strengthen your mind.

Strengethen your body.

Strengthen your family.

Strengthen your friends.

Strengthen your community.

Strengthen your world.