12 Behaviors of Highly Successful People That You Need To Emulate Today

George Lorimer once said, “You’ve got to get up every morning with determination if you’re going to go to bed with satisfaction.” Satisfaction is the best form of success one can ever attain. Success is repetitive, which means there is something fairly consistent with it.

To illustrate that last statement, we will look at 12 of the most common characteristics of success shared by the world’s most successful people. I have already said that these traits are repetitive, so, you can emulate them in your daily activities.

Here is the list of the traits you need to start emulating today.

1. They are very optimistic:

Successful people face failures more often that we would ever imagine. However, they have one special ingredient to surmount the pressing urge to give up after facing a failure; they know that the failures are temporary setbacks in their journey to achieving greatness.

They believe that good things will happen no matter what may come their way in the meantime. But for optimism, Col. Sanders wouldn’t have started the KFC empire!

They maintain a positive mentality during the worst of situations. They know that they have to keep moving forward when they are in hell because that is the only way to get out of it.

2. They take calculated risks:

Risk taking can be very risky if you do not calculate your moves well. Do not be an extreme psychopath who ends up gambling their stakes on things that do not have workable models.

When Prof. Thomas Odhiambo (of ICIPE) was given an ultimatum by the University of Nairobi to choose between the University and ICIPE, he stuck with ICIPE even though it was nothing compared to what ICIPE has become today.

Choose your risks carefully and then concentrate your efforts.

3. They are very resilient:

Resilience is the ability to bounce back after taking a hit. There is this book about A Profile of Kenyan Entrepreneurs by Waithaka et al, which highlights the story of S. K. Macharia of Royal Media Services.

In the early 2000’s, his broadcasting stations were closed by the government for almost a year. He never gave up and you can see what Royal Media Services has become today.

4. They are creative and innovative:

Creativity is a skill that can be learned. It involves coming up with new ideas, new ways of doing things and/or solutions to the existing problems.

You will agree with me that it takes a skill and remarkably high levels of intelligence to make people gladly pay for something they would otherwise get for free.

For instance, air is free but ice cream makers incorporate it in the product and sell it; so, if you have ever bought an ice cream before, you have bought air!

Creativity tends to happen under relaxed environments, which calls for regular off-duty sessions to ensure that the mind gets the time to perform its magic.

5. They Know how to make the most out of their resources:

To many people, worn out motor vehicle tyres are fuel for lighting fires on roads during demonstrations. This is not the case with Bethlehem Alemu, the founder of SoleRebels, an Ethipoian shoe company that is touted to be the next Timberland.

She saw an opportunity in the footwear industry and exploited the readily available resources, used tyres and a willing workforce, to create an awesome product. What makes her product so special is that it has a wonderful story behind it.

6. They know what networking can do:

You will have to agree with me that it is extremely difficult to succeed exceedingly on your own. The largest corporations and international enterprises thrive on networking. Look at Google, Coca cola, Apple, Facebook, Alibaba, etc., all these giants thrive on networking.

The biggest thing is to position yourself strategically so that you can form a team with like minded people who will help you achieve your ambitions.

7. They are self driven and passionate:

Successful people have an intrinsic drive, which makes them self starters. They do not need to be pushed or affirmed by other people to do their best.

They know what they want and they are willing to sacrifice whatever it will take to get it, which explains why most entrepreneurs work for extraordinarily long hours. They are not likely to give up in the face of adversity.

Thomas Edison devoted his life to doing what he loved most, as a result, he was able to develop amazing electronic devices and ended up building an empire.

To succeed, you should pick up something that you love to do because you will radiate with confidence while executing your tasks. The confidence will give you a more charismatic face.

The benefit of this approach is that your job will never be a piece of work in your entire career. look at Dolly Parton, she has been singing ever since before I was born and she still sings.

8. They have a grateful spirit:

I began this article by talking about contentment. You need to be grateful for everything you have at every stage of your life.

Contentment can be learned, which is a plus for everyone. You need to develop the habit of counting your blessings every single day and taking every day at a time.

It is important to note the value of patience in the journey of an entrepreneur. You should appreciate that success does not happen overnight.

Being the richest man in the cemetery doesn’t matter to me. Going to bed at night saying we’ve done something wonderful, that’s what matters to me.

Steve Jobs

You must always never forget to remember that sleep is key. You should appreciate your body for working so hard for you by rewarding yourself with enough sleep.

9. They exercise regularly:

Successful people are efficient because they cut out all the unnecessary garbage and focus on the important aspects; they know and implement the 80:20 rule.

This article explains how exercise improves the brain’s ability to retain information and formulate ideas. Exercising regularly will boost your intelligence and teach/force you to stick to your goals.

10. They create time to relax and meditate:

We have already seen that you need to consolidate your efforts and concentrate your energies on a single factor to get maximum effect. That might not be very possible considering that an average of 60, 000 thoughts go through your mind every single day.

With such a clutter of thoughts, there needs to be a clear method of avoiding distraction. Meditation has been proven to help clear the mind and help an individual gain focus.

Take sometime to meditate daily or as often as possible because it will help you gain the much needed focus.

Caveat: Ensure you meditate on positive things because you may just open up your mind to an evil spirit.

11. They never stop questioning:

If Sir Isaac Newton had not questioned why objects must always come down, gravity would be a pipe dream until now.

If the Wrights Brothers had not been crazy enough to question their ability to fly, the mega strides achieved by the aviation industry might have been a mirage.

Curiosity is the only trait that will drive you to ask questions, investigate phenomena, and experiment things. You have to keep asking just like Steve Jobs did, ‘why doesn’t it work?’

12. They value originality and integrity:

Originality pays very well because originals stand out from the crowd and rarely do have competition.

Look at Apple products for instance; it is very unlikely that someone who has used an iPhone before will go for a different brand when they buy their next phone.

The creator of Apple products values the virtue of integrity, which makes him create products that deliver value for money.

I have seen many products come and go (some dry cell manufacturers whose name I cannot even pronounce) because they did undercut the value of their products.

To succeed as an entrepreneur, you have to be either the best at what you do or you be the first person in the field.

It is more difficult to fight competition, which makes originality an easier route to successful entrepreneurship. You need to begin the journey by re-branding yourself through a personal transformation journey.

It starts now.