Three key success principles for personal and professional growth

There are three principles that I have found to be key for one’s success both in personal and professional growth. Success is something that means different things to different people. But for the purpose of this article, let’s adopt the definition by Dr. Scott Peck, who says “success is the ability to solve problems and achieve goals that you have set for yourself.”

I guess it’s safe to say that we all want to be successful. We all have dreams that we want to fulfill and goals we desire to accomplish. But the question is. Are you brave enough to go for what you want out of life?

The one thing that hinders most people from following their dreams is fear. Fear of being ridiculed, fear of being criticized, and most common of all, the fear of failure! Honestly speaking, failure is not a person. It is just an event! Each and every event has a purpose and every setback its lessons. I have realized that failure, whether personal, professional or even of spiritual kind, is essential for personal growth and success. It’s absolutely necessary!

Thomas Edison failed 1000 times before he successfully got the light bulb to work. When a reporter asked him how did it feel to fail 1000 times, he said “I didn’t fail 1000 times. The light bulb was an invention with 1000 steps! But as for me and you, what do we need in order to minimize our chances of failure in the pursuit of our dreams. Now that brings us to the first principle of success.

1.    Clarity

“Clarity comes from action, not *just* thoughts” – Marie Forleo. When you think about your life deeply, in many different areas, and take action, what emerges from that is a crystal-clear picture of the person you want to become and the life you want to live. That is called your life vision. Without a clear picture of where you want to end up in life, you have no decision-making framework with which to guide your daily choices and actions that will lead you to the fulfillment of your dreams.

“When your clarity meets your conviction, and you apply action to the equation, your world will begin to transform before your eyes.” – Lisa Nichols

2.    Grit

Angela Duckworth defines Grit as passion and perseverance for long term goals. In her book, she says, an obsession for talent distract us from that truth! To be gritty is to keep putting one foot in front of the other. To be gritty is to hold fast to an interesting and purposeful goal. To be gritty is to invest, day after day, week after week, and year after year, in a challenging practice. To be gritty, is to fall seven times, and get up eighth.

Thomas Edison was a paragon of grit. His passion for invention and perseverance despite many challenges and failures led him to the successful invention of a light bulb.

3.    Mentorship

Let’s say you are clear about what you want out of life and you know exactly who you want to become. You also have grit, passion and perseverance for long term goals. Mentorship is third key principle you will need in order to live a happy and successful life. Denzel Washington capped it best when he said “Show me a successful individual - and I will show you someone who had real positive influences in his or her life. I don’t care what you do for a living, if you do it well, I am sure there was someone who was guiding you and showing you the way. A mentor.”

A mentor is someone who will hold you to a higher standard and bring out the best in you. He or she will nurture your growth both personally and professionally by holding you accountable until you reach the success you envision for yourself.

To conclude, if you are crystal-clear about what you want out life and you pursue your dreams with courage and grit, under the guidance of a mentor, you are guaranteed to reach your destiny and to live the best life you have ever imagined.