The path to success does not look the same for every person. However, there are milestones for success that are common on everyone’s paths. These are milestones that let you know that you’re on to something amazing. People often tend to make the same mistakes on their paths to success which block the road ahead.
Today I’m going to share the five steps many people overlook on their journey towards success.
If you feel like you’ve veered off from your plan, don’t panic! Find out what went wrong and get back on track using these clues for success.
The Clues to Success Are Right in Front of You
Students ask me all the time, “Jack, how do I know if I’m on the right path? Am I doing the things I should be doing to be successful?”
These are good questions to ask, but the fact is, the clues to success are always hiding in plain sight.
You need to be aware of how to identify them.
Recognize “Yellow Alerts”
The first way to train yourself to see these clues to success is to recognize and respond to all the yellow alerts in your life.
When I say, “yellow alerts,” what I’m talking about are the advance warnings you get. They come in the forms of telltale signs, gut instincts, intuition, and comments from others that alert you to problems and impending danger.
These signs give you time to prevent the unwanted outcome from happening.
You know when you suddenly get a “bad feeling” about something, or you become aware that people are acting differently around you? Or you develop a niggling awareness that there’s something you’re ignoring or overlooking?
THOSE are yellow alerts.
Trust Your Gut
The faster you’re able to recognize and respond to yellow alerts, the easier you’ll be able to avoid obstacles, overcome challenges, and reach higher levels of success.
The 5 Overlooked Steps on the Path to Success
Now that we’ve identified how to recognize yellow alerts, let’s talk about what those missed steps might be and how to correct them to get back on your accelerated path to success.
Step 1: Face Problems Head On
The first step you might be missing is that you’re not facing a problem head-on.
Many people choose to ignore yellow alerts because they don’t want to feel any sort of discomfort. Acknowledging and responding to yellow alerts usually involves doing things you would rather not do – such as…
Having an awkward or difficult conversation with someone. Admitting that you made a mistake or that something isn’t working. Taking the time to have that mole on your shoulder checked out by a doctor. Or taking your car to the mechanic to check out that noise in the engine that doesn’t sound right.
Be Willing to Ask a Challenging Question
You pretend not to see the yellow alerts. Maybe because it’s easier, more convenient, or less uncomfortable. Ignoring them protects you from having to take what feels like a risk.
Successful people, on the other hand, face problems head on.
They’re willing to experience being uncomfortable, ask a challenging question, ask for feedback, or have a difficult conversation.
They know that yellow alerts are signals that if ignored, often develop into much bigger problems that can fester and grow into huge roadblocks that can prevent you from moving forward toward your goals.
Step 2: Respond to Problems Quickly
The second step you might be missing is that you aren’t responding quickly when a problem arises.
When you develop the habit of responding quickly and decisively to yellow alerts as they happen, life becomes easier. You’re able to eliminate problems before they occur and achieve greater levels of success much faster.
But, learning how to recognize and respond to yellow alerts isn’t always easy.
It requires awareness, dedicated discipline, and a willingness to experiment and take risks.
You have to prepare to look at your own shortcomings and be willing to hear uncomfortable truths.
It’s only when you face what isn’t working that you’re able to explore better options. @JackCanfield (Click to Tweet!)
You can come up with a better way of getting the results you want.
Step 3: Take Responsibility For Your Life
The third step you might be missing on the path to success is that you aren’t taking 100% responsibility for your life and your results.
We both know that there is only one person responsible for the quality of the life you are living.
And that person is you!
Everything you are experiencing is a result of your doing or not doing; your income, your debt, your relationships. Your health and your level of fitness. Even your happiness or lack of happiness.
Create the Life YOU Want to Live
If you’ve been ignoring the yellow alerts in your life, take responsibility for that. And if you’ve been dragging your feet about taking action on those yellow alerts, take responsibility for that too.
It’s only you that you are scaring by imagining negative outcomes instead of positive outcomes by taking those actions.
Successful people take full responsibility for their thoughts, images, and actions. They don’t waste their time and energy blaming and complaining.
Instead, they evaluate their experiences and decide if they need to change them or not. Successful people face the uncomfortable and take the necessary actions to create the life they want to live.
Steps 4 & 5: Believe It’s Possible & Believe in Yourself
The next steps you might be missing are that you don’t believe it’s possible and you don’t believe in yourself.
If you are going to be successful in creating the life of your dreams, you have to believe that YOU are capable of making them happen.
Whether you call it self-esteem, self-confidence, or self-assurance, it is a strong belief that you have what it takes. You have the abilities, inner resources, and talents to create your desired results.
You have to choose to have an unwavering faith in yourself. Make the decision to embrace the belief that you create all your experiences—both the good and the bad. You will experience successes. However, you will also experience pain, struggle, suffering, and strife thanks to you.
Obstacles Are Part of the Process
I know that sounds a little strange, but accepting this level of responsibility is the only true path to success and in turn, personal power. It means you can do, change, and be anything you want.
Stumbling blocks become little hills to hop over.
There will always be obstacles to overcome. They are there to test your commitment and to require you to get better to overcome them. They are there to help you grow.
Accepting that you have the power to create change and overcome obstacles is just a big a part of the puzzle as learning how to be successful.
Resisting a Goal is Resisting Your Growth
Every resistance to your goals is an assistance to your growth. And your growth – the achievement of personal mastery – is the ultimate goal in life.
Make a commitment to replace complaints with positive, encouraging language. Examine the things you complain about and do something about them.
Remember to take a deep breath, and trust that gut feeling. Once you are able to recognize the warning signs, you can eliminate obstacles from impeding your path to success. Make the choice to believe in yourself and what you are doing. In the end, the “hurdles” you have faced will seem minuscule compared to your achievements.
Keeping these five overlooked steps in mind, I want to leave you with a bit of homework to complete. Write down two yellow alerts you have been ignoring or two obstacles you are currently confronted with. Write down two ways you can begin taking action on them TODAY.
Hold yourself accountable and leave a comment below with the two solutions you plan on implementing.
As the beloved originator of the Chicken Soup for the Soul® series, Jack Canfield fostered the emergence of inspirational anthologies as a genre—and watched it grow to a billion dollar market. As the driving force behind the development and delivery of over 100 million books sold through the Chicken Soup for the Soul® franchise, Jack Canfield is uniquely qualified to talk about success. Jack is America’s #1 Success Coach and wrote the life-changing book The Success Principles: How to Get From Where You Are to Where You Want to Be and Jack speaks around the world on this subject. Check out his newest book The 30-Day Sobriety Solution: How to Cut Back or Quit Drinking in the Privacy of Your Own Home. Follow Jack at www.jackcanfield.com and sign up for his free resources today!
Image courtesy of Gerd Altmann.
