The world’s constantly changing. Blink and you can feel like you’ve missed something.
Do you keep in step with change, get left behind or stride ahead and step up?
If you want to get the life you desire you have to step up to the plate. There’s an old adage: success breeds success. But success never happens overnight.
Most success is borne out of a restless urge to do better. A desire to not settle for almost good enough. There’s a willingness – an eagerness – to push the boundaries.
As the founder of IKEA, Ingvar Kamprad said, “The most dangerous poison is the feeling of achievement. The antidote is to every evening think what can be done better tomorrow.”
So what can you do better for tomorrow?
Ditch the complacency
It’s easy to get complacent. To get comfortable doing what we’ve always done before.
Complacency feels cozy. While stepping up feels harder. We get held back by fear. Fear of the unknown. Fear of failure. Fear of success. Fear of hard work.
And yet complacency is one step closer to irrelevance. That sounds harsh. However, in a world that’s constantly changing we need to embrace living on our edge of learning and to constantly seeks ways to expand our perspectives, experiences and insights.
Embrace the uncertainty
Stepping up involves a constant quest for knowledge and a yearning to discover. This is about accepting that we don’t have all the answers and getting OK with the discomfort of not always knowing the outcome.
When I set up my business four years ago I walked away from the certainty of a large salary to do something I had never done before. Was I uncertain? Yes. Was I excited? Yes. I didn’t know where it would take me, but I knew I had to give it a go.
Uncertainty can be the trigger to propel you to seek out new ideas and be curious, as well as to do something you’ve never done before. In this way, uncertainty becomes a challenge to investigate and experience, rather than a barrier to your progress.
Know what you stand for
Research shows that when a person stops being their authentic self it causes psychological distress, which can have ongoing emotional and physical ramifications.
It also impacts how the people around you perceive and relate to you. Colleagues will notice the disconnect between what you say and do.
Knowing what you stand for is the starting point, but it’s only useful if you’re then prepared to back yourself and your opinions when you face scrutiny and challenge.
Get intentional
Life’s busy and it’s easy to get distracted by things that can be interesting, but divert you from your goals.
Of course, it’s easier to focus when you know where you want to get to and the steps you need to take to get there.
This clarity of purpose makes it easier to know what you should say ‘no’ to. Saying ‘no’ helps you concentrate on what really matters so you can achieve what you set out to achieve.
Success is never a straight forward line of constant progress. Having a bounce-back mindset with the resilience and optimism to work through the inevitable challenges and set-backs is critical.
We all face challenges, and how we approach these challenges impacts whether they define us, confine us or liberate us.
Getting you ready for tomorrow, today.
Michelle Gibbings is a change leadership and career expert and founder of Change Meridian. Michelle works with global leaders and teams to help them get fit for the future of work. She is the Author of ‘Step Up: How to Build Your Influence at Work’ and ‘Career Leap: How to Reinvent and Liberate your Career’. For more information: www.michellegibbings.com or contact michelle@michellegibbings.com.