What are you doing to “deserve” success?

August 2, 2007 · Posted in Change, Choices, Motivation, Self-help, Success

It seems that everyone wants to be successful in the slackest sense of the word. Simply meaning, that if there is no effort required, then most would say, “yeah, I’d like to be successful”. However, this is contrary to all common sense. Winston Churchhill said, “…victory comes only to those who work long and hard, who are willing to pay the price in blood, sweat, and tears. These deserve victory.”

Do you deserve success? Why? What do you do that makes you deserving?
What have you done that distinguishes you from the crowd? Success latches on to distinction and uniqueness. If you want to be successful, then you must be different from 95% of the population, because that is the percentage that is not financial independent. Be unique.
What do you do that causes you to stand “head and shoulders” above your coworkers? Do you strive to do your best at every opportunity or do you do the same things that your coworkers do? Why would you be singled-out for advancement if you are just “keeping up with the Jones” in your work habits? Nothing is free. If you want more, then you must do more. It’s as simple as that.
Why should John Q. Public buy your product? Is it cheaper? Is it better? Does it have more than one use? Do you promote it everywhere you go? Is it your passion? Does the world know about it?
Why should your boss or supervisor recognize your talent and ability instead of someone else’s? The attitude of “doing more than you are paid to do” was first preached by Napoleon Hill (who has been cited by more millionaires as the author most influential in their success) and is still relevant. If you want to be promoted, give them a reason to promote you.

I once had a supervisor that said all people could be classified in one of four ways:

1. CAN’T DO / WON’T DO — These are people who have neither the ability nor the desire to perform.

2. CAN DO / WON’T DO — These people have the ability to perform but because of a lack of motivation or because of a bad attitude, refuse to perform.

3. CAN’T DO / WILL DO — These people do not have the necessary skills to perform, however this does not deter them from trying to perform in an excellent fashion. They attempt, but fail.

4. CAN DO / WILL DO — These are the cream of the crop. They have both the mandatory skills and the motivation to perform their responsibilities in an excellent fashion. This is where you must be if you intend to be successful.

As Rick Pitino says in his book SUCCESS IS A CHOICE, “…deserve success. Outwork everybody in sight. Sweat the small stuff. Sweat the big stuff. Go the extra mile. But whatever it takes, put your heart and soul into everything you do. Leave it all out on the court.”

“SUCCESS IS A CHOICE” is a great book, by the way.

Until you are willing to go beyond what is required of you, you have no right to expect to succeed, because you are only doing the minimum required to maintain your current state. You are in the rut of mediocrity because that is the level of your performance. To get more, you must give more:

give more time
give more effort
give better effort
provide better ideas
in some way, shape or form you must do something to rise above the “least common denominator”

The “least common denominator” means average. If you are average, then expect to be treated as average.

Expect to make the same amount of money as the people you associate with.
Expect to enjoy the same benefits as everyone else.
Expect to wonder what you are going to do when you retire or
Expect to work till you die.

Are you a CAN DO / WILL DO type of person? Do you have the necessary skills to perform in an excellent manner? If not, then decide that you will acquire them. Do you have the skills, but allow a bad attitude or something else to hinder you from performing your best?

Remember the cream rises to the top: