You in review!

As you contemplate taking that next step on your journey to achieving greatness and unleashing your passion it is essential to take time to do an audit of yourself. Do you need to work harder this year or do need to work smarter? Did you get a lot done because of your go-getter approach to life or did you lose opportunities because of procrastination? The people that you had around you did they add value to your life or did they take much more than they were willing to give? Depending on how this question is answered you will either want to press on in earnest towards your purpose or stop and re-evaluate and make new plans about what you intend to accomplish. Time is a precious commodity there is very little of it to spare, so do not waste it in pursuit of things that will not help you to achieve your goal.

You can either be your own best friend or your worst enemy, it’s all up to you. What you do from here on will be determined by how honest you can be with yourself. You can trick yourself into believing that you have done all that is possible to soar like an eagle or you can honestly admit that your fear of the unknown is still causing you to crawl at snail pace. Only by being honest about your limitations will you be to rise above mediocrity and go out to conquer the world as you were created to do. So, the critical question that deserves an answer at this time is, what is it that has been holding you back? When you can answer this with honesty, it places you in a much better position to go out and do something about your current situation.

I have the taken the time to write 13 insightful principles designed to help chart the way to be a better you for 2018. They will not give you directions to the fountain of youth nor will they guide to the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, read consistently and applied daily will give you a renewed mind and better attitude, so here goes:

1. Purge your space of all negatives influences. Just as a house needs to be swept every day to keep it clean so it is the area around your life requires the same treatment. Negatives things give birth to unhealthy actions, which in turn results in underachievement or unrealised
2. Place a reasonable timeline on your goals and begin working on them. Know what you want to achieve, how you intend to achieve and the time frame in which you want to achieve. Why wait twenty years to do something you can do in a few days or weeks?
3. Stop complaining; if it did not work in 2017; it will not work in 2018. All your complaining will do little to change your circumstance, so why waste valuable time?
4. Plan on not working harder but working smarter. There is wisdom in learning to work more intelligent; one such benefit is that it leaves you with enough energy to enjoy what you worked to achieve.
5. Look out for opportunities to expand your network. Life is about the people you know as much it is about how much you know. Put yourself in the position to continually expand your network and be on the lookout for opportunities in the form of people who can help you to reach your goals.
6. Learn patience; perseverance is a key component of successful living. Rome was not built in a day, neither will you be successful overnight. You must be willing to stick to the task even through the most challenging
7. Evaluate the usefulness of the people you have around you. If the people you around are not helping you to reach your goal then all they are is excess baggage that you need to lay aside.
8. Be consistent give your best effort at all times. Whatever you do, do it with the intention that you are making a name for yourself. Only your best shot will be good enough to do your very best always.
9. Don’t be selfish remember you cannot exist alone in this world. Most people would love to believe that their success is solely by their hands, that is far from the truth, you need people as much as they need you. Resist the temptation of living selfishly.
10. Do strategic planning. Write everything down. It makes little sense if you plan something then have no way of implementing it because you did not document it somewhere. Writing things down help to provide a clear direction to where you are going.
11. Be deliberate about seeking sound financial advice. If you know that you are bad at making sound financial decisions find someone who is willing to teach you. Every dollar earned and saved places you in a position to have a secure future.
12. Take chances – success requires courage. Sometimes for you to reach your goal, it is necessary to throw caution to the wind. Don’t be afraid to take chances because most times they do pay off.
13. Live a little. Life is too short not to enjoy it. All your achievements would mean nothing if you forget to live and enjoy the fruits of your labour. Learn to live and enjoy life living in the moment; you will not regret it.

As you review and resolve to make sure that your decisions are the best ones that will enable you to maximise your potential. Don’t get caught in the fanfare of making resolutions you will find challenging to keep. You owe it to yourself to be the best that you can be and everything else will work itself out. Go now and find your purpose, unlock your potential and soar to success as you embrace a new year.