Life is a culmination of the decisions you make. Each day you are given opportunities to make choices for yourself. At the most basic level, the outcomes of your decisions will be either productive or a complete waste of time.
One way to ensure you are making the most progress possible on your journey to success is by holding yourself to a higher standard.
Our generation lives by the words "Young, wild and free." While there is a time and place for impulsive decisions, you should ask yourself, “Do I want to make something happen today? Or do I want to slack off?” Despite the fact that slacking off is the easy way out, your life will have much more value and substance if you choose to make something happen.
If you truly believe you are different than the other 97%, you need to prove it, not just to yourself, but to everyone else. The elite 3% have a much different mindset. They have stayed motivated and put in the hard work necessary to make a name for themselves.
They never took the easy way out or cut corners when they had the chance. They understand that they are different than the majority and therefore have standards for their lives that completely contrast the 97%.
Career opportunities and chances to make headway towards success don't fall out of the sky. Opportunities come to those who act and set themselves up in a position to succeed.
Everyone has their own definition, but one thing everyone can agree on is that action is the key to success. You can't succumb to the habits of the slackers who aren't doing anything with their lives. These are bad influences that will throw you off course on your journey.
Each day you should be trying to write a story. Look at each day as a new page of the book that is your life and ask yourself, “Do I want this page to say I did nothing today or do I want it to be a detailed timeline of all the productive and interesting things I did today?”
It's alright to take a break every once in a while, but you truly don't want success bad enough until you are willing to sacrifice sleep for it. Hold yourself to a higher standard and make productivity a habit.
The people you surround yourself with have a huge impact on your life. Having motivated people around you will influence you to be productive and take action. Everyone has a few friends that slack off at times and are good to have around when things become too stressful. However, it is important to view yourself on a different level.
Do not be influenced by the lazy people in your life. Instead, look at it as your responsibility to set an example for them. Look at yourself as the higher standard and others will begin to as well. When you lead by example, you will introduce a new standard for your friends and hopefully motivate them to make the necessary changes in their lives.
If they don't make the changes, you should try and spend less time with them. Achieving a new mindset that is driven towards success is not going to be something for everyone. By setting a standard for the people in your life, you'll be able to weed out the real from the fake and the givers from the users.
There will also be people you come across that make you angry or upset. Unfortunately, there are more bad people out in the world than I would like to think. When a friend frustrates you or does something to hurt you, you can act on it if you find it necessary, but do not overreact. Instead, act in a professional manner and remain calm, cool, and collected.
A gentleman will resolve the conflict in a calm matter. If they aren't a friend, just ignore the person and accept the fact that they're low-life's with nothing better to do than to try and disrupt your life. People like this are the scum of the Earth and are not worth your time or energy. Remain focused on your life, your goals, and how you plan on accomplishing them.
Holding yourself to a higher standard means you are accepting the fact that you cannot be influenced by people with no direction in their lives. You need to be more mature and professional in the way you act around people, talk to people, and present yourself.
Normal should not be good enough for you. Expect excellence and believe in yourself. Look to motivate others, lead by example, and never look to stop writing the story that is your life.
James Simkins | Elite. Photos Courtesy: Jonathan Adkins
