Nine behaviours that will propel every young professional to career and personal success.
9 Success Mantras – The young professional’s guide to personal and professional success
1. Do the Smart Things (and Do Things Smartly!)
"I used to work extremely hard and didn't achieve a lot of tangible things. But when I started
working extremely smart, the gates of abundant blessings opened up for me."
―Edmond Mbiaka
(Entrepreneur, Author)
There is no substitute for hard work. But there's no point in aimless grinding. So, do the smart things and do things smartly …you'll achieve more. And work smartly on smart things.
2. Outwork Others
"If you're the underdog, your only chance of winning requires expending maximum effort. Outworking
is a tall order; it's not easy to do. That's why most people will not play that way because
it's too difficult – that's the reality of it all."
― Malcolm Gladwell
(Author)
Eschew outworking others, and you'll go through the motions, Blend with the mediocre and you will finally fade into oblivion. Hard work beats talent if talent does not work hard.
3. Cultivate Patience
"He that can have patience can have what he will."
― Benjamin Franklin (Founding Father of the United States)
It's ridiculously rare that you will receive:
1. Promotions
2. Pay hikes…
---every few months.
It takes a ridiculous amount of hard work and unrelenting patience to succeed'. Someday, you will gain perspective on how your current (mundane) work makes a difference. Success requires the delay of instant gratification and doing something harder Your efforts will reap rich dividends over a timeframe you have no control over. (There's no shortcut). Be very
Patient!
4. Build Resilience
"The mundane and the sacred are one and the same."
― Alan Watts (Philosopher)
Mundane tasks:
1. Have incredible value
2. Lead to long-term success and payoffs,
3. Essential for proper day-to-day functioning
Mining the mundane is the path to mastery. Real-life happens in the mundane.
The mundane is not a setback. It is a rite of passage.
5. Manage Work Relations with Prudence
"When I work, my first relationship with people is professional."
― Bill Murray (Actor, Filmmaker, Writer)
Employees with high-quality peer relationships are:
1. More likely to receive effective mentoring and guidance,
2. Better informed in the office space,
3. Have greater access to networks of support
Invest in developing workplace relationships. No matter how benign your intent, everyone has the right to set their boundaries and have them respected.
6. Learn How to Regulate Emotions
"To be aware of your own emotions and to learn how to self-regulate those, is an important
part of any kind of management of the intuitive or sensitive nature."
― Heidi Sawyer (Director, Institute of Psychic Development)
Failure to regulate your emotions will cost you, one way or another. And, there might be no second chances on offer. Control your emotions (Don't be a slave to them)
7. Challenge the Status Quo
"Status quo, you know, is Latin for 'the mess we're in."
― Ronald Reagan
For the young millennial, to challenge the status quo at work is tantamount to taking the bull by its horns. Want to challenge the status quo? Link the proposed change to business metrics. Want to challenge the status quo? Practice tact in speech. Want to challenge the status quo? Practice patience! See change as a marathon, not a sprint (Sometimes, deferring a conversation to a more suitable time, may help)
8. Get Noticed
"If your presence doesn't make an impact, your absence won't make a difference."
― Trey Smith (Author – Crushing Hyper Casual Games)
Your hard work needs a face to go with it. And that's up to you.
9. Serve Your Network
"The currency of real networking is not greed but generosity."
― Trey Smith (Author – Crushing Hyper Casual Games)
The essence of networking is serving others. First, you give, then you get. Be a giver at work, Share your time, energy, knowledge, skills, ideas and connections with other people, so that they can benefit from them.