Have you ever noticed that one person that seems to stand out in whatever they do at work? They have the confidence, the drive, self-motivation, and innovation to shake things up in the working world! I don’t know about you, but I often wonder to myself when observing these stand-out individuals:

“How do they do it?
How do they keep on growing?
Why are they successful at whatever they put their minds to?”

Successful is defined as:

Accomplishing a desired aim or result.

Therefore, if we want to grow in something or achieve success, we need to know what our aim is. This means we need to know what our goals are, and have the intention of wanting to achieve those goals! I love knowing that I am growing and that I am constantly being challenged in all areas of my life. Because the truth is our “best” today, won’t necessarily be our “best” tomorrow. Therefore we have to challenge ourselves constantly in the way we go about doing things.

TIPS ON BEING MORE SUCCESSFUL AT WORK

If like me you are wanting to grow this year in the way you go about doing things at work, in your freelance work, and in your personal life, then maybe some of these tips will help encourage you to stay motivated , focused and inspired this year :

1 . WORK HARD

Successful people are not gifted; they just work hard, then succeed on purpose.

People who experience success in their lives don’t just receive it from blinking their eyelids. They will put full effort in to what they do and how they do it. Working hard isn’t always easy; it’s a constant challenge, yet it’s very rewarding and brings about growth in our character! Start thinking of ways in which you can work a little harder, or improve the way you go about doing things.

2 . LOVE WHO YOU ARE, WHAT YOU DO, AND HOW YOU DO IT

Success is liking yourself, liking what you do,
and liking how you do it. – Maya Angelou

The only way to do great work is to love what you do. –
Steve Jobs

I love how both Steve Jobs and Maya Angelou said it is important to love what you do. When you are working in an environment that you are passionate about, you end up pushing yourself naturally because you throw yourself into it with heart and soul. I also love how Maya Angelou encouraged us to “like yourself, like what you do, like how you do it”. What we love will flow from our hearts and from our character. If we love ourselves in a healthy way, we will love others well, we will do our work with love, and we will execute our work with love too. When we do that, people receive it well and will be inspired by it.

3 . DON’T COMPARE YOURSELF

Don’t measure your success based on the success of others.

Everyone has their own version of what success means to them. We do not need to achieve somebody else’s version of success, we just need to focus on what being successful means to us.

4 . BE MORE DISCIPLINED

The “D” word… not my favorite word. I cringe on the inside when I see it or hear it! But I have been challenged in the area of self discipline lately. I can’t stay up all night watching series, only to wake up early the next day and feel way too tired to function properly at work. For this reason I know I need to go to bed at a certain time every single night with the intention of waking up feeling refreshed and ready to give my best! Maybe for you, being disciplined could mean exercising more, eating healthier, finishing projects on time, or going to bed earlier.

5 . HAVE A HEALTHY BALANCE

Often we become so focused on achieving our professional goals, that we end up working around the clock from the early hours till late at night. We need to remember to have healthy boundaries, where we relax a bit, unwind, find rest; where we still create intentional space and time for our family and friends. We are not machines, therefore we cannot always move at an unrealistic pace that ends up being detrimental to our health.

6 . LEARN FROM MISTAKES

Don’t carry your mistakes around with you. Instead, place them under your feet and use them as stepping stones to rise above them.

We are human, therefore it will be natural for us to make mistakes! Mistakes do not define us, and should not hold us back from growing. Mistakes can teach us very valuable lessons, and sometimes mistakes steer us in the right direction.

7 . BE INTENTIONAL

“Excellence is never an accident; it is the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction, skillful execution and the vision to see obstacles as opportunities.” – Anonymous

Being successful or achieving success means we need to prepare and plan for it. We need to know in what areas we are wanting to see success, then we need to be intentional and wise on how we go about executing it.

8. ACKNOWLEDGE & REASSESS

There’s a way to do it better, find it!  – Thomas Edison

Often we forget to acknowledge when we have done something great or achieved something of significance. Maybe you designed a beautiful graphic image, or maybe you wrote a beautiful song, or maybe you pushed the boundaries at work and closed a great deal! But then you forget to acknowledge the hard work that you put into it, you forget to take it in and enjoy what you have achieved. It’s important to acknowledge those moments.

Another process we tend to overlook is, once you have achieved something great is to ask yourself the question, “How could I have done this different? How could I improve the way I went about this?”. Basically you reassess the process and look for ways to improve, so that you can add more value in what you are bringing or creating at work.

9 . BE INNOVATIVE

Innovative = The introducing of new ideas; original and creative in thinking.

It’s quite easy to do what is expected of us. No wait, scratch that – it’s quite boring to do the same old same old… well the same! If we want to grow, if we want to be challenged, and if we want to achieve success, then we need to be more innovative! Therefore we need to think of ways in which we can execute things well and differently. We need to be more innovative when creating ideas that could add something new and something fresh to whatever our hands find to do! Being innovative not only refreshes us; it also has the power to inspire not only us but those around us watching!

Innovative people are natural leaders too. They challenge the norm constantly by wrestling with the ideas of bringing something new to the table. Innovators seek the vision in things, they seek the unconventional, they look for things that have not been done before, therefore innovators are the movers and shakers, they are driven by the vision!

I hope that some of these tips will help add strength and inspire you to give it everything that you’ve got! God has called us for greatness, and we all have the potential to achieve great things in and through Him. Why not start today?