Are you willing to do whatever it takes to succeed?

Successful stories are everywhere in the media.

Celebrities who are making millions of dollars a year, entrepreneurs who are kicking goals, and businessmen and women disrupting industries with their ideas and innovations.

From the outside, it can look so effortless.

But just like talented sports stars make their physical feats look easy, talented investors and successful people look like overnight success stories, but they’re usually not!

One of the great truths of success is, that unless you’ve inherited a fortune (and that’s a small percentage of the population), you’re going to need to work hard for what you want.

That means pushing through obstacles, ramping up the effort levels on days you don’t feel like it, and adapting to change quickly.

This is why you need to ask yourself whether you are willing to do whatever it takes to succeed.

Here’s how you can put yourself on the right path:

How much do you want it?

Are you truly passionate about your goal?

Are you 100 per cent committed to achieving it?

Perhaps you’re only 70 per cent committed, and the rest of you would rather take the safe route. Or perhaps you’re a talker and not a doer.

This will all play a major factor in whether or not you succeed.

If you want something more than anything else and can think of nothing else you would prefer to put your heart and soul into, then you’re already halfway there.

Plot your path

Once you’ve committed to doing whatever it takes to achieve your goal, you need to start thinking of ways of making it happen.

That means thinking strategically about what moves you might make and actions you can take to get you started.

And think creatively.

Don’t always look at what those around you are doing because if what they were doing were right then a lot more people would be successful.

Look at what isn’t being done by others, something that can give you the edge.

Get uncomfortable

It is usually at this planning stage that many people realise some of the actions they will need to take will make them uncomfortable.

And this is where many people give up.

Sad but true.

Successful people have all had to take actions that have made them uncomfortable because they have either been unfamiliar or new, or they require a bit of initiative.

This could be contacting people in senior positions or taking an opportunity for greater exposure or publicity.

Or even learning an entirely new skill.

Don’t shy away from these actions simply because they’re new to you.

Embrace them!

In fact…get comfortable with feeling uncomfortable

Think big

It’s also important to aim for the sky.

Often we surprise ourselves with what we’re capable of and we don’t aim high enough.

Chasing a little bit of success is not the same as throwing your hat in the ring with the big boys.

If there is a particular  “deal” you’re after or an opportunity that others think is far-fetched: go for it.

Don’t wait until you’re ready, as no one ever feels completely ready for the big league.

Keep moving

Putting yourself out there isn’t a one-time thing.

You need to keep doing it —over and over again.

Haven’t heard back about that opportunity?

Call or email the person in question.

Just found out the person who was going to help you has left the company?

Find another way.

Be prepared to fight for what you want, and if someone gives you a helping hand, make sure you give them appropriate thanks.

It’s a small world after all, and people always remember manners and gratitude.

So, success is anything but easy, but the good part is that so much of it is in your hands if you’re prepared to go the distance and put every ounce of your heart and soul into it.

Fortune, after all, favours the brave.

About Mark Creedon Mark Creedon is Director of Metropole's Business Accelerator Mastermind and business coach to some of Australia's leading entrepreneurs - each who call him their "unreasonable friend"
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