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5 Things You Need to Delete to Acquire Startup Success (Even if You’ve Already Been Successful)
Success really is rented, not bought, and earned every day
There’s a six-word phrase I’ve probably repeated more than any other statement in my life, to which I often receive knee-jerk pushback. I’m sure I’ve likely uttered this phrase at the very beginning of my career, in the “lost” times in between ventures and failures, as would be expected. Ironically, however, I know I’ve stated this phrase on a weekly basis even at the height of my entrepreneurial and financial “success”, when I was first making more in a month than most people make in a year.
The phrase: “I just want to be successful.”
The instant (biased and expected) feedback from my closest friends and family was “You already are!”. While we all have different definitions of success, I certainly hadn’t (and arguably still haven’t) reached mine, or else I wouldn’t be so voraciously seeking something more — or something else.
Before you click away assuming I’m going to get all preachy and spiritual, telling you that the real definition of success has nothing to do with careers, business, or income, have no fear; I would never. Instead, I’m going to double down on why my feelings of underachievement were so valid — and why you may not be on the path to perpetual success at all.
This morning, I was listening to a podcast hosted by one of my neighbors (who also happens to be a mid-9-figure-net-worth CEO, best-selling author, and TV personality). The gem of knowledge didn’t actually come from him, but rather from the guest interviewee, who nearly stumped the host (and me) with an underrated statement that couldn’t ring truer.
He said: Despite having global acclaim, selling hundreds of millions of widgets (this guest is an impressive person in his own right), even he has found that success is rented, not bought, and needs to be re-earned every day.
This is the truth no one admits: Success isn’t a place you get to and ease up on the gas; in order to continually achieve (and maintain) it, you have to continually learn, grow, and humble yourself in new pursuits. That said, there are a few toxic ingredients we need to kick to…
