10 Habits That Can Lead to Success

Success doesn’t come by accident. It comes from consistent hard work in pursuit of a dream. It comes from a passion that drives you, day and night. And it also comes from constantly and diligently employing some key habits that position you for greatness.

Over the past four years my new venture, RadiumOne, has in every way surpassed my previous two businesses combined. This success comes from an innate desire to win.

I’ve often been asked about the internal steps I took in order to have achieved such success at such a young age. I tried to boil down my top 10 healthy habits that I believe account for success both professionally and personally.

1. Have a Laser-Like Focus

Never lose sight of the ball. Your eyes should be firmly glued on your target or end result. Don’t deviate from achieving that goal, whether it is hiring the best talent, developing a new product, or opening a new office. The more you focus on the key goal of the moment the more likely you are to nail it.

2. Do What You Do Best

Concentrate on your strengths. Understand and utilize your God-given talents. Don’t let success go to your head. I have driven the growth of three huge internet-based businesses. That doesn’t mean I know how to create and build a chain of grocery stores or auto dealerships. Focus on improving the ability you have in your own niche.

3. Be Frugal

It pays to watch every penny. It’s important when it’s your livelihood that’s at stake, and it’s even more important when you have employees and shareholders. My first office was the bedroom of the small home I shared with my father, mother, grandmother and three siblings. My second office, acquired only after revenues hit $300,000 a month, was 1,200 square feet of space. I never let superficiality win, as the only person I needed to impress, was myself.

4. Work with the Winners, Not the Losers

It’s essential to surround yourself with honest, smart and hard-working people who share your dream. You want people with the same positive attitude who are equally as determined. Inevitably, there will be times when you discover someone is not living up to your expectations – such is life. They might be dragging everyone else down. You can’t afford to be sentimental. You have to cut your losses. Fail fast, learn quickly.

5. Think About It

At the end of the day reflect on the events of the day. Mull them over, sifting through the phone calls and correspondence and meetings. Take some time to reflect on everything you’ve learned. You’ll be surprised how often a moment of quiet reflection will turn up the gem of an idea or the solution to a problem that earlier seemed insurmountable.

6. Plan Your Day

Be strategic with how you attack your day. Arrange your projects so that you tackle the most challenging one first—when your energy level is going to be at its highest and your mind is at its sharpest. Once you’ve got the big one out of the way, it will make it much easier to accomplish the lesser tasks.

7. Persistence Pays

Being persistent is a quality that cannot be over-estimated. Doggedly pursuing your goal is a must-do for every business leader. Many people make the mistake of giving up at the first major setback. The one surefire thing I can tell you is that there will be many setbacks and many low points before you reach even a glimmer of success. The quicker you can dust yourself off and put one foot in front of the other, the sooner you will achieve your desired end result.

8. Be a Responsible Risk-Taker

Business is not for the faint of heart. If you are averse to taking risks you are probably too cautious to make it in the big league. So step out of your comfort zone. Be adventurous. Push the envelope and make intelligent risks. As they say, the only regret in life sometimes becomes the risk you should have taken.

9. Go with Your Gut

I’m a firm believer in trusting your own instincts. Intuition should never be underestimated. Of course, you gather all the information that you can about any given project or enterprise before making a business decision. But ultimately it’s up to you to make the decision and sometimes it just comes down to how you feel about it. Your gut feeling is not an empty sense; it’s based on all of the experiential knowledge you have gathered throughout your years (both in and out of the office). It’s your sixth sense. Trust it.

10. Understand Sacrifice

Yes, it’s true. You have to be ready to work harder than the next guy if you want to be the one who wins. You have to be willing to put in longer hours and make all kinds of sacrifices. You’re going to have to go the proverbial extra mile. This isn’t the lottery and there’s no such thing as overnight success.

Success is often short-lived, but the journey lasts forever. Make your journey count without regret.