9 Things Successful People Do According to Science

What’s true about successful people, is that they always know how far they have to go to reach their goal. A case in point – champion swimmer Michael Phelps has an idea of how many strokes it will take him to complete one lap of the pool, meaning he always has a good idea of how much he has left to swim in any given race.

While that is just one example of things successful people do (and of course Phelps does more than that) you will see later how knowing how much he had left came in handy for Phelps during the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing!

It’s Not Who You Are, It’s What You Do!

In her great book, Nine Things Successful People Do Differently, author Heidi Grant Halvorson has studied decades of research related to personal and professional achievement.

According to Halvorson,

“…successful people reach their personal and professional goals not simply because of who they are, but more often because of what they do.” ¹

There are nine strategies that scientific psychologists like Halvorson have identified and tested in thousands of studies that have the biggest impact on performance.

Those nine things successful people do to set and pursue goals are the subject of Halvorson’s book and are what we will discuss in today’s blog post.

9 Things Successful People Do Differently

Let’s now take a look at the 9 things successful people do differently as well as some ways for us to make them actionable in our own lives.

(1)  Get Specific

The idea here is to be as specific as you can when you set a goal or objective.  For example, “I want to lose 5 pounds” is much better than “I want to lose weight” as it shows you what success will look like.

Being specific will not only motivate you but will help you figure out the specific actions you need to take to reach your goal.

The next step as Halvorson points out is to get specific about the obstacles you will need to overcome.

As she says:

“…first imagine how you will feel attaining your goal. Picture it as vividly as you can in your mind—really think about the details. Next, think about the obstacles that stand in your way…Mental contrasting turns wishes and desires into reality by bringing attention and clarity to what you will need to do to make them happen” ¹

Make it Actionable:

(1)  Be specific about what you want.
(2)  Use mental contrasting to figure out what you need to do and the obstacles you may face.

(2)  Seize the Moment to Act on Your Goals

Halvorson advises us to seize the moment and “…decide when and where you will take each action you want to take in advance. Again, be as specific as possible (e.g. “If it’s Monday, Wednesday, or Friday, I’ll work out for thirty minutes before work”.)” ¹

Make it Actionable:

(1)  Use implantation intentions or “if-then” plans, which we discussed in a previous post. They take the form of “If/when <fill in the blank> happens, I will do <fill in the blank>.

For example, “if my alarm goes off, I will get up, shut it off and walk to the bathroom and brush my teeth.”

(3)  Know Exactly How Far You Have Left to Go

According to Halvorson:

“Achieving any goal also requires honest and regular monitoring of your progress—if not by others, then by you yourself. If you don’t know how well you are doing, you can’t adjust your behavior or your strategies accordingly. Check your progress frequently—weekly, or even daily, depending on the goal.” ¹

Monitoring your progress not only helps to keep you motivated but it also lets you know when you need to course correct.

Make it Actionable:

(1)  Figure out how often you need to assess progress (longer-term goals usually have more time between assessments than short term goals.)
(2)  Determine where the information to assess your progress will come from and how you will get it.
(3)  Remind yourself to monitor your progress by setting reminders.
(4)  End your assessments by reflecting on what you still need to do to reach your goal.

(4)  Be a Realistic Optimist

While it is important to engage in positive thinking about your likelihood to reach a goal to create and sustain your motivation, there is more to it.

As she says:

“…whatever you do, don’t underestimate how difficult it will be to reach your goal. Most goals worth achieving require time, planning, effort and persistence. Studies show that thinking things will come to you easily and effortlessly leaves you ill prepared for the journey ahead and significantly increases the odds of failure.” ¹

The idea is that by understanding the road to success will be a rocky one will lead to greater success as it will force you to take action.

Make it actionable:

(1)  Combine positive thinking with an honest assessment of the challenges you will face to cultivate a realistic optimism.
(2)  Again, this is another time you can use implementation intentions, if plan A doesn’t work, what’s plan b?

(5)  Focus on Getting Better, Rather Than Being Good

This one is really about focusing on the process rather than the end result.  While it is important to believe you have the ability to reach your goals, it is more important to believe that you can get the ability. In other words, the belief that you can get abilities by improving yourself.

As Halvorson points out:

 “Fortunately, decades of research suggest that the belief in fixed ability is completely wrong—abilities of all kinds are profoundly malleable. Embracing the fact that you can change will allow you to make better choices and reach your fullest potential. People whose goals are about getting better, rather than being good, take difficulty in stride and appreciate the journey as much as the destination.” ¹

Make it actionable:

(1)  Focus on the process and on improving rather than the end result. When a task or project is difficult, remember you may need some time to figure it out, and that’s ok.

(6)  Have Grit

Grit can be defined as a willingness to commit to long-term goals and to keep persisting when challenges arise.

Make it actionable:

(1)  The advice Halvorson gives for this is, “To be successful and truly make the most of your potential, it’s critical to examine your beliefs, and when necessary, challenge them. Change really is always possible, and the science here is crystal clear. There is no ability that can’t be developed with experience. The next time you find yourself thinking, “But I’m just not that good at this.” Remember, you’re just not good at it yet.” ¹

(7)  Build Your Willpower Muscle

This one has to do with your self-control muscles and the fact that they become weaker over time when you don’t exercise them. The idea is to exercise them regularly to strengthen them to help you reach your goals.

The best way to build your self-control muscle is to do something every day that requires you to do something you would rather not do. Step outside of your comfort zone!

Make it actionable:

(1)  Do something every day that you don’t want to do, then add a couple more willpower challenges every day to strengthen that muscle even more!

(8)  Don’t Tempt Fate

As Halvorson says, “No matter how strong your willpower muscle becomes, it’s important to always respect the fact that it is limited, and if you overtax it, you will temporarily run out of steam…Many people are overly confident in their ability to resist temptation, and as a result, they put themselves in situations where temptations abound. Successful people know not to make reaching a goal harder than it already is.” ¹

 Make it actionable:

(1)  If you are trying to kick a bad habit or change your behavior it is important to understand when you are vulnerable and to avoid tempting fate.

For example, if you are trying to eat healthier, don’t keep unhealthy foods in the house. Or don’t walk by the donut store if you think you may be tempted to stop. Put yourself in the best position to succeed.

(9)  Focus on What You Will Do, Not What You Won’t Do

Many of our goals are focused on stopping something. For example, not eating too much, not working too much, not staying up so late, etc. However, as Halvorson points out, “…thinking about a goal in this way can actually strengthen our self-sabotaging impulses, rather than wear them down.” ¹

Make it actionable:

(1)  Instead of focusing on what you will not do, the idea is to reframe things to instead focus on what you will do instead.

Again, if-then plans can help you replace undesirable behaviors with good ones.  For example, “If I feel the urge to smoke then I will chew gum instead.”

Back to Phelps…

While knowing how many strokes it took him to complete a lap in the pool may seem trivial to many, it ended up being the difference between Phelps winning and losing during the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing!

You see, early in the race, his goggles started filling up with water and there was NOTHING he could do.

So, instead of getting stressed out and flustered, according to Phelps:

“I sort of know how many strokes I take per 50, and I was hoping that I was going to be getting on it and I was going to be able to hit the wall perfectly.” ²

He ended up winning with a world record time of 1:52:03!

But, to me, the best part is that after the race he ripped off his cap and goggles and rather than being overjoyed that he passed Olympic icons Mark Spitz and Carl Lewis for the most ever gold medals, he looked disgusted with himself.

“My goggles kept filling up with water during the race,” Phelps said, “I wanted 1:15 or better.” ²

And that is why Michael Phelps is the GOAT (greatest of all time) – he is always trying to improve!

Until next time, learn from the GOATs, and as always…PYMFP!
–Rick

P.S. Wanna know more? Check out the entire book.

Use it Or Lose It – Things Successful People Do Differently

The 9 things that successful  people do differently that we discussed are:

(1)  Get Specific
(2)  Seize the Moment to Act on Your Goals
(3)  Know Exactly How Far You Have Left to Go
(4)  Be a Realistic Optimist
(5)  Focus on Getting Better, Rather Than Being Good
(6)  Have Grit
(7)  Build Your Willpower Muscle
(8)  Don’t Tempt Fate
(9)  Focus on What You Will Do, Not What You Won’t Do

When to Use It

Use these 9 things successful people do whenever appropriate in your life.

What Do You Think?

What do you think of these 9 things successful people do? Please share your thoughts in the comments below!

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References

¹ Nine Things Successful People Do Differently by Heidi Grant Halvorson

² Michael Phelps: The Untold Story of a Champion