Blame or action? The choice is yours

There’s some methodology in achieving success, and it can all start with a list on a piece of paper.

Action exercise for today: Get out a shiny piece of blank A4 paper. On that piece of paper write at the top My definition of success.

Write under that everything you will have achieved, everything you will possess (skills, belongings, everything) and everything that you will be when you’re a success.

Then get out another shiny piece of blank A4. At the top of this page write Why I haven’t yet achieved success.

On this page write every reason you can think of that spells out why you haven’t yet achieved your definition of success.

If you’ve got nothing to write – because you’ve already achieved your idea of success – rock on! Go grab an ice cream. For the rest of us (me included) get writing!

If you’re actually going to do the exercise, don’t read further until you’ve completed writing both of these sheets…

Done in one way, this second sheet detailing the “why” can be like an action plan for your life. Examples of reasons why might be similar to these:

• I don’t read enough books.
• I haven’t been associating with people who are achieving the level of success I want.
• I haven’t gone out and done X.
• I don’t have my goals clearly written out.

When this sheet is an action plan for your life, each one of these reasons will be items you can do, or change (if you choose to). With this type of list, success is merely a matter of doing what’s on the list (if you’ve identified your “why” properly).

Done in another way, this sheet could turn out to be a litany of blame:

• I don’t get paid enough at work.
• My parents didn’t have money when we were growing up.
• I’m not tall/pretty/whatever enough.

When done in this way, you’re saying that your success is determined by other people and by things you can’t change.

I know for my way of thinking, I’d like to know that my personal success is determined by my actions, beliefs and associations. The books I read, the people I network with and model myself on, and the choices I make, determine my success.

I’ll let others play the blame game – but not me, what about you?

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Kirsty Dunphey, the youngest ever winner of the Australian Telstra Young Business Woman of the Year award, Kirsty started her first business at 15, her own real estate agency at 21, was a self-made millionaire at 23 and a self-made multi-millionaire at 25. For more information on Kirsty or either of her books – Advance to Go, Collect $1 Million and Retired at 27, If I can do it anyone can head to: www.kirstydunphey.com