10 Practical Steps To Help You Live The Life You Actually Want

1. To get what you want you have to deserve what you want – Oftentimes people want success but aren’t willing to do the work for it. If you don’t have a million dollars, it’s because you don’t deserve a million dollars. If you put in the work and develop the skills to be worthy of a million dollars, you will have a million dollars. Working on becoming the type of person who attracts the things they want instead of seeking them. If you want to date more women, don’t blame the women, become the type of man that women want to be with. This concept works for any area in your life.

2. Be adaptable – According to Darwinian philosophy it is not the strongest species that necessarily survive. It is the one that is able to adapt to the environment in the most efficient way. You have to learn to let go and move on sometimes. You may be in the wrong job or with the wrong partner. Be willing to make changes and go with the flow of life.

3. Be humble – The main reason why many people are broke an unsuccessful is because they are too arrogant to take advice from those more successful than them. Be humble and seek knowledge from successful people. This is where books come in handy.

4. Using mentors to shorten your learning curve – Find a person who is at least ten years ahead of you in the path you are choosing. Make them your mentor, watch them, study them, and learn from their story. You can eliminate many mistakes this way.

5. Poor friends vs. rich friends – This does not just deal with money. By rich I mean people who are successful and by poor I mean those who are unsuccessful. Observe the differences between your “rich” and “poor” friends. How do they talk? How do they walk? How do they carry themselves? What kind of attitude do they have towards life? Often times I’ve noticed that my rich friends are inquisitive and always looking to gain knowledge from others. I’ve also noticed that my broke friends are stubborn and overly opinionated, refusing to listen to anyone else but themselves.

6. Sculpture vs Lottery approach – Don’t wait on the magical day to come where everything just falls into place for you, it isn’t coming. Instead treat your life like a sculpture. Start with a big block, which is your general idea of what you want to do in life, and chip away at it daily until you form a masterpiece.

7. Avoiding learned helplessness – Society has taught us to be dependent. Dependent on a job, and dependent on the government. Realize that you are capable of making it in a myriad of different ways. Don’t make rules about what you can and cannot do to be successful.

8. Read as many books as you can – Knowledge is power. They keys to success are hidden in plain sight. They are hidden in books.

9. Be stoic instead of epicurean – The stoics were those who believe that one should make a sacrifice in the present, for the greater benefit of future reward. The epicureans had the YOLO mentality of “eat drink and be merry”. This often leads to pitfalls. Delay your gratification and put your nose to the grindstone for a while, then you can reap gigantic benefits later.

10. Toughen up – We are all too soft in this country. Do some push-ups when you wake up in the morning, take a cold shower, sleep on the floor. Life is not going to be easy, and you must be tough to succeed.

Put these into practice and watch your life soar. Remember however, that this is not a quick fix to your problems. These are just a few examples of what has to be part of a life long growing process. Remember to love the grind, because life IS the grind.