Ever wonder what’s stopping you from becoming the next Elon Musk or Jeff Bezos? While an ivy-league education or inheritance certainly helps catapult entrepreneurs and CEOs towards global recognition, a big part of achieving financial success actually comes down to habits.
Here are 5 habits of highly successful people to incorporate into your business.
1) Embrace Your Inner Clock
Successful entrepreneurs recognise their most productive hours. For example, this executive director’s bio notes that his ideal time to work is in the afternoon.
Research by New York Times bestseller Daniel Pink divides us into three categories: the owl, the lark and the third bird. To determine which you fall into, consider your ideal bedtime and wake time. Identify the midpoint between the two. For instance, if you sleep at 12am and wake at 9am, your midpoint is 4.30am. Pink advises that people with a midpoint after 5.30am are owls or night people and individuals with a midpoint before 3.30am are typically morning people. In between these periods is the third bird, who can tolerate both lifestyles.
Understanding when you’re at your peak can help you schedule your most strenuous tasks accordingly.
2) Prioritise Self-care
In 2022, we’re ditching the myth that all effective CEOs work 80-hour weeks in the name of success. Multibillionaire Richard Branson often emphasizes the importance of exercise and achieving a healthy work-life balance. He explains on his Facebook page that everyone should get outside, because “you never know what the stars could inspire next.”
If you don’t make time for self-care, you could experience serious burn out that will keep you out of the office for far longer than a weekend getaway!
3) Practice Positivity
Studies indicate that a CEO’s mood can trickle down through their company. The most successful CEOs are acutely aware of this and model their mindsets accordingly. When a CEO presents themselves in a self-assured and upbeat way, they effortlessly inspire confidence in their stakeholders.
You don’t have to be a CEO to rub off on others. Let your good mood positively impact your family and peers. You’ll find that their warm responses build camaraderie and give you renewed energy to face challenges in the business together.
If positivity doesn’t come easily for you, start by incorporating meditation, exercise, and a balanced diet into your lifestyle. Micro-bravery, the practice of doing one small thing every day that makes you nervous, can also help to build self-assurance.
4) Be Open to Experimentation
CEOs don’t get to the top by playing it safe. While loss management should be a consideration for any business, you need to be willing to take risks to reap the rewards. Too often, when asked why we do a certain process, we can only answer “because that’s the way we’ve always done it”.
Next time this phrase leaves your lips, take a chance on a new process. This doesn’t require investing thousands of dollars in untested ideas but it does mean being open to positive experimentation. For example: maybe you’ve always numbered your restaurant’s tables in a snail formation but having a hunch a zigzag might be more effective. Try it out! Stagnation will kill your business faster than one night of potentially poor table service.
That’s not to say you should abandon tried and true processes completely. Utilizing local seo companies like Spark Factory will save you time and money in the long run on things like SEO, where it pays to have the experts in charge.
5) Know When to Delegate
The best CEOs know that they can’t be everywhere at once. To run a business effectively, you need to be able to delegate. The smartest CEOs ensure that their business runs smoothly when they’re not at the helm by meticulously selecting their team for both competence and temperament. Clear and regular communication is key.
Regardless of your industry, adopting these 5 habits will help you take your business to the next level.