What Separates Winners from Everyone Else

What Separates Winners from Everyone Else Have you ever noticed that some people win more often than others? They seem to get what they want. They get great projects to work on, new opportunities, public recognition. They tend to make more money. They achieve their life goals. Of course, we feel happy for them. But have you ever wondered what they do to be so successful? And what do they do to keep winning year after year? What do people do to be so successful? I used to think it was because those people were smarter, better at office politics, more confident, better at communicating, and willing to spend more time practicing than I was prepared to, especially when our children were young. All those things were true in some cases. But those weren’t the only explanation. We all know: The straight-A student who never made it beyond a certain point The smooth operator who topped out because he lacked substance The classmate whose career went sideways because his confidence tipped into arrogance It’s impossible to win consistently by picking just one skill or aspect and relying on that, because things are constantly changing. Your job, people’s expectations of you, what’s needed by your clients, and the landscape around you, just to name a few. That’s why none of my previous assumptions were correct. What separates the winners from everyone else The single most important difference between winners and everyone else is this: the people who win are constantly learning and growing. They’re investing in themselves. When they make a mistake, they extract the lessons and improve for the next times. When they face adversity, they seek guidance and ask for help. When they see opportunities to learn from others, they invest the time and energy to do it. This is what keeps winners at the leading edge. This is what kept me rising through my 24-year career, through 10 roles, to ultimately become COO of Morgan Stanley Europe. When you continue to learn, it keeps you fresh, interested (and interesting) and backable. If you’re not learning, growing and moving forward, you’ll be left behind. Because the rest of the world isn’t stopping. It’s surging ahead. Invest in yourself So, what investments are you making in yourself this year? Why not create a budget for the amount of time, energy and money you plan to put into yourself? This will be magical because the investments you make in yourself are always worthwhile â€" it’s totally portable no matter where you go in your career (and life)! Investing in yourself is always worthwhile â€" it’s totally portable no matter where you go in your career and life For example, I’m setting aside 30 minutes each day to read a chapter from a book or watch video from courses I’ve signed up for. And I’ve set aside a personal development budget to take my career and business to the next level. What about you? What are you excited about learning? How about developing your personal brand or how to influence people? Will that help you achieve your goals this year? Or how to find great mentors and sponsors who can open doors to more opportunities for you? Or what you need to do to win that next promotion? A great place to learn, grow and invest in yourself If you’re looking for a place to start learning, growing and investing in yourself, I highly recommend Career Masteryâ„¢ Kickstart 2018, which starts on Tuesday, January 16th. This is my annual online Summit where I’ve gathered an awesome lineup of world-class experts to share their best career (and life) advice with you. It’s an easy win that’s going to be fun and energizing. If you want more great projects to work on, more opportunities, and more recognition â€" and, of course, to make more money â€" then you owe it to yourself to sign up to Career Masteryâ„¢ Kickstart and soak up all the great insights that my guest experts will be sharing freely with you. Keep learning, growing and moving forward and you can have more of what you want. What will you invest in learning so you can achieve greater success? Leave a comment and let me know.