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Hitchhiker's guide to designing a successful life
04 Apr 2013 at 11:55hrs | Views
Success is a major goal for many, but it can also be illusive and for some, a major obstacle. What is success, really? Is success not the attainment of a state of being in which we are happy, healthy and fulfilled in all things? Various authors have defined success differently over time - and chasing a working definition of it is part of the fun.
But this does not help the person who is searching for success - so this guide may help you a bit on the journey, or at least inspire you to look at the topic of success slightly differently.
The angle here is that success is not something that happens to you - but something that you design. There are few authors who will claim that success can be achieved instantly - except the ones who teach you how to relax and take a step back from your high-strung life to reflect. The value of reflecting on what you want to achieve is that you can visualise what you want instantly - so voilà, your first instant success can be that you are thinking about what success means to you. This is difficult (but not impossible) to do when you are busy moving mountains and everything is moving so fast around you. The key to the practice of reflecting on success will only be unlocked if you make time for it.
Getting started: A place to think about success
And this is where the hitchhiker's guide starts. The first thing you need for real success is a place to think about it. Your favourite armchair may be good, beds (as long as you can lie down with your eyes open) or a meditation spot, or even your car (if it is neat and tidy). Return to this spot daily and have a reminder there to tell you to think about your success. Visualisation, idealisation and realisation should become your mantra for seeking something that moves your inner most being.
A worthy ideal: Setting a goal that needs to be achieved
If we are realistic, then we must realise that success requires that we actually do something. But do what? There are so many options - but the key to success is to succeed in something that you are passionate about. Broadly, this is described as finding a purpose.
Do you have a purpose? Do you have a goal that you want to achieve? Research shows that most people either set their purpose too wide or too narrow. Is your purpose to drive a new sports car? Or is to change the world?
These purpose statements may be too specific or too broad. So what is a good purpose? The best purpose is one that is your own and something that you can believe in.
One way to think of yourself is that you are not a linear person. You don't only have a purpose in one dimension of your life. What is your purpose or goal in each aspect of your life? This may include social, spiritual, emotional, financial, business, health, career, education, media, and political purposes or goals.
Another way to think about purpose could involve thinking about life stages. One formula says that when you are in your teens, you should view the world in stark contrasts - while reading poetry and the classics; explore the world and do what you want to do when you are in your twenties; learn when you are in your thirties; venture out when in your forties; start living when you are in your fifties; reinvent yourself in your sixties; and have a roaring time in your seventies.
Some people need a definite purpose, which can be phrased as a slogan or description of what you want to achieve. Some examples are given below:
"My purpose for being on this earth is to help others recognise, develop and use their God-given intuitive abilities to ease suffering and grow in goodness, love, compassion and wisdom."
"In life I strive to remember where I have been and where I will go, through maintaining positive relationships with family and friends."
"I live in peacefulness within myself by looking inward, while using my heart to guide my dreams and desires, and my mind to pursue knowledge, creating balance among all of my obligations."
"I am content with myself in my surroundings, so I will always know where security lies within my life."
"I build a reputation of being dedicated to every goal I choose to pursue while having success in both my personal and professional life."
"My purpose is to enjoy every moment along this journey, finding laughter, love and happiness with each day that passes."
"My mission is to learn and understand my clients' needs and the external factors affecting them so that I can aggressively and professionally represent them throughout the legal process. I clearly communicate my legal knowledge and experience, thereby enabling my clients to make well-informed decisions for themselves."
As indicated before - you may have financial, career, or multiple purposes. The key is to think about it - wait until it crystallises until you know what you are here to do.
Reframing: Seeing what is hidden
The next step as a hitchhiker through life is to find the right path. It may be hidden - so you have to discover it. It may not be where you are looking for it.
Take a step back and re-look at your life's challenges from different angles. Are there underlying assumptions that could prevent you from uncovering the real challenges faced? New research is showing that the biggest challenge with problem solving is that we solve the same problems the same way. It is almost as if you need to knock yourself on the side of the head next time you make the same mistake over because you have applied the same mental pattern to the problem!
So why have you not yet achieved your goals or targets? Think about your purpose in a new way and you will see some new possibilities. The path will reveal itself, or you may find that you have actually been on it all your life.
Collaboration: Embrace differences
No person has ever achieved success on his or her own. No matter what you read, no matter what anyone tells you - it may start with an intense desire or burning longing to change something - eventually success involves others.
Learn to work in a collaborative and multi-disciplinary setting to encourage different perspectives in problem solving. For purpose solving, you need to work with others to understand what you do not.
Start building networks of people who can advise you. Also, give advice to others in the direction that you are interested in and start building your social skills in selling and developing your ideas.
Research shows that social intelligence is often the key to getting an idea sold. People who have great minds but no social skills end up failing - although they are brilliant. Some people are good with people and succeed. You decide what is more important - EQ or IQ.
Understanding the user: Know the person behind yourself
When designing a new path, you need to look at user behaviour. Through various tools and methods, you can gain a deeper insight into your users' behaviour and unearth their real needs and values.
You need to know yourself. What do you think and believe and where does this come from? Are you stuck in the past, living in the future, or rooted in the now? Why do you not like to do certain things, and why do you like doing others? Are you willing to change this if it would bring you closer to your purpose? Understanding the user is a critical internal process that translates externally in becoming more self aware, gaining confidence and being able to act on challenges.
You also need to know what you are good at. You also need to know what you need to be good at. When you combine these, you have a map of things that you need to work on. The good thing is that you are aligning your goals and purpose. Some people call this the art of praxis. Praxis is the process by which a theory, lesson, or skill is enacted, practiced, embodied, or realised.
Being practical is the key to success. To be practical - you need to know why you do what you do. Practicality allows you to be better at doing it.
Frame your opportunities: Build on your insights
Framing is the process of forming a framework of what you want. You may want a situation to yield a specific result. Framing the opportunity is to look for the aspects that you want to see. This process is used in design to come up with features that fit the user. Through framing opportunities you start to visualise aspects of the eventual solution. Some people brainstorm before framing opportunities. Research shows that it is more important to identify the big aspects of a solution first and then to brainstorm how to get there.
These big buckets are the frames in which your solution will proceed. Don't be afraid to reframe these later - remember as long as there is a move towards the purpose the frame is necessary.
Ideation: No idea is too wild
'Ideation' is fast becoming a standard word in business.
To become really successful you need to start thinking about ideas that will get you there. If you want to make a million Rand - first find a product that costs R5 that you can sell for R15 i.e. at a profit of R10. All you have to do is sell 100 000 and you've made your first million. This is a wild idea (for some). You now only have to find something that costs R5 that you can sell for R15. Most people will come up with a couple of ideas instantly.
What is a purpose if it cannot be acted on? Wild ideas may just lead to success.
Prototyping: Test it out
With simple and cheap materials, refine your ideas by creating low-cost prototypes. The cheapest of all materials is your own perception and your smile. Validate your concepts through role-playing or getting users' feedback quickly.
You can also experiment with new attitudes, words and behaviours. By trying out different things and finding out what works for you, you become smarter with your purpose. Not everything costs a lot of money.
The key is to move from ideas to action in a short space of time. Make them stick by making them work.
Integrative: Gain the big picture
If it works - start combining it with other aspects. If you start pursuing steps towards your purpose - you will soon find that you are well on your way there.
The process above is called design thinking and can be applied to any challenge. As a hitchhiker through your own life - you may want to pick up the tools for success and make them work for you.
Enjoyed this article? Why not share it?
But this does not help the person who is searching for success - so this guide may help you a bit on the journey, or at least inspire you to look at the topic of success slightly differently.
The angle here is that success is not something that happens to you - but something that you design. There are few authors who will claim that success can be achieved instantly - except the ones who teach you how to relax and take a step back from your high-strung life to reflect. The value of reflecting on what you want to achieve is that you can visualise what you want instantly - so voilà, your first instant success can be that you are thinking about what success means to you. This is difficult (but not impossible) to do when you are busy moving mountains and everything is moving so fast around you. The key to the practice of reflecting on success will only be unlocked if you make time for it.
Getting started: A place to think about success
And this is where the hitchhiker's guide starts. The first thing you need for real success is a place to think about it. Your favourite armchair may be good, beds (as long as you can lie down with your eyes open) or a meditation spot, or even your car (if it is neat and tidy). Return to this spot daily and have a reminder there to tell you to think about your success. Visualisation, idealisation and realisation should become your mantra for seeking something that moves your inner most being.
A worthy ideal: Setting a goal that needs to be achieved
If we are realistic, then we must realise that success requires that we actually do something. But do what? There are so many options - but the key to success is to succeed in something that you are passionate about. Broadly, this is described as finding a purpose.
Do you have a purpose? Do you have a goal that you want to achieve? Research shows that most people either set their purpose too wide or too narrow. Is your purpose to drive a new sports car? Or is to change the world?
These purpose statements may be too specific or too broad. So what is a good purpose? The best purpose is one that is your own and something that you can believe in.
One way to think of yourself is that you are not a linear person. You don't only have a purpose in one dimension of your life. What is your purpose or goal in each aspect of your life? This may include social, spiritual, emotional, financial, business, health, career, education, media, and political purposes or goals.
Another way to think about purpose could involve thinking about life stages. One formula says that when you are in your teens, you should view the world in stark contrasts - while reading poetry and the classics; explore the world and do what you want to do when you are in your twenties; learn when you are in your thirties; venture out when in your forties; start living when you are in your fifties; reinvent yourself in your sixties; and have a roaring time in your seventies.
Some people need a definite purpose, which can be phrased as a slogan or description of what you want to achieve. Some examples are given below:
"My purpose for being on this earth is to help others recognise, develop and use their God-given intuitive abilities to ease suffering and grow in goodness, love, compassion and wisdom."
"In life I strive to remember where I have been and where I will go, through maintaining positive relationships with family and friends."
"I live in peacefulness within myself by looking inward, while using my heart to guide my dreams and desires, and my mind to pursue knowledge, creating balance among all of my obligations."
"I am content with myself in my surroundings, so I will always know where security lies within my life."
"I build a reputation of being dedicated to every goal I choose to pursue while having success in both my personal and professional life."
"My purpose is to enjoy every moment along this journey, finding laughter, love and happiness with each day that passes."
"My mission is to learn and understand my clients' needs and the external factors affecting them so that I can aggressively and professionally represent them throughout the legal process. I clearly communicate my legal knowledge and experience, thereby enabling my clients to make well-informed decisions for themselves."
As indicated before - you may have financial, career, or multiple purposes. The key is to think about it - wait until it crystallises until you know what you are here to do.
Reframing: Seeing what is hidden
The next step as a hitchhiker through life is to find the right path. It may be hidden - so you have to discover it. It may not be where you are looking for it.
Take a step back and re-look at your life's challenges from different angles. Are there underlying assumptions that could prevent you from uncovering the real challenges faced? New research is showing that the biggest challenge with problem solving is that we solve the same problems the same way. It is almost as if you need to knock yourself on the side of the head next time you make the same mistake over because you have applied the same mental pattern to the problem!
So why have you not yet achieved your goals or targets? Think about your purpose in a new way and you will see some new possibilities. The path will reveal itself, or you may find that you have actually been on it all your life.
No person has ever achieved success on his or her own. No matter what you read, no matter what anyone tells you - it may start with an intense desire or burning longing to change something - eventually success involves others.
Learn to work in a collaborative and multi-disciplinary setting to encourage different perspectives in problem solving. For purpose solving, you need to work with others to understand what you do not.
Start building networks of people who can advise you. Also, give advice to others in the direction that you are interested in and start building your social skills in selling and developing your ideas.
Research shows that social intelligence is often the key to getting an idea sold. People who have great minds but no social skills end up failing - although they are brilliant. Some people are good with people and succeed. You decide what is more important - EQ or IQ.
Understanding the user: Know the person behind yourself
When designing a new path, you need to look at user behaviour. Through various tools and methods, you can gain a deeper insight into your users' behaviour and unearth their real needs and values.
You need to know yourself. What do you think and believe and where does this come from? Are you stuck in the past, living in the future, or rooted in the now? Why do you not like to do certain things, and why do you like doing others? Are you willing to change this if it would bring you closer to your purpose? Understanding the user is a critical internal process that translates externally in becoming more self aware, gaining confidence and being able to act on challenges.
You also need to know what you are good at. You also need to know what you need to be good at. When you combine these, you have a map of things that you need to work on. The good thing is that you are aligning your goals and purpose. Some people call this the art of praxis. Praxis is the process by which a theory, lesson, or skill is enacted, practiced, embodied, or realised.
Being practical is the key to success. To be practical - you need to know why you do what you do. Practicality allows you to be better at doing it.
Frame your opportunities: Build on your insights
Framing is the process of forming a framework of what you want. You may want a situation to yield a specific result. Framing the opportunity is to look for the aspects that you want to see. This process is used in design to come up with features that fit the user. Through framing opportunities you start to visualise aspects of the eventual solution. Some people brainstorm before framing opportunities. Research shows that it is more important to identify the big aspects of a solution first and then to brainstorm how to get there.
These big buckets are the frames in which your solution will proceed. Don't be afraid to reframe these later - remember as long as there is a move towards the purpose the frame is necessary.
Ideation: No idea is too wild
'Ideation' is fast becoming a standard word in business.
To become really successful you need to start thinking about ideas that will get you there. If you want to make a million Rand - first find a product that costs R5 that you can sell for R15 i.e. at a profit of R10. All you have to do is sell 100 000 and you've made your first million. This is a wild idea (for some). You now only have to find something that costs R5 that you can sell for R15. Most people will come up with a couple of ideas instantly.
What is a purpose if it cannot be acted on? Wild ideas may just lead to success.
Prototyping: Test it out
With simple and cheap materials, refine your ideas by creating low-cost prototypes. The cheapest of all materials is your own perception and your smile. Validate your concepts through role-playing or getting users' feedback quickly.
You can also experiment with new attitudes, words and behaviours. By trying out different things and finding out what works for you, you become smarter with your purpose. Not everything costs a lot of money.
The key is to move from ideas to action in a short space of time. Make them stick by making them work.
Integrative: Gain the big picture
If it works - start combining it with other aspects. If you start pursuing steps towards your purpose - you will soon find that you are well on your way there.
The process above is called design thinking and can be applied to any challenge. As a hitchhiker through your own life - you may want to pick up the tools for success and make them work for you.
Enjoyed this article? Why not share it?
Source - regenesys.co.za
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