We all know people who seem to go off the rails and never quite get their lives back on track. But we also know individuals who always have everything together and life seems to be firing on all cylinders.
The question is, what’s the difference between them?
That’s actually a surprisingly tough thing to answer. While it is true that certain habits are more likely to lead to success than others, staying on track is hard even when you are conscientious and fastidious.
Here are some of the qualities of people who stay on track in life. It’s not an exhaustive list, but it will give you some idea about what’s likely to work (and what probably won’t).
Self-Discipline
Self-discipline is one of the hardest things in the world to master. But once you get your mind around it, it changes everything.
Throughout the ages, philosophers have complained that laziness is one of humanity’s greatest vices. If people worked hard all the time on the things they knew they should work on, then the world would be a radically different place.
When people have self-discipline, these fruits manifest in their lives. While they might still make mistakes, they also have the motivation to continue pushing forward, even when things get tough. It might be a Sunday morning, but they are still thinking about their goals and how to achieve them.
Setting Goals
Plus, it turns out that that’s another important quality of people who always seem to stay on track in life. They aren’t afraid to set goals and hold themselves accountable.
These individuals tend to be clear on their values. They know what they want from life, and they’re not afraid to get out there and do it.
Furthermore, they often have a vision that feels bigger than themselves. They’re working toward something extraordinarily challenging, and they’re not afraid to continue to pursue it, even if things go wrong on the way. It’s their “North Star.”
Resilience
You also see incredible resilience in people who always stay on track in life. It doesn’t seem to matter which way the wind blows them, they continue moving toward the target, focusing on what they can control.
Many times, this resilience takes the form of grit and persistence. Even if people who always stay on track are facing legal allegations, they still hire the relevant criminal solicitor and push back.
Other times, resilience takes the form of positivity and optimism. Even if the world seems to be crashing down around their ears, that doesn’t take their focus off the thing in their life that really counts – their mission.
Self-Awareness
Finally, you also find that many people who continue moving forward in life have excellent self-awareness. They seem to know instinctively how others view them, and that helps to grease the wheels in all their social interactions.
Part of this involves life-long learning. They want to know more about themselves and how others view them to facilitate and foster growth.
So, those are the qualities of people who stray on track in life. How many of them do you embody?
