8 Simple Habits of Successful People That Are Easy To Replicate

The definition of ‘successful’ varies, depending on who you ask.

Some people think it’s wealth. For others, it’s happiness.

For most, it’s somewhere in the middle. A fulfilling work/life balance that challenges you nicely.

Whichever your definition, there are certain habits of successful people they all share.

Here are 8 we love that you can easily apply to your life:

1. Daily habits start with your morning routine
2. Read and learn something new every day
3. Surround yourself with positivity
4. Organize and visualize your way to success
5. Even successful people make time to relax
6. Successful people earn money in multiple ways
7. Self-care is crucial for success
8. Take action – make your ideas a reality

1. Daily habits start with your morning routine

If you’re an early riser, this part should be a lot easier. For those of us who aren’t, time to learn how to be!

Of course, we’re all different. You might crave coffee first thing, or you might want to take ten minutes to be mindful.

Source: GIPHY

Creator of the ‘4-Hour Workweek’ Tim Ferriss’ morning routine goes like so:

7.00 – 7.05am	Makes his bed
7.05 – 7.25am	Meditates for 20 minutes
7.25 – 7.40am	Drinks strong tea
7.40 – 7.50am	Journals for 5-10 minutes
7.50 – 8.10am	Eats a small breakfast
8.10 – 9.00am	Exercises for 20-90 minutes

Time is the most precious thing we have. Don’t waste it in the morning because you struggle to get up.

Successful people set a tone for their day with a solid morning routine.

Here are some suggestions:

• Set the alarm (or don’t) – Jeff Bezos (founder of Amazon) and Oprah choose to wake up naturally every morning.
• Wake up earlier – you’ll have more time to relax or get motivated!
• Drink water before coffee – you’ve gone hours without a sip overnight, time to rehydrate.
• Meditate/try to be present – set a tone of calm while your mind is clear before the stresses of the day creep in.
• Get active – this can be as simple as active breathing, stretching, pushups, or a quick walk/run.
• Have breakfast – fuelling your body allows you to perform better during the day.
• Spend time with loved ones – whether it’s eating with them or sending a text to check in.

Try a different combo every day for a week. Add in some variations. See which routine you enjoy the most.

Source: Kalyn Brooke

2. Read and learn something new every day

For most of us, daily learning stops once we leave school.

What makes successful people different? They make sure to put in the time to learn every day.

We’ve all got different learning styles, but we should always be working on them.

One of the most common habits of successful people is constant learning.

A few years ago, accountant Tom Corley surveyed 233 wealthy people (mostly self-made millionaires) on their daily habits. 

He found that 88% devote 30 minutes (or more) each day to education or self-improvement through reading.

Business Tycoon Warren Buffett credits a lot of his best money-making decisions to his obsession with reading. The billionaire is also notoriously frugal with money. Go figure.

If novels aren’t your thing, that’s ok. That’s where the internet comes in!

Learning can be broken down into bite-sized chunks. It doesn’t have to be just reading, either.

Why not start with trying to read an article, watch one video, or listen to a podcast episode per day?

Quuu Discover is the perfect platform for this. Pick the categories you’re interested in, see what content catches your eye, and learn something new daily.

Here’s a quick fact from a QD article: 

Did you know 1 billion plastic jugs of laundry detergent are used and thrown away each year in the United States? Unbelievable!

Science also supports the idea that we learn better alongside fun, positive emotions.

So, pick a format you enjoy and have fun with it!

3. Surround yourself with positivity

Positive thinking is naturally contagious. The bad news? So is negative thinking.

It’s all down to mirror neurons. These brain cells try to understand the feelings of others by mimicking those feelings in your own brain. 

They work quickly and subconsciously. That’s why it’s so hard not to yawn or laugh when you see another person doing it.

Source: 360Learning

This is why one of the habits of successful people is to surround themselves with positive people who inspire them. And you should too.

You’ll increase your motivation, collaborate better, and boost your productivity.

Of course, if you want to attract positive people into your life, you’ve got to have a positive attitude yourself.

Here’s how you create contagious positivity in and around your life:

1. Work on your patience
2. Show appreciation 
3. Give compliments often
4. Random acts of kindness
5. Be grateful for all you’ve got
6. Focus on the good things in your life

Think about it – how can you be successful if you’re surrounded by negative people all the time?

This applies to your business network just as much as your personal life. You should try to be friendly, positive, and uphold integrity at all times in the workplace.

If you want to find out how you can bring contagious positivity into a leadership role, check out this LinkedIn article.

4. Organize and visualize your way to success

Organization

It’s probably something that was drilled into you as a kid. Whether it’s stuck or not is a different story.

From cleaning your room to arranging your life – organization is key.

If you want to change your life, you need to have a plan in place. Not just short-term (for that day), but long-term goals too. Organization is one of the most important habits of successful people.

Time management is crucial for successful people.

Inc. wrote an article all about the little ways highly effective people organize their days differently from others.

Here are some of our favorites:

1. Identify one goal for the day
2. Focus on the most important thing first
3. Plan each day down to the minute
4. Keep your daily routine simple
5. Schedule focus time
6. Banish email from your mornings

Visualization

On the flip side of planning what you’re going to do, visualization is about focusing on things you want to happen.

The practice involves creating a strong mental image of future events. Set goals that you can already see yourself achieving.

By visualizing success, you can build up your self-confidence to help you perform well. It can also help your decision-making, as you have a clear end goal.

This can be in the form of journaling, making a mood board, or simply imagining it over and over.

Source: Readit Business

Visualization can help you in all areas of your life. That’s why it’s one of the most-used habits of successful people.

5. Even successful people make time to relax

There’s one thing that can stop even the most successful person in their tracks: burnout.

It happens when you’re emotionally, physically, and mentally exhausted from long-term stress. If you feel overwhelmed, drained, and like you can’t keep up – you’re probably experiencing it.

Source: GIPHY

Burnout hinders success. It’s the sworn enemy of entrepreneurship.

So, how do you avoid it?

Well, you need to make time to relax. For busy entrepreneurs, it’s hard to fully unplug. You might not feel like you can. But for the sake of your mental health, you should.

Great leaders know they can only lead effectively if they’re rested. That’s why it’s a habit of successful people.

Here are some ideas for avoiding burnout:

• Take a vacation and switch off
• Know your breaking point (and make sure you don’t hit it)
• Schedule time with no electronics
• Get into nature
• Plan ‘free time’ into your day
• Have a quick nap
• Work out for those endorphins
• Find a hobby you really enjoy

Try taking a break from social media, too.

Anything that stops you from being on your phone when you don’t have to be. There’s a whole world out there, man!

6. Successful people earn money in multiple ways

If recent events have taught us anything, it’s not to have all our eggs in one basket money-wise.

Take Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft, for example. He’s been buying US farmland real estate like it’s going out of style for the past few years.

From tech to tilling. But why?

The billionaire understands the importance of investment. Moving with the times. This is an important habit of successful people.

Now, investing could well be a step out of your comfort zone. If you’re new to the stock market, there’s a lot to take in.

This is where newsletters like Robinhood Snacks come in. 

They are such an easy way of learning about the market in bite-sized chunks. They’re also a brilliant form of content marketing.

Source: Robinhood Snacks

Or what about a side hustle?

45% of working Americans admit to having a side hustle. Some need the extra money to make ends meet. Most use it for savings or passive income.

So, other than investing, how can you create some passive income?

Here are 10 ideas:

1. Make YouTube videos
2. Sell photos on stock photography sites
3. Try affiliate marketing
4. Write a sellable book or eBook
5. Sell products (e.g., printouts)
6. Rent out extra rooms in your house on Airbnb
7. Take paid surveys
8. Start a blog
9. Become a virtual assistant (VA)
10. Drive for Uber or food delivery apps

Here are some more from Financial Wolves that include investing:

Source: Financial Wolves

Whichever road you go down, make sure it’s not a one-way street.

7. Self-care is crucial for success

Self-care is about making your well-being a priority.

When you take care of yourself (physically and emotionally), you’re giving yourself a much better base for success. It’s a habit of successful people that should be widespread.

As the New York Times put it:

“If self-help is about how to do, self-care is about how to not do. Self-care, though, has no organizing rules, slogans or major, best-selling books — yet.”

Successful people realize the importance. It’s time you did too.

Self-care can come in the form of:

• Exercise – (one of the most popular success habits) to release endorphins and feel good.
• Being kind to yourself – no one is perfect, don’t expect yourself to be.
• Mindfulness – meditation or focusing on your breathing can help you to feel calmer.
• A healthy diet – fueling your body means you’ll perform as best you can.
• Getting enough sleep – you should be aiming for roughly 8 hours of sleep a night.
• Taking lunch breaks – even if it’s a quick stretch of your legs during your workday, give your brain a rest.
• Journaling – writing and reflecting on your thoughts the next day can be therapeutic.
• Keeping in touch with friends and family – humans are a tribal species; we need that connection to feel secure.
• Get into nature – something most of us don’t do enough, but the benefits can be huge.

Workplace Wellness

Self-care in the workplace is now a massive industry. Stress management is a hot topic.

Champion Health reported:

“During 2020, Champion found that 58% of a 2,099 employee sample reported some form of stress at work, whilst as many as 69% experienced moderate to high levels of stress in general.

In terms of anxiety, similarly concerning levels were reported.”

Source: Champion Health

Workplace wellness includes activities and policies to encourage taking care of yourself.

Many businesses understand that their employees need to be healthy and happy to perform well.

Time to put some of that understanding into your own life.

8. Take action – make your ideas a reality

This last habit is super easy. But it’s also the scariest for many.

Do you have a great idea for a business or money-making scheme? Have you made any progress with it?

Sadly, for many, most great ideas stay as just that…ideas.

Why? Because people don’t have the courage, resources, know-how, time, or money to see them through.

It’s a habit of successful people that separates them from the rest: taking action.

Failure is always going to be a risk. You might fail before you succeed. Most of the greats did.

Richard Branson tried getting a few ideas off the ground before he struck gold with Virgin Records.

Think about it – how can you be truly successful if you never challenge yourself? If you’re not ok with failing along the way?

Failure isn’t a final destination; it’s a stepping-stone to greatness.

This Forbes article covers how to successfully convert a great idea into reality:

1. Believe in yourself
2. Create your own personal board of advisors
3. Embrace the risk
4. Be really patient
5. Learn how to sell your vision
6. Connect the dots along the way
7. Be passionate and purposeful
8. Build momentum and make the idea better as you go
9. Make work/life balance a priority
10. Build a legacy around your idea

The above will all come with time. Just take the first step today!

Conclusion

Lots of small changes in your life can amount to big ones.

Successful people aren’t perfect. They don’t try to be. But they work hard to be the best versions of themselves.

It’s more than possible for you to do the same.

Take each of these suggestions and apply them one by one. Customize them. Make them unique. 

Most importantly – make sure you stick to them. You’ve got to be consistent with it.

So, before we go – what were those 8 habits again?

1. Create a morning routine
2. Read and learn something new every day
3. Surround yourself with positivity
4. Organize and visualize your way to success
5. Make time to relax
6. Earn money in multiple ways
7. Prioritize self-care
8. Make your ideas a reality

See you at the top!

Which of these habits is hardest to stick to? Do you have any suggestions you think we’ve missed?