Achieving Excellence means you must have :

Optimism

Optimism is power. This is a secret that was discovered by all those who managed to succeed against
great odds. Nelson Mandela, Ernest Shackleton, Eleanor Roosevelt—all admitted that what got them
through tough times was an ability to focus on the positive. They understood what Claude Bristol called
“the magic of believing.” Yet great leaders also have an unusual ability to face up to stark reality, so
creating a single powerful attribute: tough-minded optimism.

Optimistic people tend to succeed not simply because they believe that everything will turn out right,
but because the expectation of success makes them work harder. If you expect little, you will not be
motivated even to try.

A definite aim, purpose, or vision

Success requires a concentration of effort. Most people disperse their energies over too many things
and so fail to excell and be outstanding in anything.

In the words of Orison Swett Marden: “The world does not demand that you be a lawyer, minister,
doctor, farmer, scientist, or merchant; it does not dictate what you shall do, but it does require that you
be a master in whatever you undertake.” So to be successful, you must have higher aims and goals and
relentlessly pursue their realization.

Willingness to work

Successful people are willing to engage in drudgery in the cause of something marvelous. The greater
part of genius is the years of effort invested to solve a problem or find the perfect expression of an idea.
With hard work you acquire knowledge about yourself that idleness never reveals.

A law of success is that, once first achieved, it can create a momentum that makes it easier to sustain. As
the saying goes, “Nothing succeeds like success.”

Discipline

Enduring success is built on discipline, an appreciation that you must give yourself orders and obey
them. Like compound interest, this subject may be boring, but the results on the long term can be
amazing. Great achievers know that while the universe is built by atoms, success is built by minutes after
minutes; they are masters when it comes to their use of time.

An integrated mind

Successful people have a good relationship with their unconscious or subconscious mind. They trust
their intuition, and because intuitions are usually right, they seem to enjoy more luck than others. They
have discovered one of the great success secrets: When trusted to do so, the Non-rational mind solves
problems and creates solutions.

Non-stop reading

Look into the habits of the successful and you will find that they are usually great readers. Many of the
leaders and authors covered here in this article attribute the turning point in their lives to picking up a
certain book. If you can read about the accomplishments of those you admire, you cannot help but lift
your own sights. Anthony Robbins remarked that “success leaves clues,” and reading is one of the best
means of absorbing such clues.

Curiosity and the capacity to learn are vital for achievement, thus the saying “leaders are readers.” The
person who seeks growth, Dale Carnegie said, “must soak and tan his mind constantly in the vats of
literature.”

Risk taking

The greater the risk, the greater the potential success. Nothing ventured,nothing gained. Be action
oriented.

Realizing the power of expectation

Successful people expect the best and they generally get it, because expectations have a way of
attracting to you their material equivalent.

Since your life corresponds pretty much to the expectations you have of it, the achiever will argue, why
not think big instead of small?
Mastery

Advanced beings can turn any situation to their advantage. They are “masters of their souls, captains of
their fate.”

When other parties are involved, they will seek solutions in which gains are maximized for all. In the
words of Catherine Ponder:

“You do not have to compromise in life, if you are willing to let go of the idea of compromise.”

Well-roundedness

Achievements will mean little if you lack the capacities to love, listen, and learn which are vital for our
own well-being, and without them it is difficult to have the fulfilling relationships that we need to both
renew us and inspire achievement.

Persistence

Your success in achieving anything you want or changing your mindset will depend on how persistent
you are in planning your actions and carrying them out , learning from mistakes and how determined
you are to keep going when all those around you highlight your failures.

Some lessons can be learned from the following Famous Failures .. For Persistence

Chester Carlson took four years and rejections from IBM, GE and RCA before the Haloid Company took
his invention and renamed their company Xerox after it.

James Dyson took five years and 5,127 prototypes to invent the world’s first bag-less vacuum cleaner.
Before he manufactured it he nearly became bankrupt, due to the worldwide patent fees. He is now
probably Britain’s first billionaire inventor.

Thomas Edison had 7,000 failed attempts to design a latex rubber plant and 11,000 failed experiments
before he invented the electric light bulb. When he died he had 1,052 patents in his name.

Walt Disney went to 312 banks before he secured backing for his cartoon animations. He was also
bankrupt seven times.
Marconi’s friends had him institutionalised when he announced he could send messages through the air
without the aid of wires or other physical means of communication.

Abraham Lincoln failed in business 1831 and :

● Ran for legislature and lost 1832

● Failed in business again 1834

● Sweetheart died 1835

● Had a nervous breakdown 1836

● Lost his second political race 1838

● Defeated for Congress 1843

● Defeated for Congress again 1846

● Defeated for Congress yet again 1848

● Defeated for U.S. Senate 1855

● Defeated for Vice President 1856

● Defeated for U.S. Senate 1858

Abraham Lincoln was elected the sixteenth President of America 1860