Success is a process. What makes a process a process, is consistency.

You must do certain, specific things every day in order to keep yourself moving forward, irrespective of how you’re feeling. You must remove the need for motivation or enthusiasm as a driver, in the pursuit of success.

Motivation and enthusiasm starts the engine, but habits keep that engine running, no matter how you feel or how your day is going.

The self-made millionaires in my study defined their dreams and their goals and then they did something that virtually ensured they would succeed in realizing their dreams and goals – they automated success by transforming goals into daily habits.

Let me give you an example.

Let’s say you’re a financial advisor and you set an audacious goal of increasing your financial services revenues by 50%. In order for that to happen, you determine that you must increase the number of clients you have from twenty-five to fifty.

How do you do it?

By making a daily habit of finding and pitching new prospects. If it takes 200 pitches to generate 50 meetings and 50 meetings to generate 25 new clients, that means you must pitch two hundred prospects.

Now, that seems like a very big mountain to climb. But, if you make a daily habit of pitching ten prospects a day, that will generate about twelve meetings, and ultimately, six new clients. If you keep at this daily prospecting habit, in less than five months, you will have secured twenty-five new clients.

To keep you on task, you can use a daily to-do list and pre-populate it with daily activities, tailored around your goals. The to-do list is your accountability partner, reminding you to engage in those activities every day.

Eventually, the daily goal-driven activities will become habits and you won’t need to use a to-do list to remind you to engage in them.

It is when your goal-driven activities become habits, that success becomes automatic.

Automating success, by transforming goals into daily activities that eventually become habits, will help you realize your goals and, in time, achieve success.

Very few pursue their dreams, big goals or success. Such pursuits require changes that have a way of shaking up our lives.

These changes always affect those closest to us – our immediate family and close friends.

And because change is uncomfortable, those affected most, fight back.

That push back often comes in the form of dire warnings of the risks and uncertainties by one or more individuals affected by the pursuit of your dreams, big goals or success.

When that doesn’t seem to work, it then devolves into a sort of collective effort, with everyone coalescing into a chorus, singing the tune of impending disaster.

When that group strategy fails, those most affected, resort to outright threats, hoping their threats will bring you back into the safety of the herd and away from the unforeseen dangers you will no doubt face if you continue your pursuits.

Most dreamers will, at this point, slink back into the fold, rejoin the herd and sideline their dreams, goals or the pursuit of success. Staying within the status quo of the herd, is just easier, less stressful and physiologically less demanding for everyone.

That is why there are so many more employees than employers.

Yet, while we are all hardwired to stay within our individual herds, we are also hardwired to create, take risks and to go for it in life.

These two diametrically opposed instincts continuously battle one another. It is a veritable war raging inside each one of us who desire to break free from our herds, in the pursuit of dreams, goals or success.

Only a few exceptional individuals are able to withstand the assaults on their dreams, goals or success.

We call these exceptional individuals, self-made millionaires.

“No man becomes rich unless he enriches others.” — Andrew Carnegie, at one time the riches man in the world.

In order to get, you must first give.

It is one of the universal laws of success and that law has never changed. In order to succeed , you must first give value to others.

One of the statistics from my Rich Habits Study caught me by surprise – 79% of the self-made millionaires in my study devoted five hours or more a month to some charity.

When I continued to peel that onion, I learned that many of the individuals who run non-profits or charities happen to be wealthy, successful people.

Coincidence?

I think, not.

It just so happens that wealthy, successful people become wealthy and successful, in large part, because they make a habit of giving. This desire to help others was a common thread among 79% of the self-made millionaires in my Rich Habits Study.

So, naturally, local, community-based charities and non-profits are awash in wealthy, successful people.

Birds of a feather, it seems, really do like to flock together.

Wealthy people have many relationships with other wealthy, powerful people. With one phone they can open up doors that are closed to ordinary people.

If you are not rich but want to become rich, one Rich Habit is to find out where the rich people are and start building relationships with them.

And you’ll find many of them sitting on boards of local charities, because birds of a feather, flock together.

“The successful person recognizes his God-given talent, works hard to develop that talent into skill and uses those skills to achieve his goals.”

—- Larry Bird, professional Hall of Fame basketball player.

Mark Twain is most famous for writing The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

But, long before he wrote his first book, Mark Twain was already famous throughout the world because he had one innate talent that he discovered purely by accident.

It happened unexpectedly one night at a public dinner organized by some printers to celebrate the founding of the typesetter. Mark Twain, at the time just twenty years old, had been one of the many typesetters invited to the dinner. Public dinners, back in the 19th century, were often followed by speeches.

Well, after the dinner plates were cleared, one by one, various speakers stood up and delivered their remarks. After the last speaker concluded his speech, one of Mark Twain’s typesetter friends called out for him to speak. Twain was unprepared, but nonetheless made his way to the dais and spoke, off the cuff and without any notes.

His native performance was so exceptional, he received an ovation from the crowd who had attended the dinner.

By accident, Mark Twain had discovered that he had an innate talent for speaking; specifically, for storytelling.

It wouldn’t be long before Mark Twain would fill halls with people from from San Francisco to New York City, who came to hear Mark Twain tell his stories.

We all have some innate talents or God-given gifts. These gifts, however, remain dormant until we expose them to the light of day. We do this through experimentation – engaging in diverse activities until we find an activity that we are just naturally better at than others.

Mark Twain’s was speaking and telling stories.

Mark Twain would spend the rest of his life, some 50 years, speaking and telling stories to halls around the world. His gift brought him fame and fortune.

When you find an innate, God given talent, you must exploit it by throwing yourself into it, as Mark Twain did.

“The two most important days of your life are the day you were born and the day you figure out why.” — Mark Twain.

Gratitude is recognizing all of the good in your life. Making gratitude a daily habit is a good thing because gratitude is the gateway to a positive mental outlook.

Having a positive outlook on life is critical to success because positivity expands your thinking, enabling you to see solutions to your problems, while negativity narrows your thinking, making problem-solving difficult, if not impossible.

Wanting is the desire to be, do or have something you don’t currently have. Wanting creates an itch that must be scratched. It stirs the passions deep inside of you, and can become a fuel for change.

When your wants are good, then wanting can be a catalyst that forces you to change. And change is how you transform yourself into the ideal, future version of yourself – successful and happy.

Wanting to become more expert in your skills, is good.

Wanting to become more knowledgable in your career or profession, is good.

Wanting to accumulate more wealth by saving more then you spend, or by becoming a Virtuoso in what you do, or by pursuing a dream, is good.

Wanting to forge relationships with other positive, success-minded people, is good.

The problem with wanting is in wanting the wrong things.

Wanting becomes bad when the things you want are meaningless, adding no real value to your life – an expensive car, a boat, a Rolex watch, a lifestyle of the rich and famous – these are all bad wants.

Having more stuff will not make you happy and will do nothing to help you change in a positive direction.

Wanting is good when it is used to force positive change in yourself or in the lives of others.

Without wanting, Dr. Carson, a poor child raised in the ghettoes of Detroit, would never become a brain surgeon and would never have run for President of the United States.

Without wanting, NASA would never have beaten the Russians in sending a man to the moon.

Without wanting, Henry Ford would not have created the first massed-produced automobile.

Without wanting, Thomas Edison would not have created the incandescent lightbulb.

Without wanting, Jonas Salk would have never found a cure for polio.

Wanting, when directed towards positive change, is a good thing.

And you should be grateful every day, that wanting has been hardwired into your DNA.

It is up to use to use your powers of wanting in a positive way.

That’s what successful people do!

About a month ago, the knuckle on my big right toe began to hurt. Since I run every day, I assumed it was just my body telling me to take a day or two off from running. Which is exactly what I did.

But the pain continued.

For the next two weeks, I ran while in pain. When I was done running, the pain increased and I found myself limping through my day. I decided to lay off the running for a while and jumped on my StairMaster, in order to eliminate the impact on my foot, with the hope the toe would get better.

It didn’t. In fact, it got worse.

Then a few days ago, my brain told me, “buy cranberry juice.”

I always pay attention to my inner voice because I know, from my many years of studying the brain, that, behind the scenes, the subconscious is constantly at work and, through intuition, guides you in solving your problems.

So, I went out at lunch and bought a bottle of cranberry juice. When I got home I drank a glass along with my dinner. Later that night, my inner voice said, “drink more cranberry juice.” So, I did.

In fact, over the next three days, I drank all of the cranberry juice. When I woke up on the fourth day, the pain in my toe was almost completely gone.

“Why?” I asked myself.

I Googled “what causes pain in the big toe?” and Google returned a number of items, one of which was gout.

“Gout!” I exclaimed out loud to my inner self.

At age 57, I had my first mild bout with gout.

Interestingly, cranberry juice is one of the things that is very effective in reducing the uric acid that builds up in the joints of the feet, causing the condition known as gout.

“The subconscious is all powerful”, I thought to myself.

Well, I’ve since been completely absorbed in understanding everything there is to know about gout and found out that your eating and drinking habits are to blame.

It dawned on me that since Thanksgiving and through the Christmas holidays, I’d been eating food I normally don’t eat. Namely, steak. I also drank more beer and wine during the holidays, than I normally drink.

At age 57, my rain barrel had overflowed. And from that overflow, gout resulted.

So, I thought this was a good teachable moment and decided to share what I’ve learned about this painful annoyance, in the hopes it might spare some of my readers from the pain of gout.

What Food/Drinks Cause Gout?

• Red meat
• Organ meats
• Seafood
• Alcohol, particularly beer
• Sugar-sweetened beverages

What Foods/Drinks Reverse or Prevent Gout?

• Cheery juice
• Cranberry juice
• Fruits, in general
• Vegetables
• Legumes (i.e. peanuts)
• Nuts
• Whole grains
• Eggs
• Coffee/Tea
• Herbs/Spices
• Vitamin C supplements

Cranberry and cherry juice, I learned, are very effective in eliminating the uric acid build up in the joints of the feet.

At lunch, I went out and bought more cranberry juice and a bottle of tart cherry juice. I will now make drinking both juices a daily habit.

Your habits create the circumstances of your life. And, bad Gout Habits, I learned, create gout.

Is There One Overriding Secret to Success?

I’ve spent the better part of 14 years interviewing/studying rich people and poor people. As a result, I’ve accumulated an enormous amount of research data. I’ve shared a good amount of my research with tens of millions around the globe, thanks to my friends in the media and my Rich Habits devotees.

One question I am constantly asked by those familiar with my books and research is this:

Did you find one overriding secret to becoming rich?

The answer is most definitely, YES!

There was one singular thing that I discovered which was most responsible for transforming the poor or middle-class into multi-millionaires. And this one thing transcended all of the best advice from the wisest purveyors of self-help.

What is this one thing?

Having a clear vision of who you want to be twenty years from now.

The self-made millionaires in my Rich Habits Study had a clear vision of the desired future version of themselves.

Why is having a clear vision so important?

Having a clear vision of who you want to be in the future is the springboard which forces you to change from who you are, to who you want to be. This clear vision sets in motion powerful forces, which transforms you into the person you need to be in order to realize success and its byproduct, wealth.

A Clear Vision Ignites Passion

A clear vision acts like a match to paper, igniting the fires of passion, stimulating you to take action. That action then further feeds the fires of passion.

When you light the fires of passion, work ceases to be work. It changes from drudgery to pleasure. And your mindset shifts from negative to positive, a critical success trait. Your life seems to take on new meaning.

Having a clear vision has another domino effect, triggering other powerful forces, such as revealing your inner talents.

A Clear Vision Exposes Inner Talents

We all have innate talents, or things that come easier to us than others. Unfortunately, most never discover their innate talents because they lack a clear vision of who they want to be and, as a result, the drive, motivation or passion to experiment with new activities, is hard to find.

There is a little-known energy source that lies dormant inside each one of us, until we arouse it. This energy source is your emotions.

When you discover an innate talent, you amp up the emotional centers of the brain, which then fuel all of your energy needs while perfecting your talent. This emotional energy enables you to practice for many hours without feeling tired or losing energy.

A Clear Vision Helps Define the Right Goals

A goal can be good or bad. Good goals help move you forward toward the realization of your vision. Bad goals don’t move you forward and are, in fact, time wasters. When you have a clear vision, you are able to see and separate good goals from bad goals.

Again, like a set of dominoes, those good goals then lead to the creation of daily habits which help you in the accomplishment of those goals.

A Clear Vision Forces the Adoption of Success Habits

Your daily habits are the construction crew that helps you construct your ideal, future life. When you have a clear vision, you will forge daily habits which will help move you toward the realization of your vision.

A Clear Vision Attracts Power Relationships

Power Relationships are relationships with influencers who can assist you in realizing your vision. These Power Relationships will be successful and often wealthy people whose inner circle can open up doors with one phone call.

No one succeeds in a vacuum. You need others who can help you become who you want to be. A clear vision attracts Power Relationships to you, like a magnet.

A Clear Vision Transforms Ordinary Individuals Into Virtuosos

A Virtuoso is anyone who has unique, advanced skills and knowledge. Society will pay Virtuosos a premium for their product or service, because they perceive Virtuosos as more valuable.

Once again, like a set of dominoes, the growth habits a clear vision births, enables you to become a virtuoso once you adopt those habits.

Growth habits are daily routines, such as reading to learn, deliberate practice and analytical practice. A clear vision forces you to do things on a daily basis which eventually transforms you into a virtuoso.

A Clear Vision Creates an Explosive Work Ethic

When you have a clear vision, you become passionate about the work you do which, you believe, will help you realize your vision. This passion triggers unrelenting persistence, as you march forward to creating the future you.

To the independent observer, this unrelenting persistence is seen as nothing more than a hard work ethic. But, a hard work ethic, so common among successful, wealthy people, is, itself, nothing more than an unrelenting persistence fueled by passion.

Becoming rich is a process. When you have a clear vision of who you want to be, that process reveals itself. Your vision acts like a GPS, guiding you along the correct path – the path that leads to mastery, success and wealth.

Sixteenth century astronomer Galileo Galilei, the first astronomer to use a telescope, changed astronomy forever. He used the telescope to help prove the earth revolved around the sun, a radical theory proposed by 15th century astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus.

Sir Isaac Newton helped shape our understanding of how the sun, planets and moons were held in place by a mysterious force known as gravity. Newton advanced his theory of gravity and motion thanks to Galileo and Copernicus.

Albert Einstein’s Special Theory of Relativity helped explain how space and time were linked for objects that are moving at a consistent speed in a straight line, changing forever, our understanding of the universe and its solar systems. James Maxwell, who advanced a Proto-Theory of Relativity, made Einstein’s discovery possible.

Almost every successful person stands on the shoulders of other successful people.

We all need others to help us succeed in life.

Finding successful people to help guide you in life, increases the odds of success and smooths out the journey. Their wisdom and guidance helps you succeed by minimizing mistakes, anticipating problems and overcoming obstacles. Their connections open doors that are otherwise closed. Their success habits can become a template upon which you build your individual success habits.

Successful people are more than happy to help others succeed because they understand one of the biggest secrets to success – climbing on the shoulders of other successful people.

So, find a successful person, whose shoulders you can climb on. It will dramatically increase your chances of success.

The study of the rich and the poor has led me down many rabbit holes. One very important rabbit hole was habits, which I am now certain dictates the circumstances of our lives.

But another important rabbit hole I ventured down, is something that every human seeks – happiness.

I’ve identified seven pillars of happiness. These represent seven core things that create happiness:

1. Rich Relationships – Who you surround yourself with dictates your happiness. If you surround yourself with too many negative, toxic, unhappy people they will infect you with their negativity and cause you great unhappiness. If you surround yourself with many positive, upbeat, optimistic, happy people they too will infect you with their positivity and cause you to be happy.
2. Pursue Your Dreams and Goals – When you put your ladder on someone else’s wall, you are essentially following someone else’s dreams and goals. Because they are not your dreams and your goals, eventually you will become bored or despondent with your life. When you follow your dreams and goals, however, that is where happiness lies. You need to pursue those things in life that make your heart sing.
3. Service to Others – When you give of yourself for the benefit of others, happiness results. This is why volunteering is so important – it makes you feel happy and fulfilled.
4. Good Health – When your health is poor, it creates great unhappiness. This is why it is so important to exercise every day and eat healthy food. When you pursue a lifestyle which benefits your health, happiness follows.
5. Financial Security – When you are unable to pay your bills or struggle financially, this creates unhappiness. When your wealth produces enough income to maintain your standard of living until you die, you eliminate the vast majority of your problems in life. Not having to worry about money, creates happiness.
6. Happy Family and Friends – When any of your family or friends is struggling in life, this makes you unhappy. As someone once told me – you are only as happy as your unhappiest child. When those around you are happy about their lives, that makes you happy.
7. Enjoy What You Do For a Living – When you hate your job, you are unhappy. When you love your job, you are happy. Doing work that you enjoy creates happiness.