Well, you know what they say…success starts with you. It’s shocking how many people chase success, happiness and money without working on themselves. They’ll be working their ass’ off to succeed in their career, but let themselves gain enormous amounts of weight, or stop learning awesome skills just because their job doesn’t directly require them.

You know what I mean, don’t you? If success does indeed start with you, then we should probably all be focusing on self-growth first before anything else. Like the old saying goes; you can’t go putting the cart before the horse.

Here are 7 well kept secrets that’ll help accelerate your self-growth:

1. It’s Okay to Be Stubborn, Sometimes

Most would regard stubbornness as a bad thing. It means that someone doesn’t want to listen to what you want to say, they don’t take your opinion into account, and they always believe they’re right, even when they’re not.

In that sense, stubbornness can often be a very bad thing. Especially in the eyes of those who are on the receiving end of it. However, let’s flip this for a second.

In a world where people are constantly putting you down, saying that your dreams and goals are unreachable, and trying to tell you what you should and shouldn’t do, maybe they’re also being stubborn.And maybe you need to be stubborn to say; “No. I will follow my dreams. I believe they’re possible. This is what I want, and I’m going after it.”

2. People Have Already Left a Trail for You to Follow

Self-growth isn’t hard once you realize just how many people have managed to dramatically improve themselves. What’s more, is that they’re likely to leave a trail of information and advice that you can easily follow.

Whether it’s studying them in person, asking them questions, watching videos they’ve recorded… you name it. If you ever want to better yourself at any given skill, look at somebody who’s already become a professional at it. There’s a lot to be learned from them, and you don’t have to figure it out all on your own.

“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

3. Tomorrow is Never Promised to Anyone

The saying above tends to push people to move faster than they’ve ever moved before. Knowing that there might not be a tomorrow, is a huge driving force for most people who are often leaving things until the next day.

Success loves speed. When you treat every day like it could potentially be your last, you’ll be moving at speeds most will never be able to match. Which brings me to the question…What are you putting off until tomorrow?

4. You Can’t Be Great at Everything, But You Can Be Phenomenal at a Few Select Things

You know what’s the one thing that hinders people’s growth more than anything? Trying to be great at everything. Every single thing. When you do this, you split your focus evenly across every skill or aspect of life you’re trying to be great at.

And if you’re splitting your focus across 100 different things, that’s 1% of your energy being devoted to each individual skill. You can’t become great by putting in 1%. Don’t get upset if there’s certain things you can’t become great at. Just pick several select things that’ll contribute to your overall wealth, health, love and happiness. Those are the 4 cornerstones of life.

5. Time Can Never Be Bought Back

I always say that time is the most important thing we have in life, and yet it’s always the thing people take advantage of the least. You won’t ever get your time back, so you must be very careful as to what you’re exchanging your time for.

Do you spend it complaining, worrying, doing things you hate? How do you spend your time, and is it being spent to the best of your ability.

“Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin.” ― Mother Teresa

6. Knowledge is Everywhere, Action is What’s Lacking

Google believes there’s a total of almost 130,000,000 books ever written. So let’s say that the average number of pages in a book is 250, and the average number of words per page is also 250. Both reasonable averages.

That’s 62,500 words per book, and that’s 8.125 trillion words in total. If you’re honestly saying that the answers you’re seeking for self-growth aren’t covered in those 8 trillion words anywhere, then you should probably do the math again.

The knowledge already exists, but it’s the action that people don’t often take. If knowledge was the whole equation, it would be incredibly easy for us to become the best version of ourselves, because it already exists. What you need is action. Action to take those steps.

7. You Don’t Have to Force Yourself Forever, Just Until It Becomes Habit

Most people hate the thought of adopting new habits, because they believe they’ll have to have the willpower to do these things for the rest of their life!

It only takes 66 days of hard work and willpower to make something a habit. After that, it becomes natural, and enjoyable; like second nature! The 66 days it takes to form a habit used to be regarded as 21 days, but that’s just not cutting it anymore.

It saddens me to see people who have reached the top of the ladder in their careers, but that’s all they know. They’ve thrown their health, personal life, hobbies and other skills out the window.

What’s stopping you from accelerating your self-growth? Leave a comment below!