Many of us dream of success from a young age – not just wealth, but a deep sense of happiness and fulfillment. We pour energy into developing our strengths, working tirelessly, showing persistence, and avoiding laziness. Perhaps, like the businessman Brendon Burchard, we reach a point where we have many markers of success: a good job, relationships, a comfortable home. Yet, sometimes, growth stalls. Life hits a plateau, and for years, it can feel like we're stuck, unable to move forward despite our efforts.

Burchard grappled with this. He understood the difference between those who succeed and those who don't achieve much at all. But a deeper question emerged: What distinguishes hardworking, successful individuals from those who reach truly outstanding levels of performance and fulfillment, achieving completely different results in life?

Years of dedicated research, culminating in the founding of his High Performance Institute, led Burchard to a compelling conclusion, detailed in his work on high-performance habits. The secret of the highest achievers, he found, isn't solely rooted in innate strengths or personal qualities. Instead, it lies profoundly in their habits. The right habits, consistently practiced, can empower anyone to achieve remarkable success. High performance, according to his findings across diverse groups, shows little correlation with age, education, income, background, or nationality. Habits, however, make all the difference.

But not just any habits will do. While journaling gratitude or adopting a new morning ritual can be beneficial, reaching outstanding results across all life areas requires focusing on specific, powerful practices. Burchard identified six crucial habits – three personal, three social – that consistently separate the extraordinary from the ordinary.

Personal Habits: The Inner Foundation

1. Seek Clarity

The most productive individuals invest time thinking about the future. They dedicate deliberate effort each week (often around 60 minutes) to identifying and developing the skills needed for future success. Think of top executives who build self-education programs around their core interests: maybe an hour on financial management, an hour of coaching to improve listening skills, an hour reading to hone strategic thinking, or learning a language.

This isn't about forcing yourself through a temporary course. Outstanding people weave learning into the fabric of their lives, much like watching a favourite show or seeing friends. To cultivate this:

First, identify your main area of interest and the key skills needed for success within it. Second, plan concrete actions to develop each skill and schedule them consistently. Third, and crucially, embrace the mindset: everything can be learned. Often, "I can't" simply means "I'm not willing to invest the time and effort to learn." Commit only if you truly believe developing this skill will enhance your life and is worth becoming a part of who you are.

This clarity extends to emotions. High performers exhibit strong emotional intelligence. They consciously decide how they want to feel before entering a situation, regardless of potential triggers. Consider this: you can experience fear (an emotion, a reaction), but you don't have to be scared (a feeling, an interpretation). You can consciously choose to feel calm and focused. Practice tuning into desired feelings before important activities – feeling love before family time, for example. The intention itself begins to shape the emotion.

2. Generate Energy

Sustained success demands a triad of energy: mental, physical, and emotional. Low energy can sabotage relationships, turn kind people into stressed individuals, and undo years of professional wins.

Consider integrating simple energy-generating prompts into your daily routine, perhaps during a quiet moment or shower:

• What can I be genuinely happy about today?
• What might cause stress, and how can I plan to respond positively?
• Who can I appreciate or offer gratitude, a gift, or praise to today?

Actively managing your energy reserves is vital for a quality life and peak performance.

3. Raise Necessity

Becoming outstanding is nearly impossible without a powerful sense of need or purpose driving you. To cultivate this feeling, connect deeply with why you strive. Is it for your family? Your partner? For yourself, seeking validation or greater opportunities?

Until the people or reasons you strive for become more important than the time lost to distractions like aimless scrolling or gaming, reaching your highest potential remains unlikely. Find the internal drive that makes your goals feel essential.

Social Habits: Interacting for Impact

4. Increase Productivity

True productivity isn't just about being busy; it's about achieving meaningful results without burning out. Regularly check your work-life balance. A simple weekly self-assessment (scale of 1-10) across key areas can provide valuable insight:

• Health
• Family
• Friends
• Intimate relationships
• Mission or work
• Finance
• Adventures
• Hobbies
• Spirituality
• Emotions

Focus on significant output. Weekly, identify the results that truly matter for growth in your field or industry. Write them down. Then, ruthlessly minimize distractions and dedicate the bulk of your time and energy each day specifically to activities that produce those key results.

5. Develop Influence

Outstanding individuals know how to positively influence others, inspiring them to help achieve shared goals. Influence is the ability to shape the beliefs and behaviours of others constructively. Research suggests this isn't strictly tied to innate personality traits – the excuse "I'm not good with people" doesn't hold up.

One common barrier to influence is simply not asking for what you want. People often underestimate others' willingness to help and overestimate the likelihood of negative judgment. Many successful and influential individuals aren't afraid to ask, understanding that collaboration often leads to results far more efficiently than solitary effort. They ask, and surprisingly often, they receive help. Muster the courage to ask, rather than letting fear of a judgment that rarely materializes sideline your dreams.

Furthermore, practice being a role model. A significant percentage of high performers consciously strive to be positive examples for their families, teams, or communities. They aim to motivate others towards excellence by sharing knowledge, living their values, and demonstrating desired behaviours through their actions. Consistently holding the intention of being a role model naturally curbs unproductive or harmful behaviours.

6. Demonstrate Courage

A defining trait of outstanding people is courage – the willingness to act and persevere despite fear. Like a muscle, courage grows stronger with use. Facing fears repeatedly lessens their stressful impact; even skydiving can become routine with practice. Success breeds confidence for future challenges. Problem-solving experience makes tackling new problems easier.

Start living boldly now. Learn to embrace challenges, viewing them not as roadblocks but as essential parts of the process – springboards for developing willpower and reaching higher results. No outstanding person achieved their success without overcoming significant difficulties. When facing hardship, remind yourself: "The difficulties I'm experiencing now are necessary. They push me to be courageous, strengthen my resolve, and use them to build a better future for myself and those I care about."

References:

• Burchard, B. (2017). High Performance Habits: How Extraordinary People Become That Way. Hay House, Inc.
  This book is the direct source for the "six habits" framework (often referred to as HP6) discussed in the article. Burchard elaborates on each habit (Clarity, Energy, Necessity, Productivity, Influence, Courage) based on extensive research, including surveys and interviews conducted through his High Performance Institute, providing detailed explanations and practical applications.