5 Traits of Every Great Achiever

Have you ever wished that you could be one of those people who seems to get tons of stuff done? The kind of person who seems to accomplish more in a single lifetime than 10 of us regular folks manage to do in a whole generation?

You can be like that.

What’s absolutely fascinating about people who get tons of stuff done—the Steve Jobs’ or Richard Branson’s of the world—is that they all seem to have a remarkably similar set of characteristics that allowed them to be able to accomplish so much in relatively short periods of time.

The good news is that these epic achievers aren’t some kind of alien race or people lucky enough to have been born with superpowers. All of the traits that made them so wildly successful are characteristics that you can pick up too. All you have to do is slowly start incorporating the mindsets that these individuals have.

Let’s examine 5 traits of all great achievers:

1.) Taking action. I talk about this a lot, and there’s a good reason for it—nothing gets done if you don’t take action. Dreaming big is fine (and a whole lot of fun), but unless you get moving and actually do something about it, a dream is all it’ll ever be. Great achievers know this, and they’ve worked out their “taking action muscle” to extreme proportions. Think about something on your to-do list that you’ve been putting off and go do it!

2.) Persistence. This trait goes hand in hand with taking action—sometimes when we do get off our buns and take action, we end up getting knocked back down. Instead of staying down, great achievers get back up over and over again. If you want to be truly great at getting things done and leading the life you want to live, you’ll have to learn that taking a few lumps along the way is unavoidable.

3.) A strong sense of purpose. Achievers know what they want. They don’t always know how to get it, but they’ll be damned if they aren’t going to figure it out. If you feel aimless or lost, start sorting things out as soon as possible—figure out what you really want to do with your life and run with it.

4.) The ability to keep organized. Staying organized in your life, your work, and your mind will have a profound effect on the number of things you can accomplish. Like playing a game of chess, excellent organizational skills will allow you to keep two steps ahead of your opponents at all times. Clean out the clutter and see if it doesn’t boost your motivation, and I’m not just talking about your desk drawer.

5.) Patience. You know the saying, “nothing worth achieving can be done overnight.” Great achievers don’t just know this, they accept it. It’s a tough one, but the sooner you become comfortable with patience, the better. You’ll be able to say “that’s all right” when something doesn’t happen right away—but you’ll keep plugging away down the path you’ve chosen, because you know that things will always pay off if you give them enough time.