Commit to Developing Success Competencies

If you want to succeed, you must commit to three things. First, you must take personal responsibility for your success. Only you can make you a success. You need to be willing to do the things necessary to succeed. Second, you must set high goals -- and then do whatever it takes to achieve them. Third, stuff happens; as you go through life you will encounter many problems and setbacks. You need to react positively to the negative stuff and move forward toward your goals.

I read an interesting article on the Huffington Post website by James Arthur Ray the other day. Mr. Ray is President of James Ray International, recently named by Inc. Magazine as one of the 500 fastest growing businesses in America. His article on was called "Health Care: Whatever Happened to Personal Responsibility?" 

In summary, he suggests that we all need to commit to taking personal responsibility for our health by doing five things...

1. Start a daily meditation practice. This can be as little as 10-20 minutes but research has proven the stress-relieving and health benefits. Not to mention, it's been proven to extend your life.

2. Have an empowering social network. If your friends are what I call "energy vampires," always having drama and complaints in their life and always focusing on the negative, you're going to get sucked in. Conversely, if you choose your friends wisely, invest time with those who are inspired by life and have a grand purpose to fulfill; you'll be more inspired as well.

3. Make your home a sanctuary. Your home should be filled with the things that make you feel peaceful, and it should create an environment that you can't wait to "come home" to.

4. Work out regularly. Do something for your cardiovascular health, your flexibility as well as your strength at least 3-4 times per week. You'll feel better, look better and have more physical and mental stamina.

5. Eat to live, don't live to eat. While many foods available may taste good, their nutritional value often ranks right up there with cardboard. Keep your diet high in lean proteins, avoid red meat and fats and get plenty of greens. Greens are living foods filled with energy, and if you want to have high energy, you can't get too much of them.

The piece concluded with this bit of common sense advice. "When we individually begin taking more personal responsibility for our own health and our own lives in every area, we feel more empowered, more inspired and alive and more in control. Transforming our government and our world begins with transforming our self."

I agree with what James has to say about health and fitness. I don't meditate, but I do try to follow each of his other suggestions. However, I think that there is another important point about what he has to say. We all need to commit to taking personal responsibility for not only our health, but for our career and life success.

You can do this by developing your competencies in four important areas. Here's how I think of them....

Successful people are competent in five areas:

1. Successful people create positive personal impact.
2. Successful people are outstanding performers.
3. Successful people are dynamic communicators.
4. Successful people are interpersonally competent.

People who create positive personal impact have at least three things in common:

1. People who create powerful personal impact develop and constantly promote their personal brand.
2. People who create powerful personal impact are impeccable in their presentation of self.
3. People who create powerful personal impact know and practice the basic rules of etiquette.

Outstanding performers have at least three things in common:

1. Outstanding performers are technically competent. They remain technically competent because they are lifelong learners.
2. Outstanding performers set and achieve high goals.
3. Outstanding performers are organized. They manage their time, stress and lifestyle well.

Dynamic communicators have at least three things in common:

1. Dynamic communicators are excellent conversationalists.
2. Dynamic communicators write in a clear, concise easily readable manner.
3. Dynamic communicators are excellent presenters - to groups of two or 100.

Interpersonally competent people have at least three things in common:

1. Interpersonally competent people are self aware. They understand themselves and their impact on others. They use their self awareness to increase their understanding of others.
2. Interpersonally competent people build solid, long lasting mutually beneficial relationships with the people in their lives.
3. Interpersonally competent people are able to resolve conflicts with a minimal amount of problems and upset to relationships.

You can demonstrate your commitment to taking personal responsibility for your career and life success by beginning to working on developing each of these competencies. 

The common sense point here is simple. Successful people commit to taking personal responsibility for their personal and professional success. They do the thing they need to do to ensure that they succeed. One way that you can demonstrate your commitment to your success is by becoming competent in four key skills: creating positive personal impact, performing in an outstanding manner, becoming a dynamic communicator and developing your interpersonal competence. If you commit to becoming competent in these four areas, you'll be on your way to a lifetime of success.