One of the best-kept secrets for business or venture success is finding the right people with whom to associate and imitate. When we learn from people who have successfully done what we hope to achieve, then we, by matching their beliefs and behaviors, can aim to be successful ourselves.
Think of it as hunting for moose.
How do you hunt a moose? Well first of all, I need to head to where a moose lives. Secondly, I must study the habits of the moose. Then, I’ll have to learn what interests a moose. What is it attracted to? And finally, I’d better be prepared for the moment when I finally meet the moose! Ignoring any of these steps will leave me empty-handed at the end of the day.
Bear with me vegetarians. I’m not saying the key to success is hunting. But the mindset of moose hunting can be the difference between success or failure. So follow these four steps if you’re serious about becoming successful in any venture:
- Find someone you can imitate! Your first step is to find a role model. Find someone who’s living where you want to live. Then start learning about what that person’s beliefs and behaviors are so you can start copying them. For example, when I wanted to get into e-marketing, I studied the success of Jeff Walker. I started absorbing the beliefs and behaviors that resonated with me into my own life. And I’ve already had a lot of success from that!
- Put yourself in a position to learn. After you find your role model, it’s time to find your mentor. Find someone you can trust and ask them to invest in your life with their wisdom. Listen to him or her, even if the advice runs counter to your beliefs. A winner’s advice can help you grow and change.
- Research where to look in order to meet successful people. So you’ve got a role model and a mentor, but you still really need to have a community of people in your life. Start looking in places you hope to eventually be! You must go where they live, learn their habits, and find out what interests them. Start networking and connecting with people as you explore the arena of your field. Don’t forget to be prepared for talking with them!
- Ask winners questions…about what they were feeling, thinking and seeing on their journey to success. Find out what they believed at the beginning. Ask about how that changed as they learned more. Find out what kind of questions they asked themselves at various stages of the process. If you ask successful people the right questions, you can discover their recipe for success! And once you have a couple of recipes for success, you can start adapting them all into your own personal recipe.
The fun part is that after all this time spent with people investing in you, you get to turn around and invest in others.
So how many of these steps have you been taking? Are you ready to go moose hunting?
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