The Achievement Habit summary

We assign meaning to everything. Whether we’re thinking about an incompetent boss or home ownership, we tend to forget the fact that our perception is subjective. Meaning isn’t fixed; it’s a matter of perspective.

For instance, your incompetent boss might wow you tomorrow with some breakthrough idea. And you yourself are similarly capable of reinvention. You might want to say it out loud: no one is just one thing, not you, your boss, your spouse, your children or your parents.

We always seem to have reasons for everything. Imagine you held the door open for an old lady in the morning. Then later in the day, you win the lottery. You might tell yourself that you were rewarded for doing a good deed. But really, your behavior had nothing to do with it. The relationship between those two incidents is correlative, not causal.

You might understand that fact on a rational level. And yet, chances are, whenever you’re late to a meeting, you probably hunt for some external reason – like traffic on the interstate. But in reality, you knew there would be heavy traffic on your route. You’re late simply because you didn’t make the meeting a priority.

We often think the road toward some desirable destination is blocked by lack of money, other people, or something else. But as we’ve suggested, the best way to overcome a perceived obstacle is by reframing our perspective on it.

Of course, for this to work, you have to be dealing with the actual problem and not something else. Let’s say you think you’re looking for a spouse. But is it possible that what you’re actually looking for is companionship, and that finding a spouse seems like the easiest way?

Chances are you won’t be able to achieve anything on your own. You’ll need help, so seek out people whose accomplishments match your goals.

You don’t have to follow their path, but you can learn from them. And don’t just focus on the positive attributes: paying attention to negative qualities is also productive.

What do you think of yourself? Are you an achiever? Well, you should start calling yourself one. Because ultimately, achievement is a matter of self-image. Meaning, if you start identifying as an achiever, chances are you’ll start achieving great things pronto.

As children, we construct our self-image based on what our parents and teachers tell us. But as adults, it’s important for us to truly own our self-image.