People say life is full of ironies. School system preaches following the rules and regulations but entrepreneurs, business tycoons, and media influencers are encouraging people to think outside the box and disrupt the status quo. Media is both promulgating real beauty and perfect beauty. Some advertisement campaigns would celebrate facial quirkiness and uniqueness: wrinkles, freckles, tooth gaps, etc. but others would show flawless, porcelain and poreless skin. Religion teaches us the money is not something to chase and seek but people find security in their possession and amount of money in their bank account. They say that the only constant thing in life is change but in the course of the pursuit of happiness, happiness is associated with contentment.

When everything is going fine- great career path ahead, stable finances, good relationships and healthy self- it is so easy to stay still in complacency.  Seeking for more and much better successes in a different aspect of your life might be something too ambitious; after all, your life is great. Many people thrive in the ordinary and mediocre experience. They are easily satisfied and might feel that the life they are living right now is pretty okay so why rock the boat. Mediocrity prevents people from achieving their personal best in life. This state of mind limits the individual from seeking greener pastures and challenging one’s self to excel out of his/her comfort zone. There are ways to live up to your potential and escape the routine and ordinary life.

Stay Focused

Prioritize your goals and dreams in life. It is similar to goal setting. Success is expected to come to a person when there is a focus on a particular purpose. You can’t be a jack of all trades and at the same time, attain excellence in every pursuit of life. Some areas in your life need minimal effort and time. Save your energy for things that you care the most. “The most helpful definition of being positive is having hope and confidence in one’s ability to handle what’s tough, along with remembering that nothing is all negative all the time,” explains Jo Eckler, PsyD.

Don’t settle for boundaries and border. Dream without hesitation and entertain big dreams. Don’t be too comfortable in your comfort zone and just, live life by getting by. Grab life unapologetically and squeeze everything it has to offer.

Practice Purposefulness

Geniuses are not born. The level of excellence of these geniuses wouldn’t be possible without careful practice. Pick a discipline to master in and identify your weaknesses in that particular area. Next, work on the weaknesses and slowly unlocked milestones until you are an expert on the subject.

Always Be Consistent

Effective weight loss is not possible with healthy weekday meals and binge eating on weekends. Any significant result in life happens with consistency. Mediocrity is reached when individuals made commitments but failed to follow through.

No Excuses

“Most people have a loud inner critic which makes their life more stressful.”  David Klow, a licensed therapist used to say. No, you can’t make creative excuses and blame the inconsequential results on anybody or anything other than yourself. Be your critic. Don’t be too lenient on yourself.

Forgive Yourself

Failure is part of success. When this happens, accept and learn from these mistakes. Don’t dwell on the past and carry on self-hate because you messed up. Forgive yourself and let it go. “The strength of forgiveness has been shown to have a powerful buffering effect on stress. Those who are highly forgiving of themselves and others have a far less chance of having a mental illness.” Ryan M. Niemiec Psy.D. said.

Be Merciless

The term “overnight success” is extremely rare. It will take an effort to achieve your goals. Find solace in the fact that constant hustle will result in more knowledge and excellence in the long run.