The new year is just around the corner and it’s time to think of the things and habits that stole your success and happiness in 2014 in order to avoid making the same mistakes in 2015. While making mistakes isn’t a bad thing, learning how to avoid making them again is a challenging task. First of all, you should recognize your bad habits and things that prevent you from living a happy and successful life. The best way to do it is to make a list of all your habits. If some of your habits aren’t helping you be happy and successful, try to get rid of them. If you can’t recognize what makes you unhappy, check out my list of the things that probably stole your success and happiness in 2014.
1. Procrastination
The first enemy of most people is procrastination. It can make even the most productive person unsuccessful and it can ruin the career of the most successful worker. If you often procrastinate, find out the reason why you do it. You might say that you simply become lazy or you always feel tired. The truth is, you are not lazy, you just need to learn how to set realistic goals, make realistic to-do lists and manage your time properly. Don’t create never-ending to-do lists, it will only lead to frustration and low productivity. If you have lots of tasks to accomplish, try to do the most important tasks first, and then start accomplishing the other less important tasks. If procrastination stole your success and happiness in 2014, be sure to break this habit before the new year.
Read also – 8 Reasons Why You Always Procrastinate
2. Envy
It’s the second enemy of almost every person. We often spend too much time thinking about someone else’s achievements and happiness. Stop being jealous of your friend’s, coworker’s or neighbor’s success, instead, focus on achieving your own goals. Envying someone else’s success will get you nowhere. After all, why not start enjoying your own success? Just because you don’t earn as many as your friend does, doesn’t mean you are not successful. You don’t know the whole story. Maybe your friend hates their job and maybe they are not as happy as you think. In 2015, step off the envy treadmill and start living your own life.
3. Inactivity
If you want to be more successful in 2015, you shouldn’t stop learning new things. Many successful and confident people think that they know a lot of things they need in life and they don’t need to learn anything. If you one of them, it’s not surprising that this year wasn’t successful for you. You should cultivate your success to grow stronger and more capable. Don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone and try to make a habit of learning something new each day.
4. The past
Don’t live with the past. You can’t change it – what’s done is done. Letting go of the past mistakes and hurts isn’t easy, but it’s well worth the effort. In 2015, stop living in the past, drop toxic people, and break the old habits that make you unhappy. It’s always better to live in the present moment and make plans for the nearest future, since it’s the key to a happier, healthier and more successful life.
5. Holding on to people who don’t care about you
Sometimes it’s okay to walk away from people who hurt you and prevent you from reaching your goals and living a happy life. Don’t try to please them or impress them. In the new year, strive to spend more time with people who you love and who love you. When you are surrounded with positive people, you are able to achieve more success and keep yourself on the right track.
As you head into 2015, make sure you break your old habits and learn from the mistakes you made in 2014. We often make the same mistakes over and over again and it keeps us from reaching our goals and living a happier life. The new year is a wonderful opportunity to adopt new (good!) habits and get rid of bad ones. Don’t miss this opportunity! What things did steal your success and happiness in 2014?