Pitfalls That "High Achievers" Carefully Avoid

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Everyone admires people who achieve great things. With this admiration, though, go certain misperceptions, such as the notion that for people to be big-time achievers they have to be extremely intelligent, very highly educated or exceedingly well connected. In many instances, that simply is not so. Average people can and do make meaningful contributions to society everyday—one need not be a “super” person to be the authors of great accomplishments. Perhaps part of the problem rests in the fact that people often have differences of opinion regarding what an “accomplishment” actually is. Not only should one accurately define what such a thing is, within one’s unique world, but this needs to be framed within a referential framework—i.e., how does one’s definition relate or compare to other people’s perceptions. This is not to say that an accomplishment can only be an accomplishment if others deem it so; in fact, that need not be the case. Simply put, an “accomplishment” is anything that can serve as the “crown” or “reward” for an action or set of actions deliberately embarked upon or launched. In the quest for such “rewards,” people often develop or espouse certain qualities, characteristics and habits which help them achieve desired ends; they also, in general, strive to avoid pitfalls such as the following ones, which may delay or prevent the completion of said “ends”:

1. Sitting for too long on one’s laurels. It is okay to, for a short while, enjoy and admire one’s accomplishments, maybe during a celebratory occasion of some kind. But this can become a problem if people dwell for too long on these types of celebratory events. While some people are “partying,” celebrating their accomplishments, others are on their way to their next challenge. High achievers make a decision that accomplishments must continuously be sought, if one hopes to stay on top of things.

2. Rubbing elbows with negative or energy-draining people. Some people can definitely drag other people down with their negativity and gloom-and-doom perspectives. High achievers, if they want to stay high-achievers, actively avoid these types of people—in fact, they strive to find people who share their passion for accomplishments, stay surrounded with people who help to feed their internal “fires,” and regularly seek out fellow achievers. Some people will think that such people are being “snobbish,” when they see them clustering around each other at parties and special events, but there is more to it than that, from their perspective.

3. Tackling projects that were doomed to fail from the beginning or which did not appear to be particularly promising or practical. Unlike poor achievers, high achievers carefully evaluate potential ideas and projects; after they closely evaluate the pros and cons, they come up with logical, well-researched decisions. Yes, high achievers do take chances sometimes, risk-taking being an integral part of achievement-oriented personalities and natures, but they rarely do so blindly or when the majority of the evidence or technical information leans toward a likelihood of failure.

4. Accepting dead-end jobs. Sometimes, one has to accept a job so that one can pay bills but, when that becomes necessary, one needs to work hard to leave that job as soon as possible. Such jobs drain energy from people, offer no significant chances for advancement or progress, stand in the way of moving on to bigger and better things, and have no connection to what some people ultimately want to do with their lives.

5. Taking on too many projects at the same time. High achievers, in general, stick to one project at a time. After they complete one thing successfully, they then start on the next project. This may sound like an extremely simple way of doing things, but it really is the best way to operate, in most instances. This does not mean that multi-tasking is not a good idea, but, when it comes to major projects, things that can change one’s life, help move one’s career or education ahead, or define where one is going in the long run, “focusing ability” is what often separates high achievers from people who end up accomplishing very little in their lifetimes.

6. Wasting time on the phone conducting fruitless or meaningless conversations. That is not to mean that one cannot have romantic chats or enjoyable interludes with close friends and family—no, what is being referred to here are conversations involving work or discussions with aimless, focus-less individuals who have nothing better to do than to call others to “chew the fat.” It is best to formulate a strategy on how to best deal with these time-wasting-motivating individuals, which may include simply saying such things as “I’m sorry but I am in the middle of something right now—maybe we can talk at some other time?” Actually, high achievers strive not to waste time at all, not matter what the circumstances!

7. Not setting and sticking by a schedule every day. People who accomplish the most from day to day in our society could not possibly survive one day without a schedule. This does not mean that one has to subscribe to a schedule during every day of one’s life, but, when it comes to work and education accomplishments, it is best if set time frames, i.e., “schedules,” are set and abided by. It is no accident, for example, that most places of work have set work time frames—maybe from 9am to 5pm? People could not possibly accomplish as much as they do at work were it not for this. If no set schedule is plausible or desired, then one should at the very least make out a list of what to do each day, making sure to cross off things on the list as one goes along.

8. Not establishing short and long-term plans. Most people who become high achievers would not start or delve into anything without a plan. They may not necessarily write it on a piece of paper but they always have a plan, even if they compose and store such in their very-capable brains. A plan, simply put, is a map, one which provides details as to where one is going, how long it should take, what routes one will take, where to stop along the way, and what one my may expect along the way. While short-term plans may not be as important (although they may be as simple as making out a “to do’s” list), long-term plans are definitely a must, especially if one has high aspirations or desires to reach not-easy-to-access plateaus in life.

9. Not always striving for more education and training. There is no such a thing as too much education or training. Naturally, training and education should never interfere with one’s enjoyment of life or work responsibilities, but, if such can be interwoven, without too much interruption, into one’s life, then it should definitely be done. In general, education and training programs help to enhance and enrich one’s career goals and objectives; one’s personal life may also be enriched, if these endeavours can be carefully interwoven.

10. Wasting or mismanaging money. High achievers, early in their lives, learn about the importance of money—how it can be a door-opener, a crowbar, and a stepping stone to bigger and better things. A high achiever does not necessarily, though, make money the focus of his or her life, or the desired end result of one’s hard work, but, rather, a tool with which to accomplish meaningful things. Money, while it can be used to do much good and can elevate people to high plateaus of respectability and power, is simply not, in itself, much of an achievement, although some devout entrepreneurs may wish to disagree with this statement. It may come down, therefore, to what one can respect and admire the most—which is why everyone needs to define, in their own hearts and minds, what exactly is an “achievement” for them. What, ultimately, is more respectable and a bigger source of self-accomplishment: accumulating a million dollars (over a lifetime) or donating funds for the building of a new orphanage in the heart of a major city anywhere in the world?


by Fred Fletcher