23 rules of being successful
career psychology
Of course, those are not hard and final rules, but trying to follow them will make your life easier. Probably :) But first - the most important of all of them:
- Happy wife - happy life
The rest are not in any particular order.
Tell the truth or, at least, don’t lie. We live in a very complex world and keeping it simple benefits all.
Try to do things that you enjoy. When you focus on things you like, work is much simpler, and the results are much better!
Train your attention to detail. There are two ways of working - going big or going small. A high-level view is important, but it usually comes with experience. Attention to detail is something that you need to work on.
Be open-minded in arguments. The worst thing you could do is participate in the argument without trying to understand the opposite point of view. You need to start every conversation with the the assumption that the other person might know something you need to know.
Be an active listener. Listen to others hard enough so that they share their knowledge with you. Your responses during a genuine conversation indicate that you value your partner and that the story that is told matters.
Maintain work-life balance Do you want to live to work or work to live? If you do not want to burn out - rest!
Leave the code/project in a better shape than when you started. If you started working on something - leave it in a better state. If you see unreadable code - refactor it; it might help you in the future. If the project documentation is unclear - improve it, etc.
Imagine who you want to be, and then work at that. Pretty cheezy and obvious “rule”, but based on the previous one, you are your life project. Pick the best target you can conceptualize and work toward it. Notice your errors and misconceptions along the way, and correct them.
Make improvements - one small step at a time. As I said in the 1 rule, the world is a complex system. The easiest way to work on a puzzle is to freeze all variables but one, make small changes only to that one and check the results. That’s how you cross the abyss - one small jump at a time.
Compare yourself to who you were yesterday, not someone else. You cannot know the whole story of other people, and everyone’s circumstances are different. Focus on your growth and your own goals. It is also much more pleasant to see that kind of result.
Maintain your connections with people. You will meet a lot of great people in your life. And the importance of friendship only increases with age. And it needs to be a conscious effort from your side to keep people around, to keep friends.
Make friends with people who want the best for you. It is totally fine to befriend people you like. But if they also can help you improve, to become a better self - even better. Even only from a self-centered point of view - good friends will be able to help you when needed.
Nothing well done is insignificant. I liked that phrase I heard somewhere. If you finish even the smallest of tasks, it is excellent. It will be a foundation for something bigger later!
Do not criticize others. It is easy to put on a high hat and criticize the world around you. But is it beneficial to anyone? Much better to try and help others where you can, where you have already achieved something.
Dress like the person you want to be. In our field of work, it is the norm to dress like a punk: some old “funny” t-shirts and vans. But if you want to grow (yup, I realize that I used this word a lot here, sorry) - better to put on an actual shirt and some formal shoes. It is almost like “fake it till you make it”.
Be precise in your speech. We use words to describe the world around us. The more precise you are with your words, the easier it will be for people surrounding you to understand what you want from them and why. To get everyone in the same boat.
Do physical exercises. Most of your time at work, you are sitting at your desk, shoulders put forward, back is round. It is not healthy, and you will regret it later. So at least sometimes, stand up and walk around the office. And do some sport in your spare time. For example, I like hiking :)
Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. Actually, we learn the most from our mistakes. Yes, it is frightening to start something new that you do not know, and there is no proof of success. Still, it is better to try and learn than do nothing and stagnate.
Do not hide your failures. If you did something wrong - please do not try to hide it. Much better to own your mistakes and fix them. It will not only help you get better - but it will also show others that you are an honest person!
Read books. In the current era, it is so easy to forget about books. There are youtube videos for pretty much anything. But I think reading is different and better. A book isn’t just paper; it’s a window to the author’s mind.
Spend some time with animals. When things are not good and hard, take a little break and pet a cat or dog. Go to a farm if possible. It helps to unwind 1000x times more than just sitting and staring at the wall.
Take a proactive stance when you see a problem If you notice that something can be improved or fixed - try to fix it. You can write a letter to your manager and propose a solution.
Doing something new is more important than repeating an old task. If you would do only the same old stuff again and again, you will never learn. And the world will go forward, leaving you behind. Unfortunately, we live in a constant race and must try new things to stay actual.