What separates the successful from the rest of the crowd: the successful get things done. Basically, the achiever provide results while the unsuccessful offer up excuses. In the path to success, there are no excuses. Ultimately, the task was either completed or it was not. There are no other possibilities.

Sports offers excellent examples for anything dealing with success. What makes most athletic events attractive is the fact there is a clear cut winner at the end. One team wins while the other loses. Certainly there are times when disputes occur. Perhaps there was a poor call that changed the outcome of the game. It is interesting to watch the caliber of coaches after the game. The ones who are top notch rarely will blame the loss on one play. While they might acknowledge that it was a factor, they will also point to a lot of other opportunities that their team failed to take advantage of. Of course, those coaches who do bemoan the officials usually end up out of a job in a short period of time. The reason being is they are in the habit of passing the responsibility on to someone else. This is a losers mindset.

Winners, whether it is in sports or life, take responsibility for the outcomes they receive. It is the only way to maintain some power in one's life. As long as an individual chooses to blame others, those people need to be changed before anything can take place. Of course, this is completely unrealistic. However, when one takes the onus for the outcome upon him or herself, instantly that person has the ability to change the consequences in the future. For example, as long as the officials are the reason that a football team loses, that team will not win until there is a change in the referees. Yet, a team that focuses their attention on all the other areas of the game that they misplayed will be able to make adjustments to move towards winning. The same holds true for you in your life.

Doing those things that you say you are going to do is a terrific starting point. Too many people fail to uphold their word by not following through. The highly successful always follow through on those things they promised. This is what builds trust, a vital component for success. Having the trust of others will enable you to enlist the services of others. Many people find that they need to walk the path towards success alone since others cannot depend upon them. A way to avoid this is to get done whatever you say that you will. Resist any temptation to offer up excuses for failing to do this. This places the responsibility on something outside yourself. Put the onus back upon yourself by doing whatever is necessary to complete the task. This is a winner's mindset.

How does one go about making a change in behavior that was fostered over decades. Begin by doing all the little things that you tell others about. It matters little if you can 'get away with not completing it'. Certainly there are a lot of task that as so unimportant that the outcome impacts us only slightly. However, we are concentrating on the behavior more than the importance of the activity. Keeping our word in all our affairs is a tremendous way to build trust among others. People are always looking for people that they can count on. This is true regardless of the organization. Employers want to have employees that they can rely upon to get things done. Lovers want someone they can turn to in a time of need. Anywhere that people are involved with a common purpose, dependable people tend to stand out. Do you want to be one of those people? If so, start by adopting this simple philosophy: In everything I do, I either got it done or I did not; there are no excuses.