I received an email today, random stuff really. But just as if the universe wanted to tell me something, the lesson I learned in the past three weeks hit me hard. And here I use the main ideas from the email and elaborate them a bit further...

You might already have heard about the fact that extraordinary results come from doing something different... from challenging the status quo and shaking things up. So for quite a while now I have been trying to figure out what that really means... what does get me on a path to innovation, extraordinary progress and extreme success? Here are five things that I stumpled upon over and over again

1) Uniqueness

The ultra successful companies and people are aware of their difference. In fact they even use it to their full advantage. As long as I tried to please most people it did not only hurt myself, it also made me look beige. I am different - so what?! Being afraid that by being polar will alienate your friends, family or market is like killing your most valuable sales point. Only if you are true to yourself you start attracting the most specific group of people around you. The kind of people that make each other feel comfortable and focus their power on the facts and energy that can move mountains.

I don't want a one size fits all, "canned" solution. I don't want to be surrounded by people who want that. "Meike, you are annoying sometimes", someone told me. "I know." I answered. Maybe this is also because I am never to afraid to

2) Ask Better Questions

Many people think that super successful people have all the answers. Maybe - but they didn't get them from just divine intervention or from guessing. They get the answers from asking better questions.

Finding what to do takes asking hard questions to yourself, your friends, your co-workers, boss, peers and family. I read that average people tend to shy away from asking the tough questions because they are afraid of the answers they might get. I was compared to not going to the doctor because being nervous about what he might find out. Most successful people face new challenges head-on, ask the tough questions and tackle them regardless of the answers. If that makes me annoying - that's good...

3) Take Risk

Risk tolerance is a success trait that is hard to ignore. You know about the saying: "no risk - no fun". That makes so much sense... Who takes great risk can loose a lot... can also win a lot. Now don't go overboard with risk. Hedge your bets with high quality information and research. Put the work and time necessary to plan for and research the viability of a risky decision. This way, risk becomes calculated and you won't loose it all...

And in case you don't win (simply because life isn't a wishing list) you might understand that with every failure comes a learning experience. Make it a lesson leaned experience and gain extremely valuable information from you mistakes and failures. Do so by analyzing the situations and extract as many lessons as possible from the disaster. Then synthesize this information and create better plans for going forward. The super successful people don't wallow in the misery of their failures and stick their head in the sand to hide. They pick themselves back up and move ahead again. This time armed with new information.

4) Fight

... as if you were right. But listen as if you were wrong. Most average people try to avoid confrontation at all costs. They hate to cause trouble, make a scene or have to get in someone's face. This happens even to the point of missing out on something they are entitled to, paid for or are owed just so they don't have to confront the situation. They're happier practicing avoidance than strength. The overachievers on the other hand don't follow that thinking. They make it a point to engage in battle to get what they want, deserve or are passionate about.

The successful people are not afraid to hurt some feelings and be open, honest and blunt about what they think, want or need from anyone. They are willing to fight for what they believe in, their passion and their ideas. This is a leadership quality that allows them to achieve more, accomplish more and have others working for them and with them to accomplish everything they need to give achieve high degree of success and happiness in life.

Truth been told: that all reads very easy but is hard to actually turn into action. It is true though. Think about it. A few weeks ago Khailee sent me an article about practicing brutally honesty. And I can tell you: it feels darn good...

5) Leverage Time

We all have the same amount of time in a day. Some people just do more with it than others. I am not talking about the g-t-d tricks or force of being extra efficient 24/7. I believe that just doesn't feel natural to everybody. The "Trumps" of the world know the value of time and how to leverage it to get more accomplished. The average person thinks about time as a renewable resource not a precious raw material to

success.

So the next time, why don't you leverage time and stop trading it for dollars? Stop buying into a tit for tat mentality when it comes to the exchanging of time for money. Instead create systems that you build one time that work for you for eternity. Do it like the super successful and seek out and get involved with opportunities that are scaleable and deliver returns for long periods of time. Action and ideas are the currency of the rich.

So the next time everybody jumps off the bridge... at least think twice before you jump, too.