OPINION: HARVEY MACKAY — The ABCs of success

Success is a journey, not a destination. You may take a few detours, hit some roadblocks and arrive at a different place from what you planned.

Success comes in many forms and means different things to different people. In the working world, it is often defined as landing the perfect job, achieving a targeted income level, occupying a corner office or owning a business. However you measure it, success is sweet. And it doesn’t happen overnight.

Here are my ABCs of success to help you be successful.

A is for adversity. I have never met a successful person who hasn’t had to overcome either a little or a lot of adversity.

B is for boredom, the kiss of death for anyone who wants to get ahead in life. It’s even worse for anyone who truly wants to love what they do.

C is for competition. The existence of competition is a good sign. No one ever set a world’s record competing against themself.

D is for demonstrate. Find concrete ways to demonstrate how valuable your presence is to the company, your customers and your community.

E is for eagerness. The successful people I know display an eagerness to improve and get the job done.

F is for faults. Few of us lead unblemished personal or professional lives. It’s the ability to overcome and learn from our faults that counts.

G is for guarantees. There are none in this life, but there are creative ways to better your chances. You can, however, guarantee your customers and co-workers that they can depend on you to always give your best.

H is for happiness. To me, happiness is the key to success, not vice versa. Only you can draw the map of the route to your happiness.

I is for I’ll take care of it. There will always be a place for the person who says “I’ll take care of it,” — and then does it.

J is for job. There is something unique and memorable about each one of us. It’s our job to find out what it is and let other people in on the secret.

K is for keen. You must develop a keen sense of what your customer wants, what your company needs from you and the best way to deliver both.

L is for love what you do, do what you love and you’ll never have to work another day in your life.

M is for morals. A solid moral compass is critical to succeeding. Anything less than stellar ethics diminishes success.

N is for navigating shark-infested waters and learning how to swim with the sharks.

O is for optimism. Optimists are people who make the best of it when they get the worst of it.

P is for persistence. Much of what makes people successful is persistence.

Q is for quintessential. Successful people always strive to be the quintessential example of quality and decency.

R is for resourceful because resourceful people can see the upside of down times. They are not willing to give up just because things get complicated.

S is for success. If you want to double your success ratio, you might have to double your failure rate.

T is for things others don’t like to do. Successful people do them so they can then do the things they enjoy.

U is for university. Most people drive an average of 12,000 miles a year. Turn your car into a university and listen to self-help podcasts and motivational lessons.

V is for victory. Celebrate victories, large and small, along the road to success, and be sure to thank those who helped you along the way.

W is for work. It’s not enough to work hard or work smart. You have to work hard AND smart. There are many formulas for success, but none of them works unless you do.

X is for eXchange of ideas. Unless you are able to communicate in a forceful, polite, effective way, the day is going to come when what you’ve learned won’t be enough.

Y is for Yoda. Yes, the Jedi master. Everyone benefits from mentors like Yoda in their quests to succeed. Once you have achieved success, be a Yoda for those who can benefit from your guidance.

Z is for zone. When you are in the zone, things just click. Success is all but guaranteed.

Mackay’s Moral: Some people succeed because they are destined to, but most people succeed because they are determined to.

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Harvey Mackay is the author of the New York Times best-seller “Swim With the Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive.” He can be reached through his website, www.harveymackay.com, by emailing harvey@mackay.com or by writing him at MackayMitchell Envelope Co., 2100 Elm St. SE, Minneapolis, MN 55414.