By age 40 Toot, Toot! Attention, Men!
By age 40, if you’re still spinning your wheels, it’s time to wake up and take charge. The clock doesn’t stop, and every day you’re either building a life you’ll be proud of or digging yourself into mediocrity. These aren’t suggestions; these are survival tactics if you’re serious about success, discipline, and purpose.
1. The Power of Possibilities—Stop Complaining and Start the Creation Process
Yes, it is a fact that some people get better-paying job opportunities through strategic play of connections or maybe just sheer luck. Instead of wasting your valuable time envying your fate, learn the value of creating your own luck in life.
Instead of resenting their success, take time to examine the roads they have traveled and apply those strategies which have led them to reap benefits in the professional world. After all, “You make your own luck if you work hard and know where you’re going.”
It is time to stop expecting handouts from people and instead adopt the culture of hard work and resilience by beginning to hustle for what you want.
2. Eliminate the Distractions Before They Totally Hijack Your Ambition
Distractions are silent but deadly killers of any real progress in life. Be it through the endless scrolling up and down of social media feeds, or toxic relationships that are draining our emotional energy, distractions steal the ability to hold focus and mental clarity.
Let this one fact be very clear: “Distraction is the enemy of depth.” Therefore, lock in on what really matters and eliminate mercilessly that which does not serve you well toward the goals. Any man capable of keeping his eyes on the ball without allowing himself to get sidetracked by distractions is undoubtedly a man who will find himself getting ahead at life.
3. Be Careful Who You Listen To
All of us give advice, but unless they are where you want to go, why listen? Understand this: advice is cheap. Find a mentor and role models that are in the life you want and tune out the noise from everyone else. Armchair critics abound in this world. You need people with battle scars.
4. Take Responsibility—Realize that Nobody is Coming to Save You
If you haven’t come to this realization yet, then let me share with you a brutal and candid truth: there’s nobody out there who is going to step up and fix your life challenges for you.
If you really want a better and more purposeful life, it becomes imperative that you get up and take ownership to build it on your own terms. Remember the powerful words of Jocko Willink, when he wisely tells us to: “Take extreme ownership.
” The man who relies strictly on his own abilities and strengths becomes a force to be reckoned with and, in doing so, becomes unstoppable in pursuit.
5. Stop Reading, Start Doing
Self-help books won’t save you if you’re not going to take action. Take one thing, one core principle, and execute it relentlessly. Discipline will always trump knowledge. Reading alone won’t change you; being disciplined will.
6. Mastering Sales Skills—This is Your Fast-Track Route to Financial Freedom
You don’t need a degree to be successful. If you didn’t go to college to learn some specialty profession such as medicine or engineering, learn how to sell. You can earn more than most people within months of becoming good at sales. In sales, you write your paycheck. It’s the shortcut to financial freedom if you’re hungry enough to hustle.
7. Forge Your Own Unique Journey—Success is Not Something That Will Be Given to You by Others
Nobody really cares about your dreams, so don’t wait around for permission. Be bolder, step up, and take what you want. Never wait for opportunities; create them. “Fortune favors the bold. “You are on your own, so act like it.”.
8. Find Common Ground with People Having Higher Intelligence—Seek Cooperation Instead of Competition
If ever you find a person with more brains or experience than yours, do not get your ego threatened by their capability—take the smart route instead. Look at it as an opportunity to work together, learn from each other, and exploit their special skills in improving your knowledge. As it is said, “If you want to go far, go together.” Take the route of collaboration instead of competition, especially when it will make you much stronger and more successful in the long run.
9. Smoking Slows You Down, Mentally and Physically
Smoking is a liability to your health, but it’s also a mental one. It’ll make you slower, foggier, and less sharp. If you want to succeed, then drop the things that are holding you back. Your mind is your greatest asset—protect it at all costs.
10. Comfort Breeds Mediocrity—Stay Hungry for Growth and Improvement Always
The moment you get comfortable, you start moving in the direction of stagnation. Comforting will then lead to laziness, bad habits, and a weak mindset. “Stay hungry, stay foolish.” Push yourself, stay challenged, and never settle.
11. Keep Your Life Private
Not every person in your life needs to know about your private affairs or confidential matters. Being overly exposed can drastically raise your susceptibility to all types of risks and unwanted attention.
You should keep some aspects of your life private and to yourself and always remember the advice contained within the phrase: “Power is in mystery.” Hence, you must carefully protect your privacy and let the professionalism of your work speak for itself and your abilities without the need for words.
12. It is highly advisable to stay away from alcohol—consuming it will eventually lead to making a fool of yourself.
Alcohol can take away your self-control and, often, your dignity as well. Think of all the intelligent people who have ruined their reputations and lost valuable opportunities because of the effects of a few drinks.
If you really care about your future and all the opportunities awaiting, then it is very important that you do not let alcohol stand in your way or slow you down in any way.
13. Set High Standards for Yourself- Reject Anything That Doesn’t Support Your Well-being Or Growth.
The easy and convenient path only goes to mediocrity. Always set the bar on everything—relationships, career, lifestyle—never settle just because it’s easier. “You settle for less; then you’re going to end up with less than what you settled for.”.
- The family you create and nurture is the most important in your life. By the time you reach the age of 40, it is imperative that your priorities should have shifted radically to the serious business of creating and securing your own family.
The family you choose to create for yourself, rather than just the one you were simply born into, will be instrumental in determining and leaving behind your mark upon future generations. This business must be taken very seriously, since it reflects precisely the kind of man you are inside.
- Do Not Take Things Personally—It Is, Indeed, a Psychological Trap That Can Ensnare You If you’re constantly taking things to heart, you’re setting yourself up for mental chaos.
Train yourself to detach. “Don’t take anything personally,” as Miguel Ruiz writes. Keep a strong mind and don’t let petty comments or setbacks control you.
- Guard Against Distractions As If Your Future Depends on It Completely By now, you surely understand that your arch-nemesis is distractions.
They are the thieves of your time, your focus, and, ultimately, your future. Tame your focus, or risk losing all for which you’re working. Stay Sharp, Live with Purpose The clock is ticking. Every day either breaks you down or builds you up. By age 40,
there is no longer any more room for excuses or delays. Keep your mind focused, your standards high, and your mission clear.
