What Successful People Have Figured Out

I’ve spent thousands upon thousands of hours sitting with people as they break down their perceived failures. In those hours, I’ve come to understand one underlying, fundamental truth—successful people have one thing in common: their mindset.

There’s a formula for success beyond showing up, doing, creating, and seeing the fruits of your labor. The formula is more in-depth and purposeful because success is not only about achieving external recognition. It’s about having the right emotional tools to stay on course, which breed the actions to bring what you need, want, and desire to fruition.

So, let’s break it down.

The Formula for Success: Mindset, Feeling, Action

The foundation of success starts with mindset. Your mindset dictates how you approach challenges, setbacks, and opportunities.

Feeling follows mindset: how you feel about your journey, how confident you are in your direction, and how you respond emotionally to highs and lows.

And finally, action is where the rubber meets the road. Yet, you must remember that action is only effective when driven by a strong, aligned set of thinking, which becomes your mindset, and a healthfully grounded emotional framework.

We must look at the “Growth Mindset” theory to gain perspective.
Growth mindset theory is the belief that your abilities and intelligence are not fixed and can be developed with time, effort, and learning.

Research by Carol Dweck, a psychologist at Stanford University, has shown that those with a growth mindset view challenges as opportunities rather than threats. They embrace learning, adapt to failure, and believe they can improve through persistence. They understand that the road to success is not linear; it’s filled with detours, roadblocks, and detours— all of which are opportunities to learn and grow.

The key elements of a Growth Mindset read like a negative thinker’s worst nightmare. Those with a Growth Mindset believe:

Challenges are Opportunities
There’s no shying away from challenges. In fact, most with a growth mindset seek them. They understand that every challenge is an opportunity to improve and expand their knowledge and emotional, mental, physical, financial, and spiritual well-being. Instead of being discouraged by the difficulty, they get excited about the learning process. Every struggle is a chance to rise higher.

Failure is Not the End & There’s No “Fear With A Backbone”

Like it or not, FAILURE IS A MUST!

It’s not something to fear or avoid but to embrace and welcome. The most successful people are often the ones who have failed the most. Failure is feedback, not a final verdict. Failure tells us where we need to adjust. We cannot know what we want until we know what we do not. It shows you what’s not working so you can adapt, grow, and move forward. Embracing failure is a necessary step in your journey to success.

Let’s talk about what I call “Fear With A Backbone.” First, your brain performs best in patterns. It likes and needs predictability to keep you safe and conserve energy. When we reach back to find evidence in our past, we tend to look through our negative outtakes, the experiences that did not serve us, first. When we do so, we can build fear into our current experience thanks to something in the past. This, of course, is entirely counter to a successful mindset. Yet, this fear becomes validated, and starts to stand tall, much like a backbone. The more it is reinforced in your thoughts, the stiffer the stack of evidence becomes, which means the backbone becomes stronger. Anytime this is the case, fear wins. You won’t be able to find success within.

Additionally, Resilience is Key
Success is not for the faint of heart. The difference between someone who succeeds and doesn’t is not the lack of failure but the ability to bounce back. Resilience—the ability to keep going even when things are tough— is a mindset shift that requires constant practice. More so, resiliency is built from past experiences. We move through happenings and then create an understanding of our strengths. We can use this later to help us in the next storm. Every setback is an opportunity to come back stronger. It’s a muscle you can build.

Here’s the truth: No failure can defeat you unless you stop learning from it. No circumstance can hold you down unless you let it define who you are. Your future is not determined by what happened to you but by what you believe in this moment.

Now, ask yourself: What story are you telling yourself about your ability to succeed?

• Do you believe you can improve?

• Do you see challenges as opportunities?

• Do you see failure as an event — not your identity?

Everything shifts when you choose to believe in your ability to grow.

The Power of Feeling Successful – Cultivating Confidence and Trust in Yourself
Now that we’ve talked about mindset, let’s discuss the feeling of success. Think of success as an emotion. Its definition would be: what you feel about yourself and how you see the world. If you don’t feel worthy of success, it doesn’t matter how much you achieve because you won’t truly experience the satisfaction or joy that success should bring. Success, as a feeling, cannot be bought. It is an impulse, an internal connection. Leaning in this way changes the way we connect with success.

If we take it a step further, we realize that cultivating confidence and self-trust is necessary to live with a daily experience of success.

We must have each of these elements of success as an emotion in place to fully align the feeling: safety—then trust—then respect—then love/freedom.

How?

Try Visualizing Your Success
Visualization is one of the most powerful tools for cultivating the feeling of success. Start by visualizing the outcome you want. Imagine how you will feel once you achieve it. Picture yourself living that success daily, connected to the internal experience. The more vividly you can picture it, the more real it becomes in your mind. The more you feel it, the brain locks it in. No, this isn’t faking it until you make it. Your brain does not know the difference between occurring now versus something playing out in your mind. You can use this to your benefit and create success as you’re programming yourself instead of someone doing it for you.

Self-Talk
How do you speak to yourself? Are you your own biggest supporter or your own worst critic? If you constantly tell yourself that success is out of your reach or that you’re not good enough, you’re setting yourself up for failure before you begin. Shift the conversation. Affirm your ability to succeed. “I am capable. I am resilient. I am worthy of success.” These affirmations will guide your emotions and reinforce the belief that you deserve everything you’re striving for.

Self-Respect and Self-Image
Success is deeply tied to self-respect. Look at the path again: safety, trust, respect, love/freedom.

If you respect yourself, you’ll make choices that align with your long-term goals and the feeling of success. You’ll care for your health, mind, and body.

You can’t feel successful if you don’t respect yourself.

Action – How to Translate Mindset and Feelings into Results
Mindset and feelings are vital but don’t mean much without action. The key to success is to take consistent, purposeful steps toward your goal. This is where most people fall short—they may have the right mindset and feel confident but don’t act. Success requires action.

Step-by-Step Tools for Taking Action:

Break Down Your Goals into Small, Manageable Tasks
Establish Routines and Habits
Success is the sum of your habits. The most successful people are not necessarily the ones who take the most significant leaps, but the ones who commit to daily progress.

Hold Yourself Accountable
Action requires accountability.

Action – The Power of Consistent, Relentless Action

Small, consistent, relentless actions lead to massive results. Success is not about grand gestures; it’s about daily commitments. The small steps, the small choices that build momentum. Those who succeed do so because they’ve built powerful habits—the consistent daily actions that get them closer to their dreams, bit by bit.

Think of your life as a bank account. If you show up and deposit, you gain. If you don’t, you stay the same. If you only withdraw, you will burn out.

I want you to think for a moment: what action are you avoiding right now? Is there something you’ve been putting off? Something you’ve been afraid to do?

Here’s the truth: Action creates momentum. The more you act, the more you build confidence. The more you act, the more precise your path becomes. Every action you take is an investment in your future—the bank account—small actions compound.

Evaluating Where You Are and Increasing Your Success Mindset

Now that we’ve laid out the components of success: mindset, feeling, and action, let’s talk about how to evaluate where you are right now and how you can increase your success mindset.

Self-Assessment:

Ask Yourself: Where Is My Mindset?
Do you believe that your skills and abilities can improve over time? Do you look at challenges as opportunities? If not, you may need to shift your mindset. You can start by reading books or listening to talks about the growth mindset. Surround yourself with people who see challenges as learning opportunities.

How Do You Feel About Yourself?
How confident are you in your ability to succeed? Take a moment to assess your self-image honestly. If you struggle with self-doubt or insecurity, work on your inner dialogue and engage in practices that build your confidence.

Ask: Who am I? Give yourself the ability to see yourself as you are.

Are You Taking Consistent Action?
Are you taking regular, incremental steps toward success as a lived experience? If not, you’re not moving forward.

Create The Most Essential Element of Success: BALANCE

Balance isn’t about finding a perfect equilibrium between work and life; it’s about maintaining your energy, staying grounded, and knowing when to push forward and when to rest. Success is not just about going harder and faster; it’s about finding the flow that allows you to sustain momentum without burning out. When you create balance, you will not only achieve your goals, but you will be able to enjoy the process, too. Action is the bridge between your mindset and your results. Read that again: Action is the bridge between your mindset and your results.

So, how do you balance action without losing momentum?

Work in cycles, not sprints.
Instead of working yourself into exhaustion, structure your day or week into cycles of action and rest. The most productive people are not the busiest people. They are the ones who know how to focus when they need to and then step back to recharge. The key is consistent effort, not burnout. Give your all during your focused work time, and then allow yourself the space to rest, relax, and refuel.

Schedule breaks, not just work.
Schedule time to rest. Schedule time to play. Balance isn’t something you hope for; it’s something you create. If you genuinely value your well-being, you’ll make rest and self-care non-negotiable. Take a walk. Meditate. Disconnect. You’ll be amazed at how much more productive and clear-headed you’ll be when you return to your work with fresh energy.

Be patient with your progress.
Momentum is built with small, consistent steps. Don’t rush the process. Stay the course, but allow yourself the grace to rest when needed. Some days, you’ll work hard. Some days, you’ll take a break. Both are necessary. Success is not linear; it’s about the rhythm you create between effort and ease.

You Are Already Winning

Now, I want you to hear this: You are already winning. You are already living in waves of success in your life. Your mindset is not all negative.

Your success does not begin with a significant, dramatic change. It starts with the shift inside you. The decision to say, “I am worthy of this success. I am capable of this. I will persist, I will trust myself, and I will take action.”

When you change your mindset, everything changes. When you change your feelings, everything becomes possible. When you start taking action, the world has no choice but to align with you.

I want you to walk away today knowing you have already won.

Conclusion: You Have Everything You Need

Your success is not in the future; it’s happening right now. You have the power to shape it. You are the one who decides how you will show up in your thoughts, feelings, and actions.

So, what will you do today? How will you choose to balance your efforts with your well-being? How will you continue showing up, trusting in your ability to grow, resting when needed, and taking aligned action toward your dreams? How will you feel your way through this experience and know that success is within reach?

Danielle A. Vann is a 19-time international award-winning author, a Cognitive Behavioral Therapist, a Life Coach with a specialty certification in mindfulness, a master Advanced Neuro-Linguistic Programming Practitioner, and expert in the nervous system and anxiety. She is also the creator behind Get Your Life Together, Girl Global and the Get Your Life Together, Girl Podcast. To learn more, visit the bio page, and follow @Getyourlifetogethergirl on Instagram.

Copyright of Author Danielle A. Vann 2025