Crimson Sun's 10 Key Principles to Success

    Crimson Sun is what I've named my company, inspired by myself, my girlfriend and the image of new beginnings associated with the rise of the sun. These are 10 principles for success I have written for myself as constant reminders to stay focused and keep on the right track, especially in times of doubt or struggle. I will share them with you in hopes it may help you in your endeavors as well.

1. Be Positive -

     Negative attitude and feelings is the enemy of success. Whether it is negative feelings about yourself, negative outlook on a subject, about an idea, about other people, about an opportunity. It's a closed-in style of thinking and feeling. With a positive attitude, you open up a never ending stream of opportunities, contacts, personal drive and energy to accomplish anything you can imagine. If you are not exactly where you want to be and upon looking within, you are harboring any negative thoughts or feelings whatsoever.. Actively work on countering and remedying those thoughts and feelings and you will immediately experience greater personal success in not only all aspects of business, but in your personal life.

     Have no illusions, there will always be pain, loss, negative people, negative experiences, obstacles, complications, unexpected turmoil and that will never change. That is not in your control. What is in your control and always will be, is your ability to meet negativity at every turn and corner with a positive counter. Do not defend and harbor negativity under the guise of being a realist. It is entirely possible to address all realities head-on, practically and without any disillusion and embrace positive thought and outlook at the same time.

     Be positive with your colleagues, positive with yourself, have positive goals, positive strategies based on positive assumptions. There is strength and positive elements to everything, harnessing that power is a choice you make every day. Doing anything else is to forfeit your personal emotional power and drive. Embrace positive energy and not only will you infinitely enhance your own ability to create success, success will be attracted to you!

2. Work Smart -

     We've all been told at some point the virtue of working hard and indeed the willingness to work hard is a strength and a virtue, but there is no virtue in wasting energy or exhausting energy aimlessly. This is where the virtue of working smart comes in. If there is an easier way to do something without sacrificing quality, do it. If you are not constantly open to and seeking out new, better and easier ways to do things, you should be.

     I see some people get stuck in the idea that the only way to succeed is to work hard - and that they must be the ones working hard. That somehow if they aren't working themselves to death, then their idea or business is failing. This mindset will inevitably hold you back and your business and endeavors will suffer for it, or you'll hit a plateau and burn out. If you are doing things in the best manner or if your processes can be improved is a question you should always be asking yourself.

     Be willing to work hard, also be willing to open yourself up to the reality that it can be possible to grow and succeed without working hard.

3. Risk Failure -

     In order to succeed, you must risk failure. This does not in any way mean be reckless or without consideration. It just means that failure is an inherent risk to every endeavor and if you're not willing to become comfortable with that risk, you may never take that step to reach out and grasp at new opportunities. Many people are more comfortable clinging to security and anything or anyone that they feel will provide that security for them.

     When you embrace being the creator of your own success, you must release your emotional attachments to the idea of not failing and be willing to take that risk. Don't let the possibility of failure hold you back from your reaching towards greater success. If you wait until you feel you can guarantee success, you may never actually start. Failure is just a step on the path to success, so learn to embrace mistakes, learn from them and move on with haste. 

4. Keep It Simple -

     I think it is human nature to complicate everything with our thinking. The way thoughts work in our mind, it is easy for a single task to multiply into a thousand thoughts, making the task at hand feel so much more overwhelming than it really is. Even the real to life tasks that really are difficult and overwhelming, become so much more so if we make it more mentally taxing for ourselves.

     On the path to success, I find it absolutely necessary to make a habit out of actively simplifying my agenda at large and the task at hand. Obstacles are real, complexity is real, but the single biggest complicated obstacle is yourself.. If you can get over that, nothing else can stop you.

5. Never Give Up - 

    This reminder is pretty straightforward. Giving up is not an option. You may want to, it may feel like it's an option, but the only way to succeed is to never give up. The very act of giving up takes your options away. Anything can happen if you keep going, nothing can happen if you give up.

6. Advertise -

     This principle was designed specifically for my business, but it can translate over into life in general and any other business. Life and business both rely on interactions, relationships and developments which can only come from putting yourself out there constantly. Be visible, be heard and be available. If people don't know about you or your business, you can't make sales, or make contacts, or create deals. A constant effort to be known is necessary.

7. Knowledge is Power - 

    The more you know, the more you can do. Information is truly powerful. Your world view can change, your capabilities can change, who you talk to can change, bigger opportunities can open up all based on your level of education. Education can come from anywhere - biggerpockets, the internet in general, the library, friends and family or even trial and error. Your abilities, capabilities and possibilities all expand with every piece of information you come across  - even documenting numbers in your business, being able to identify trends, weak spots and improvements to be made in order to grow. Constantly educate yourself.

8. Delegate Tasks - 

    We all would like to think we can be a one-man-army.. well, I would. But fact of the matter is, no one is. Even the most capable of us can accomplish a whole lot more if we welcome the possibility of delegating tasks as much as possible. If a business or effort consists of only yourself, you can very well achieve levels of success, but you will encounter limitations to that success every time. Developing systems and bringing in assistance is crucial to all success. This is the only way to create seemingly infinite levels of exponential success, growth and expansion.

9. Success Reflects Effort - 

     If you are unhappy with your level of success or lack thereof, this can always translate into rectifying action. Basically, if you want greater success, do something about it. As the famous equation goes, for every action there is a reaction. This means that your level of success is always a reflection of the actions (or lack thereof) that preceded it.. Which means, there is always something you can do about it. For new results, take new action. Work harder, or work smarter, or reassess the situation, or give new direction, or bring someone new in. Identify the cause and take decisive action.

10. Complacency is Dangerous - 

     In our efforts to create success in life and business, it can become easy to get comfortable. The problem is, if we are comfortable, we are not driven to change anything.. if we are not driven to change anything, everything will stay the same.. and if everything stays the same, nothing will change. We won't get anywhere. It is especially easy to become complacent after a measure of success, or after a victory, large or small.

     Our endeavors should reflect our powerful drive to create and provide, if we are complacent or become so, that drive comes to rest and our levels of success and business will reflect this. Always keep your sights on the end goal and the next move. Let each victory transform into a new and bigger victory. This is the only path to ultimate success and growth. If you are hopping from one victory to the next and relying on that, you are effectively spinning your wheels in place. 

    I hope that you find these simple reminders as helpful as I do along the path of success, to keep focused on the simple principles that will allow our greatest dreams to come true.