AD | Did you know habits determine more than 90% of a person’s behaviour? Therefore, almost everything that you will ever accomplish is determined by the quality of the habits you form. For example, work habits of successful people help not only with work in the office but they also drive consistency, timekeeping, self-presentation, and personal organisation. So, what are some habits of highly successful people, and how can you incorporate these into a healthy work-life balance? I’ve teamed up with the experts from job aggregator Jooble to find out.
What Are The Top 7 Work Habits Of Successful People?
Apart from that elusive and random element of luck, successful people tend to be where they are today because of their daily habits. Cultivating certain work habits can be hugely beneficial for your career prospects if you implement them effectively. Here are the top seven most often cited habits successful people employ.
Strategic Multitasking
Perhaps the most critical work habit is the ability to multitask effectively. How much can you manage, juggling your work alongside personal development and day-to-day activities? Multitasking involves organisation, focus, decreasing distractions, and increasing productivity. Although all this is sometimes easier said than done! Many of us struggle with multitasking, but we still try because it’s a highly successful work habit to practise.
Keeping Checklists
I’m a huge fan of To Do Lists, whether that’s Trello with my clients to keep track of our To Do Lists online, or my own personal hard copy paper planner. There’s nothing like the satisfaction of physically crossing off items with a pen, is there? Having a list of your tasks and planning how to do them all in a given time frame helps you reduce your level of distraction and is one of the most popular work habits of successful people.
Networking
Successful people understand the importance of exchanging ideas and networking, both in and out of their workplace. Networking, whether virtually on LinkedIn, at the school gate, or at an organised event, all centres around collaboration, teamwork, and building a solid group of connections. If you can surround yourself with a strong group of people, and be strategic about your network, you’ll often find you’re top of the list when opportunities come along.
Being Goal-Orientated
Goal setters and go-getters tend to be goal-orientated, successful people. They’re dedicated to achieving their goals, they know what they want, and include their goals in their work plans and daily lives too.
Reading
Successful people know the value of reading good books. Reading is an excellent way to gain knowledge, learn new things, and improve your insights in life. It sharpens your mind and increases both your comprehension and analytical abilities. And that’s not all. Reading opens up new ideas for your business, life plans, work routine, and more. Although what you read and how you apply the knowledge to your personal goals and plans is really important.
Developing A Routine
Developing a routine is an integral part of getting things done, and it’s one of those work habits of successful people that’s peculiar to individuals. There are no standard formulae for creating a routine as we’re all very different. You need to spend time developing a consistent structure of work that suits you and then follow it. Besides helping you get things done, your daily routine also influences your quality of rest, keeping you in a healthy mental state that improves overall performance.
Prioritising Quality Sleep
Research shows that a poor night’s sleep can have a negative impact on your hormones, blood pressure, and daily performance. Your body repairs itself when you sleep, so sleep disorders will undoubtedly have a huge impact on your day-to-day life. Which is why it’s super important to practise effective sleeping habits so that all those new work habits you’ve been implementing can keep you on top of your game.
So, there we are, some top work habits that are essential for success. But of course, you can’t build these habits all at once. It takes consistency and effort, so start small and build up gradually – even five minutes a day is better than nothing. Have you integrated any of these work habits of successful people into your life? Which do you think you’d find the easiest and most effective to start with?
* This is a collaborative post – please see my Disclaimer.
This is a really interesting post 🙂 I definitely need to improve my sleep hygiene – especially since changing time zones, jetlag and insomnia is kicking my butt!
mia
Thank you, Mia, I don’t envy you such a huge time zone swap!
Oh I love this! Especially the sleep part lol Some of these items I’m really good at. My biggest issue has always been networking. I’m too skittish when it comes to promoting and/or networking to others. I am a bit of a hermit and getting out there is a bit of a challenge. Maybe one day!
That’s where virtual networking has been a godsend over the last couple of years – I much prefer networking over Zoom to in person and you can still build up a valuable network of connections!
Some interesting points here! I particularly think the point about building routines is helpful. I know that personally, if I’m out of my usual routine for any reason, my productivity takes a nosedive.
Thank you – yes, I know what you mean, when I have a break it’s so much harder to get productive again 🙂
Lists, routines and trying to connect with other people are my go to when trying to grow successfully. These other suggestions are really helpful. I have definitely got to work more on networking with the right people though. Thank you for sharing Lisa.
I think networking can be scary when you’re starting out – personally I prefer virtual networking to in person meetings any day. If you’re not on LinkedIn yet, I’d recommend giving it a try, it’s amazing the connections and even friendships you can build up on there 🙂
Great points and I totally agree. Lack of sleep is a big feature in my life, because toddlers sleep when they want to and I have to follow.
Hopefully this will improve soon!
Ha, yes, I remember that stage all too well!
This is a really interesting post lovely, thank you so much for sharing with us. I throughly enjoyed reading and learning! Xo
Elle – ellegracedeveson.com
Thank you, glad you enjoyed it 🙂
I’m still working on these and it’s not easy for me haha. At least the multitasking part, I need to do right otherwise it will waste my time. Such an informative post!
I know what you mean – although multi-tasking isn’t too hard for me, luckily, unlike quality sleep…
Some excellent points here! I can see why people are so successful if they have a good balance of all of these!
Absolutely, definitely something to aim for 🙂
These are important habits to have. And I would like to add one thing. Successful people talk about ideas. Not other people. Hehehe ^_^
Oh yes, that’s absolutely true – you only have to look on LinkedIn to see that!
Great tips! I’ll sure be using some of these.
Glad they were helpful.
The to-do list has been my driving force in my blogging venture. It keeps me motivated to continue onward and achieve breakthroughs.
That’s great to hear – such a positive mindset!
Love this! The sleeping part is spot on and I really need to improve on that front. It’s just so tempting to stay up late 😀 Thank you for sharing these tips Lisa!
I know, I’m guilty of it too but I always pay for it the next day!
Fab tips! I love using checklists, I always find that seeing everything laid out is such a motivation booster and Trello is something I’ve discovered recently that’s invaluable to blogging! I really need to work on getting better sleep too. Thank you so much for sharing x
Trello is brilliant, isn’t it? It makes it so easy for everyone to collaborate and see who has to do what by when – I’ve not used it for blogging though, just my freelance work so that’s a good tip, thank you, Ceri! x
Some really good points here, most I need to work on myself! x
Lucy | http://www.lucymary.co.uk
Thank you, Lucy, glad it was helpful x
Hi Lisa,
Very interesting post. Whether by luck or good judgement I do have some of these habits already 😉 I do have to say though that in my line of work multitasking is replaced by prioritising – you have to know what needs doing now and what can wait (or be passed to somebody else).
Hi Richie, thank you! Yes, I agree, prioritising is key to success. It’s very easy to get lost in too much at once otherwise – I like your point about delegating too!
These are such smart, easy to use tips you’ve shared. The keys to success really can be as simple as being consistent and staying organized, while always finding new ways to do things better.
Thank you, Heidi. Yes, I’m always up for learning a new way of doing things – or trialling it at least 🙂
Love this so much! I definitely need to work on my sleep routine. I love to-do lists too, I use both physical and digital planners like Notion 😀
I’m starting to hear more and more about Notion, it seems like an app I need to investigate, thank you, Merry 🙂
Great post – I’m currently trying a new job within my company for a year, it’s given me renewed enthusiasm and made me really think about goals for the next few months, didn’t realise how much I’d lacked that focus recently. Also, I absolutely must have a to do list every week, helps me feel as though I’m achieving things 🙂
Thank you, and congratulations, that’s wonderful to hear – good luck in your new role, it sounds like it’s exactly what you needed in terms of focus and goals.
These are great! Reading is fundamental to businesses development and success so it makes sense why it’s on here.
Absolutely, you can learn so much from the written word (or podcasts too, I suppose).
There are definitely a few things highlighted here that I am trying to work on; I’ve got some changes I’m looking to make the most of so this has helped!
Oh that’s great to hear, Molly, good luck with implementing your changes!
I already do most of the things contained in this list. Where I lack more is the fact that I am changing my daily routine when I am on holidays or generally traveling. During those times I might also have sleep issues. This was definitely an interesting read!
Whoop, go you, super organised for success! Yes, I know what you mean, holidays and travel wreak havoc on routines, don’t they? Still not giving up on mine though 🙂
I loveeeee making lists! Good quality sleep also is a must – I am always fatigued, but a nap is so useful.
Lists are definitely a must, they make life so much easier!
Networking is a must for any successful person. Without building that networking, opportunities will slip by. Regarding multitasking, it is better to focus on one thing at a time. We actually did a post on productivity last year that touched on how multitasking actually harms workplace success. Thank you for sharing!
I think it depends on the person where multitasking is concerned. For some people, there’s no choice as they can’t delegate or outsource. For others, they can actively thrive on working on lots of different projects at once. Horses for courses 🙂
I love how these habits are simple habits we would all do well to adopt! Reading is truly a wonderful way to broaden one’s horizons; I have already learned so much just studying for my test and reading over passages on a variety of different topics. 🙂
Oh absolutely, and they don’t have to be business books either, a love of reading opens up so many horizons and opportunities!
I love a casual networking situation. The more traditional networking events leave me feeling drained and I feel like I’ve repeated myself 100 times. I also resonated with your point about keeping a checklist–nothing makes me feel more accomplished than crossing something off my to-do list!
Crystal | http://www.amazingbaby.app
I know exactly what you mean, it’s so exhausting, I much prefer online networking. Glad to find a fellow hard copy list lover!
Thanks for sharing, these are really good tips to make work successful, I do think that a good night sleep helps my mood 🙂
Thank you, Nic, and yes, I completely agree about the sleep!
This is such a great list and definitely serves as a great reminder. I use to cover all of these but I need to get back to working on Being Goal-Orientated and Networking. I need to take my same sales mentality I had when I was rocking it at the bank and use it for my work now. I needed this, thank you for sharing
It’s hard to be sales-orientated for yourself, isn’t it? It’s something I still struggle with!
Great post, Lisa! The work habits of successful people you shared are simple yet powerful. Loved the focus on routines and consistency—definitely motivating!
Thank you so much, I’m so pleased you found it useful 🙂