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Never Measure Yourself against Perfection

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Use your past, rather than some unattainable ideal, as the yardstick for measuring progress in your life and career. The most successful people are also often the most unhappy, because they measure themselves against impossible ideals, which causes a constant sense of inferiority. There will always be someone better than you, and there are ideals all around you against which it would be unrealistic and stupid to measure yourself. Instead, compare yourself only to the person you were before; measure yourself against your own progress, and forget about others.

The Top 5 Regrets of People Who Are Dying: Five Reasons You Need to Change and Live Your Life Now

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Life is a gift and we need to make the most of it now. What does hard work and success mean if we never enjoy our lives?

One of the Most Significant Lessons I Have Ever Learned about Work

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In this article Harrison discusses the role of selflessness and integrity in work. Harrison believes that when you stop thinking about yourself in business and concentrate on the needs of others, you begin to do well. It is one of the most important keys to success. In business you should never focus on just yourself. Doing a good job should always be your priority.

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Have Trust in Others and Be Ready to Seize Opportunity However It Presents Itself

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Trust people, and take advantage of opportunities however and wherever they present themselves; these are the two greatest skills that anyone can possess. You must have faith and trust in your employer when taking a job, and recognize that opportunities will frequently present themselves in strange ways. Every risk has a corresponding potential reward, and you generally will only succeed if you are taking risks to get to those awards. Have faith in others and take as many risks as you can, because greater risks tend to offer greater rewards.

Your Career is More Important to You Than Anyone

Goal Setting 7
In this article Harrison discusses that you need to protect your ability to earn a living at all costs, and you need to make sure that no one is going to slow you down. The sooner you understand that your career is not as important to anyone else as it is to you, the better. The fact of the matter is that virtually no one is going to work as hard for your career as you. If you depend on others to do your work, you are likely to be sorely disappointed. Even if it appears like you have no options, you need to be very careful about the people with whom you cast your lot. You are never going to find the answers to your success and what you need in someone else. It has to come from you.

How Depression, Health, Boredom, and Self-Esteem Are Shaped by the People Around You

Getting Ahead 25
In order to reach your full potential, you must avoid depression, obesity and unhealthy foods, boredom, and uninteresting people. Your daily activities should seek to improve in each of these categories; as you do, you will find yourself better equipped to face life’s challenges. Maintain various interests in addition to your work, and try to connect with interesting people to establish a healthy self-esteem.

Play Each Day Like It Is Your Most Important

Goal Setting 3
In this article, Harrison beautifully explains the importance of loving the work you do, being focused, and seeing each day of your life as the most important. You need to foster a relationship of love and improvement with your work. You need to focus on the big picture and not on the rewards. Being passionate about work leads to improvement in your performance, then to praise and rewards which motivates you to do even better and ultimately to more improvement. The growth is phenomenal and an ongoing process. Every bit of your efforts is being monitored by someone and you need to realize that your relationship with your job is an absolute reflection of your character and the sort of person you are.

Use Existing Resources

Life Lessons 11
The most resourceful people and organizations also usually end up being the most successful. Most people, however, fail to use their resources to the best of their ability, and are not even aware of all of the resources at their disposal. Learn to recognize the resources in your environment, and consistently make the most of them. Many resources are right in front of you, but remain invisible to most people.

Why You Should Never Miss a Company Holiday Party or Invitation to Your Boss’s Home

Advancement 4
In this article Harrison discusses why emotional connections are so important in the workplace. In virtually every company, there are people who are not needed at all but are kept in the jobs due to some emotional connection. In every industry when layoffs occur, generally the first to go are those who do not have an emotional connection to the organization. According to Harrison there is a huge value attached to having emotional connections in your job. The holiday party, invitations to spend time with your boss outside of work, and other similar occasions are extremely important because they are a chance to form an emotional connection with the people you are working with. The emotional connection will take you farther and will last longer than any other sort of connection.

Eliot Spitzer’s Lessons: Finding Strength in Your Dark Side

Getting Ahead 4
When you try to mask or suppress aspects of your personality, those traits will inevitably come to the fore anyway. You need to develop a comprehensive understanding of yourself, including your darker or deeply buried traits; once you know how your dark side limits and controls you, the better you will do in your life and career. Self-discovery will ultimately lead to inner peace, which in turn will enable you to more fully develop your goals.

How to Turn Your Desires and Ideals into Reality

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How to Turn Your Desires and Ideals into Reality...

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Keeping a Job

Unlock Your True Potential: The Power of Self-Management

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In this article Harrison discusses the role of self-motivation and self management. Self-motivated and self managed people always perform well. In contrast people who are forced to follow massive amounts of procedures and rules can never perform. It is important that our rituals and sense of responsibility is internal, and something we learn to do naturally–not something we only do when it is imposed on us by people on the outside. The best people in every job are self- managed and responsible individuals. Also, the more self-managed people there are working for an organization, the stronger the organization generally is. Instead of creating problems in the workplace, you should seek out responsibilities, and ritualize your work routine. These responsibilities will drive you forward in your daily work, in your career, and in your life.

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Show Up on Time

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Staying Positive

How a Strong Self-Image Can Transform Your Career and Life

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When I was around 13 years old, I was...

How to Be Happy Where You Are and Build a More Fulfilling Life

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In this article, Harrison explains the fact that you need to have immense faith in the person you are, the talents you possess, and the purpose of your life. Absence of faith or believing that you are less fortunate than others will make you depressed, discontented, and extremely unhappy. This state of mind seldom helps in progress and affects both your personal life and career in a large way. Know what you want and where you want to go and be certain on following your heart. Trying to ‘fit in’ usually puts a lot of pressure on a person and it’s best that you avoid trying to be what others want you to be. Look into yourself, concentrate on who you are, cherish what you have, and be what ‘you’ want to be. This is the root to happiness and fulfillment.

Why Behind-the-Scenes Work Is the Key to Career Success

Staying Positive 8
In this article Harrison discusses the importance of investing in the backstage of everything you are doing. Nothing is more important than what you do behind-the-scenes, and the substance that goes into your job. Only with a good backstage can you achieve your full potential in anything. Most successful people and businesses always have a very strong operation behind-the-scenes. It is not what people see when they look at a storefront that matters; it is the “substance” of what is going behind-the-scenes. It is like this with you and your profession as well. The ultimate product that you produce will be more a product of what you do “behind-the-scenes” than of the actual service that you provide. It is important to understand the significance of this, because it can mean the difference between great success and failure. Only with a good backstage can you achieve full potential in anything.

How to Stop Being a Critic and Start Building a More Successful Life

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How to Find Your Ultimate Goal and Build a Happier, More Successful Career

Staying Positive 11
Your life’s ultimate goal is happiness; your drive for happiness guides the course of your life, and you need to be happy regardless of the external circumstances in your life. The happier you are, the better jobs you will get and the more successful you will be in your career. In order to achieve happiness, turn away from externalities and instead focus on the happiness that is already inside of you. Your life is too important to be unhappy.

About us

Harrison Barnes is an entrepreneur, thought leader in the legal placement space, legal recruiter and the #1 legal career company leader in the United States.

Latest Articles

Show Up on Time

Employment Do’s and Don’ts 30
In this article Harrison discusses the importance of showing up on time. When you do not show up on time people are let down and they get upset. Their confidence in you is eroded. Not showing up on time conveys that you do not respect others and their needs. You should never show up late for anything. When you show up on time you send the message that you respect others and their time. It also sends the message you take others’ needs as seriously as your own. Being on time sends the message you will play by the rules, do what is expected of you, and do your best to get along with others and look out for their needs. You always need to be on time.

The Most Important Advice You Will Ever Receive

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Do Not Allow Others to Hold You Back from Success

Getting Ahead 0
Imagine you are a doctor working in a small clinic in the suburbs of Chicago. You are surrounded by uninspired doctors who are happy going back and forth to work each day in exchange for a salary. You, in contrast, have no interest in money and are concerned with curing a fatal heart disease. In fact, you have been working on curing this disease for the past 15 years.

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Never Measure Yourself against Perfection

Life Lessons 47
Use your past, rather than some unattainable ideal, as the yardstick for measuring progress in your life and career. The most successful people are also often the most unhappy, because they measure themselves against impossible ideals, which causes a constant sense of inferiority. There will always be someone better than you, and there are ideals all around you against which it would be unrealistic and stupid to measure yourself. Instead, compare yourself only to the person you were before; measure yourself against your own progress, and forget about others.

Concentrate on Your Contribution

Employment Do’s and Don’ts 41
In this article, Harrison explains the secret behind successful people and the biggest difference between them and those who fail to grow. Most people fail to succeed because they constantly evaluate the rewards they get rather than direct their efforts towards solid constructive work. Successful people on the other hand, are always focused on their work, concentrated on their contributions, and dedicated towards generating value. Unlike others, they do not think about the rewards and are highly passionate about the work they are doing. This characteristic Harrison believes, is what leads to a person’s growth and success.

Sympathy, Morale, and the Importance of Being Organized

How to Succeed 39
Sympathy destroys morale, and those who can walk away from sympathy often have better careers and make better use of their skills. Good organization is the most effective means of upholding high morale and productivity. Well-organized groups and companies are much harder for people to undermine, and their strength is directly linked to their organization.

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