Three Success Altering Character Traits…

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Written by Jimmie Burroughs

Over the years I’ve worked with and related to thousands of people and many have been successful and some not so successful. I have seen all kinds of personalities and have determined from them what I believe to be the three success altering character traits. I think I have a pretty good understanding after all these years of observation as to what can cause failure quicker than anything else when it comes to management or entrepreneurial leadership.

Here are three character traits that you need to overcome in order to be successful:

Intolerance

This person knows it all and has no tolerance for anyone who disagrees. He or she can never be wrong about anything and needs nothing from anyone else but a yes you are right and 100% submission. He or she is ruthless in defending their views and will beat down any opposing ideas. There is one woman in my lifetime of experience that probably wins the banner for the most intolerant person I’ve ever known. She was miserable most of the time because most people did not agree that she knew it all and that her way was the only acceptable way.

The reason this is a success altering character trait is that it is blinding. The person is unable to see anything other than his or her own narrow vision; it is like tunnel vision that is limited to only seeing one direction. It is totally void of any objectivity therefore misses the greatest opportunities and insights of life. For example, I know a person who judges everything by her own opinions, likes and dislikes with no objectivity and without being able to understand that she represents only one view out of millions. However she is convinced that her views are the only valid ones.

The world does not operate on any one set of plans but behaves according to free will which determines their outcome. While one person’s idea may work to some degree, there are many other ideas that might work much better. Being tolerant and flexible enough to see past one’s own personal vision is a mark of success.

Selfishness

Selfishness is evidence of getting stuck in the process of development; it is a childish trait that is often carried right into adulthood. Outwardly they may look like full grown adults but inwardly they are narcissistic, petulant children whose ego is out of proportion. Their primary goal is to draw attention to themselves, have their way and pout if they don’t.

Life is not about having one’s own way in everything; it is about meeting the needs of others and adding value to the lives of others. Husbands and wives often lose sight of this and prove to be unfaithful to each other, following their own desires to seek attention and even sex from others. Fathers and mothers often neglect the needs of their children in pursuit of their own goals.

While it is recognized that a person does need direction and confidence in themselves in order to be the kind of leader that succeeds, it is also important to recognize that life extends far beyond one’s own little world. Regardless of what some may think, we are indeed our brother’s keeper. If we can’t develop a servant’s attitude, then we fail. Success in life is all about meeting the needs of others whether it is on a corporate level or on a personal level.  Selfish greed leads to failure even if the money and material things are there.

Traditionalist

Being stuck with one idea on how things should be done will ultimately brings failure in an ever changing world. My involvement in church leadership is one of the best examples in the world of this. Many church people and perhaps the majority are stuck in time and will not move forward. They fail to understand that their tradition, though it may be a 100 years old, is nowhere near the tradition of the early Christian church but anyhow it was what their fathers practiced therefore it should be good enough. It is not a matter of being good enough, it is that people change and their needs change also. Neither is it a matter of changing convictions of truth but changing methods of approach.

What once may have been effective and successful no longer fits the bill. The unwillingness to change, places you in an environment where you are no longer competent; things have changed and you are over your head. The greatest problem is not being able to see and understand this which renders a person or organization becoming ineffective, out of step and an out dated. I’ll confess that I still like some of the old ways of doing things but if it means the difference of being ineffective or effective then I’m ready to let them go.

I realize that many other character traits that are also success altering but it is my feeling that the three success altering character traits that are most likely to thwart success are: intolerance, selfishness and traditionalism. Can you think of a better selection?

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Jimmie Burroughs is the author of JimmieBurroughs.com ; get more tips on personal development: www.JimmieBurroughs.com

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