3 Unconventional Tips for Upping Your Business Game Cultivate creativity, enjoy leisure pastimes, forge relationships and achieve entrepreneurial success.
By Dan T Pickett Edited by Dan Bova
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
Success is a funny thing. To grasp it, the right amount of talent, planning and luck will most certainly get you there. But often, a bit more is usually required.
As an entrepreneur who turned a startup founded in the basement of a liquor store into a substantial technology company, I can confirm that the extra bit is usually what makes the difference.
The tried and true tips you've heard before: Prioritize, find a mentor and advance your education. But what about the everyday personal steps you can take to build success in your professional life? Here are three unconventional ways that you can up your game in the name of cultivating creativity and achieving success in business:
Related: 5 Ways to Succeed at Work by Enjoying Your Life Every Day
1. Watch favorite TV shows.
As a busy individual, you might think you don't have time for activities that won't directly contribute to your goals. But downtime spent enjoying your favorite shows and listening to cherished musicians can improve your output in ways that you might not have imagined.
Your favorite television shows and the characters that populate them can help you articulate your course of action. Are you a fan of Scandal or The Blacklist? That's likely because you respect a character's conviction and willingness to solve difficult problems. Embrace that attitude.
Are you a fan of rap music? Harnass the confidence and conviction that artists in the genre typically spout. Internalize these sentiments and make them work for you during your next meeting, strategy session or overall professional journey.
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2. Set leadership philosophies as guides.
The principles you establish for yourself will affect every action you take for your career. First determine your ultimate professional goals. Next work backward and define a road map that will allow you to reach them.
Making such a move is not easy as it will require you to build a long-term strategy. But the foundation it lays will be a direct reflection of your personal aspirations. Keep this road map in mind in every interaction going forward and the path from Point A to Point B will become much clearer.
Related: 7 Traits Elite Entrepreneurs Display at Work and in Their Zest for Living
3. Find time for a hobby.
Cultivating hobbies and passions is not just beneficial to your personal life. They can be beneficial to your professional life as well. The key is selecting ones that benefit both. I have several personal passions -- fashion, entertainment, technology and reading -- and I make an effort to make them work for me professionally as well.
Build a relationship map whereby you can connect yourself to those directly involved with those passions. Interaction with people on this prioritized relationship map will allow you to engage with individuals who can offer you new perspectives and realign your way of thinking, which you can then apply to your career. It's a win for your development across the board.
Achieving success requires dreaming big and taking risks. It also requires unconventional thinking and digging within. The energy you put forth will eventually bear the fruit of success. There's nothing quite like the moment when it arrives.
