The difference between the most effective and the ineffective people comes down to 8 simple beliefs. After all, leading an ineffective life is a choice and certainly not something that just happens. Yet, the most ineffective people will try to lead us to believe that that being ineffective is normal. However, it’s not, but rather it’s just another excuse used by ineffective souls.

Personally speaking, I’ve lived most of my life being oblivious to the fact that if you want to get the same results as somebody else then all have to do is do the same things that they did. In other words, people who get similar results have similar habits. Therefore, if you want to start a successful business then all you need to do is copy what somebody else did to start their own successful business.

The matter of the fact is this rule not only works in terms of success, but also in terms of failure. People who achieve nothing in life will have the same habits as the next person who has achieved nothing in life. Here’s 9 beliefs that all ineffective people share:

1. They Don’t Plan

The first characteristic of an ineffective person is their inability to plan their daily lives. The simple truth is that they have no idea what they want to achieve or where they want to go in life. For this reason they make decisions and take actions which lack any real direction or purpose. Conversely, an effective person will know precisely which tasks need to be done and this will ultimately take them closer to where they want to go.

2. They Don’t Know What They Want

Never let what other people expect from you dictate what you expect from yourself.  Figure out what you want.  Clarity about your true desires is so liberating because you get to stop proving yourself to everyone, including yourself.

3. Chaos Surrounds the Ineffective Lives

In today’s society it’s very easy to become overwhelmed with the amount of information coming in – e-mails, text messages, bills to pay, household chores and other work that needs to be done. An ineffective person will allow all this chaos to grow without putting regular intervals aside to control the extra work that gradually comes in.

4. There’s Always Too Much Work

Life isn’t easy, but life is also what you make of it. Wishing for success or always looking for the easy route without action just makes the situation that much more difficult. The most effective way to handle what must be done is to do it and use each challenge as an opportunity to create value.

5. Relying on Others

If you can’t make it on your own, you’ll spend the rest of your life relying on others, but more importantly beating to the tune of their drum. The most powerful relationship you will ever have is the relationship with yourself.  If you’re not comfortable enough with yourself or with your own truth when entering a relationship, then you’re not ready for that relationship.

6. Inability to Forgive

The only way to move forward is to forgive. Without forgiveness you’ll never be able to move forward. You don’t have to like them, you don’t have to be friends with them, you don’t have to spend time with them ever again, but you have to forgive them and let it go.

7. Ineffective are Disorganized

You will find that the residence of a highly ineffective person will be the same as the residence of another. Ineffective people just don’t put things back in the same place and they waste valuable time trying to look for things such as their keys, wallet or their mobile phone. They’re also constantly late, whether five minutes or fifteen minutes they’re always late. Ineffective people have trouble committing to plans and planning ahead.

8. Not Willing to Take a Risk

Have the willingness to feel the fear and do it anyway.  It’s not the future that you need to be afraid of; it’s repeating the past that threatens your growth.