30 Clear Signs You’re On the Path to Success

Success isn’t just a final destination, it is a pathway. This means that before becoming successful, there are telltale signs that may show that you are on the path to being successful.

Being successful is not just a thing of fate or luck. It requires some deliberate action, mindsets, behaviors, and attitudes. What that means is that some of these signs would not appear by default because you are naturally destined to be successful. Being destined to be successful is a result of the deliberate actions, mindsets, and behaviors that you assume.

If you display these signs, you are on the path to success. However, there is still a need to keep refining yourself until you have all it takes, and until you achieve the success you have been dreaming of.

Many people associate success with wealth or status but true success is often a reflection of personal growth, mindset, and habits, that allow one to achieve one’s set goals. Whether you are just getting started on your journey or already seeing signs of progress, understanding these signs can help you stay motivated, focused, and resilient in your journey to achieving success.

30 Clear Signs You’re on the Path to Success

If you display these behaviors and mindsets, it’s only a matter of time before you become successful in anything you put your mind to. Not only is having these attributes important in achieving success but also in staying consistent with them.

Again, the journey to success is a process. The determination to get there is what you need to acquire the skills, mindsets, behaviors, and attitudes that will take you there.

1. You adapt to change

One key sign of future success is your ability to adapt to change. In an ever-changing world, flexibility is essential. Being successful often depends on how well you can respond to new challenges and circumstances.

Whether it’s a change in your environment, a shift in government policies, or personal growth, your ability to adapt quickly is a sign that you are on the path to becoming successful. Embracing change with a positive mindset is one key thing that differentiates the high-fliers from those who see setbacks only.

2. You take risks and plan ahead

Risk-taking is another clear sign that you are on your way to success. It is the courage to do what you need to do to achieve your goals. Almost everyone who achieved success in their expertise share how important risk-taking is in becoming successful.

Elon Musk, in an interview with BBC in 2021, when asked about how he managed to rise above a business crisis when Tesla was having production challenges and he had sold off his holdings in Zip2 and PayPal said, “I could either keep the money, then the companies are definitely going to die or invest what I have left and maybe there is a chance”. SpaceX’s first three launches had failed, and Tesla was having some sort of production and marketing problems.

He had almost $200m in the bank from the sale of his companies but he had to take a risky decision of investing part of that money into Tesla and SpaceX. Risks are like sacrifices; the chances are 50-50 but they give way to something bigger than 100.

3. You are time conscious

Time is one of the most important commodities or assets in life but not everyone realizes its importance. Time wasted is money wasted which is why successful people value the importance of saving time and being productive with as many hours as they can get.

Time consciousness is another clear attitude you exhibit when you are on your path to being successful, but you don’t necessarily have to fill every second of your day with a task to be successful at time management, Bill Gates shared. You simply have to be decisive of your time.

Gates also shared what he noticed from Buffet’s time management style, stating that “You control your time… It’s not a proxy of your seriousness that you fill every minute in your schedule.”, emphasizing that sitting down to think and plan sometimes could be more productive than working round the clock in the name of being time conscious.

People and activities are going to compete for your time, but you have to learn to apportion time for the most important things in your life or goals.

4. You are open to trying new things

“Move fast and break things” is one of Zuckerberg’s Meta’s motto. By this, Mark Zuckerberg explained that oftentimes if you are not breaking things, you are not moving fast enough or you are afraid to try new things.

Contrary to having a mindset of conservativeness where you are afraid to do anything different, people who achieve success are often very open to trying new things. “Moving fast enables us to build more things and learn faster. However, as most companies grow, they slow down too much because they are more afraid of making mistakes…”, Zuckerberg added.

Being open to trying new things makes you stumble on opportunities you never knew existed before. Retrospectively, success may look like luck because you never thought it was going to be that successful but it’s just not luck because no one knows about the number of times you had failed before.

5. You understand and value relationships

Another important sign that you are on the path to success is that you understand the importance of good relationships. You are conscious about how you part ways with people you meet, and you don’t want to do so on a bad note.

Successful people also deliberately build relationships with people, irrespective of what they have to offer in the immediate period. They are not selective of who they are friendly with, and that makes everyone they meet see their genuine interest in building a healthy relationship with them.

Not everyone eventually stays in your circle, but successful people don’t act arrogantly as if ‘they won’t ever need your help anytime’.

6. You find yourself among successful people

Contrary to the magnetic principle of ‘unlike charges attract and like charges repel’, in the area of success and failure, like attracts like. You find yourself among successful people and they are free to be around you.

That is because your determination attracts you to people who are achieving success in their respective areas too. And in addition, they see that they can be comfortable around you.

What this means is that successful people often fear being around people who are not doing much to achieve their goals because they suspect that such people can plot to harm or destroy them someday. So, if you find yourself among successful people and this relationship lasts longer than just one meeting, it is probably because they see the sign that you will just like them in a short time.

7. You see the goal, not the competition

Success can look so big that people might get too scared to even try. Imagine thinking about starting an e-commerce company that can compete with Amazon. Thinking about how sophisticated they have become can make you feel like giving up without trying, but one clear sign that you are on the path to being successful is that you can easily switch away from ‘fear mode’ and swing into work.

Despite the competition, successful people focus on the goal, not the competition. Even Jeff Bezos had to overcome this in 1997 when he started Amazon when he said, “If we just stay focused on our customers, instead of obsessing over big competitors, we’ll be fine. Whatever the external distraction is, your response should be to double down on the customer.“

It’s always important to know the goal and focus on it. Having the goal in mind makes you ignore the competition or thoughts of giving up, which means you are on your way to being successful.

8. You are willing to help others

Being willing to help other people is another sign of successful people. This goes on to emphasize your value for great relationships and friendship.

Even when you are busy with tasks and important activities, you can find time to help other people when they need you to, as long as it is feasible for you. This is a sign that you will be successful because it makes people see you as genuine and kind, which makes you more deserving of the help that will make you achieve your goals.

9. You forgive easily

Success does not hold grudges, and forgiving easily is one sign of successful people. Successful people don’t have time to ruminate over someone who offends them, rather they would either confront them or stay away from them. But either way, they would let go of everything that happened without thinking of how to pay back at a later date.

One clear sign that you are on the path to success is that you are too engrossed with your goals to have time to think or plot against other people. Successful people also quickly forgive themselves for their wrong choices and mistakes while devoting most of the time to looking for the way forward.

10. You are not ashamed of little beginnings

Successful people trust the process. They realize the importance of growth and consistency, which is why they won’t give up or feel ashamed when they are starting small.

Great things take time, and achieving your goals and becoming successful at what you do is no exception. So, instead of waiting for one huge breakthrough that will come from nowhere, you can start small with what you have without thinking of what anyone would think or say.

11. You see problems as opportunities

Another way to recognize successful people even before they become successful is that they think of opportunities when others are thinking of problems. While people are busy complaining about the problem, successful people are quick to ask ‘What is the solution to this problem’.

Truthfully, dwelling too long on the problem keeps one stagnant and unsuccessful. One wastes time worrying when they can turn things around if they can think more critically. And if you find yourself always asking for the ‘way forward’, you are likely going to be highly successful even if you are not quite there yet.

12. You hate excuses and complaining

Excuses only give one a comforting reason to remain in mediocrity, they have never made anyone successful. Rather than find excuses for their situations, people on the path to becoming highly successful hate to make excuses for their situation or condition.

If you always stay accountable and responsible for your actions, it is only a matter of time before you achieve the success everyone has been talking about.

13. You discuss ideas not gossip about people

Successful people do not spend time talking about people when it does not add any value to them. When they discuss people, it is because they want to learn a lesson from them, and you would not see them directly criticizing or talking ill about other people.

14. You are self-motivated

‘No one is ever going to motivate you better than you motivate yourself’. This emphasizes that even though you might get motivation from other people, you can’t always bank on motivation from people.

One mark of successful people is that they channel their energy into motivating themselves so that when other people do not motivate them, they are better off with their plans. Even if they are being discouraged by other people, you find them standing strong with no restraints.

15. You see challenges as opportunities to grow

Seeing challenges as opportunities to grow is one sign that makes successful people overcome turbulent and challenging times. It is what keeps you going when the situations are not all rosy for you.

If you stay focused on your goals despite the challenges you face, it’s a sign that you are on the path to success. Keep up with the attitude, and you will be shocked where you will find yourself in a few years.

16. You listen more than you speak

Being a more active listener makes you more successful because it makes you more approachable and worthy of being taught, advised, or instructed. This way, you can get helpful advice and ideas from people who can change your life in ways you never imagined.

17. You learn from mistakes

Successful people learn from their mistakes and those of other people. Rather than wallow in regrets, they take time to understand why they made a mistake and learn from it. This makes them better and prevents them from repeating a similar mistake next time.

18. You learn to trust people

Successful people recognize that mistrust gives you more things to worry about. When you don’t trust people, you act more carefully around them which adds to your mental burden daily. But this does not mean entrusting anyone with critical possessions or responsibilities.

Trusting people means you can allow them to be themselves around you without thinking too critically about them. This makes you understand the true character of people and also signals to them that you are genuinely interested in them; another sign that you value good relationships.

19. You understand what education is and what it is not

If you understand that education is simply the process of learning to understand concepts and applying them to real-life scenarios, rather than just passing through school to obtain a degree, you are on your way to success.

Many people simply devise ways to pass exams without understanding the core ideas behind the information, but successful people learn beyond the books in the process of acquiring their degree.

20. You don’t give up on your dreams

One may think it is too late to pursue one’s dreams or that one does not have what is required to achieve success but the people who eventually become successful are those who did not give up on their dreams. Times may be hard but as long as you don’t give up, you are on the path to success.

21. You keep good company

If you are conscious of the company you keep and what value you get from it, that is a good sign that you are convinced about where you are going. Successful people keep company with people who inspire them to be more productive, motivated, or successful.

22. You feel confident about yourself

One other clear sign that you are on the path to success is that you are confident in yourself and your abilities, irrespective of what other people may think. This is because you are keeping your mind focused on your goals and dreams without allowing other people’s judgment to dampen your self-confidence.

23. You learn to recognize and maximize opportunities

Successful people recognize that one has to be prepared to identify and maximize opportunities, so they make adequate preparations ahead of time. If you are someone who plans for your goals, you are more likely to harness an opportunity when it comes and more likely to succeed in what you do.

24. You care less about what others think of you

Lao Tzu said, “Live for the praise of others and you will become their prisoner”. While praises may sometimes, you might get negative comments from the people you expected compliments from. This is why successful people choose to care less about what other people think of them. They are committed to becoming the best version of themselves.

25. You can understand the pain of others

As unrelated as this may seem, successful people are highly empathic and can think about what others are going through. This ability is important to being successful because it helps you to know how to offer products or services that meet people’s needs.

26. You are passionate about what you do

Successful people are often passionate about their vocations and jobs. They know how to dissociate from the pain of the present time and focus on achieving success in the long run. Thus, they find themselves achieving success in a short while.

27. You are open to learning

If you consider yourself to be open to learning from other people as long as they have some knowledge to impact you, and irrespective of whether you are older than them or not, you are on the path to success even if you haven’t realized it yet.

28. You are creative

Another sign that you are on the path to success is that you can identify the hidden value of the materials you have at your disposal. This is about being able to invent great products from seemingly free and common resources at your disposal. That is how creativity puts you on the path to success.

29. You avoid unhealthy comparisons

Comparisons either reduce your perceived self-worth or inflate it, neither of which is necessary if you want to achieve true and lasting success. When you compare yourself with people, you might get discouraged if you think they are way better than you, or you might feel complacent and relaxed if you think you are better than them.

For the above, successful people avoid situations to compare with anyone other than themselves. The best comparison is against who you see yourself becoming. You want to achieve that success you have always been dreaming of.

30. You believe in yourself

This is one of the most important signs that you are going to achieve success. You believe in your ability to make it, and you don’t have any doubts that you will be successful. This recognition and self-awareness are the things that will keep you on track to success.

Believing in yourself and your abilities makes you take new opportunities when you see them. It motivates you to keep pushing despite the challenges you may face. Lastly, it blocks discouragement from other people around you.

Final words

If you display these signs, you are definitely on your path to success. Success takes time to develop, which means that you can keep developing yourself in areas where you are deficient. It doesn’t matter your age or what you have been through, as long as you stay focused on your dreams and you keep making improvements, you are definitely on the path to success. Give it time.