Wouldn’t it be great if we could take our basic raw talents and parlay them into extraordinary success?  I mean, it really does seem like a dream come true. Just imagine that. Your basic talents would be enough to get you the success that you desire.  The truth is that your basic talents are just that – your basic talents. Alone your basic raw talents will produce a low yield. To be successful you need more than your basic raw talent.

A critical factor to amazing success is your habits and your routines.  The better your habits and your routines, the more likely you are to accomplish your goals.  Raw talent and a smile will only get you so far. Your dreams require you to establish a set of habits and routines that will allow you to produce the results once, twice, ten, even hundreds of times.

Another critical factor is your ability to build and leverage a team of people with whom you can create amazing success.  In this case, you are dependent on the habits and routines of your network. As either the leader of the team or as a team member your work ethic is important to the general effectiveness of the team.  If you are the leader of a team, it’s imperative to dictate standards for your team to follow. If you are part of a team, it is imperative to stand up, help set, or uphold the standard of excellence.

As an entrepreneur one lesson that I have learned is that when building a team, it’s best to focus not so much on skills or qualifications, but rather to look for team members who have good habits, good routines, and want to reach amazing success.  At one point, I only hired people based on skills. Over time, I have learned that nothing beats integrity, good habits, and overall good people when it comes to building a team. Skills are important, but they can be taught. If these other intangibles are not present there is nothing that can be done.

Choosing substance over skills protects you and your team.  Think of it like you think of the flu. You would never let someone with disgusting germy coughing fits into your home.  You just wouldn’t want all of their germs to invade your home and the risk to your health would be just too great.

In the same way, you should not let someone with substandard work habits and routines be part of your team. After all, no matter your level of discipline and no matter the health of your habits other people’s habits are infectious and have an influence on you and your teammates.  Remember bad habits are even more contagious than good habits. So, to protect your team it is best to avoid those bad habits and routines.

It is an inescapable fact that we are greatly influenced by those with whom we surround ourselves.  Author and speaker Jim Rohn says that you are the average of the five people that you hang out with the most. So, if you want to be amazing, you need to work with and spend time with people who have similar goals and let their habits rub off on you.

As you climb towards amazing success, make sure that you deal with people who you can rely on and whose habits and routines inspire you to be better at your pursuits.  Their habits and their routines should complement your skills and help drive you to amazing success.