Whether if you’re already an entrepreneur, thinking to be one, or make part of any business team, you’ve probably found out that there are skills that go beyond being very smart. These skills go towards the development of creativity, ideas, well-being, resilience, decision making, and self-trust among others.

These mantras are also a common behavior among successful businessmen from all over the world and have been inducted into their company core cultures, deploying many results that encourage whoever wants to fulfill their dreams or follow their passion, or also in those times that your life is screaming for a change.

Read 1 Book a Month

This one is very simple and impactful, but being honest, the effort it takes to break old habits like binge-watching series (me, personally House of Cards) and creating space for this activity. The benefits of reading deserve their own series of books, so here is a list with some, and if you’re interested in a specific one, let us know and we will reply to you, or you can make the search for yourself.

• Stress reduction
• Mental Stimulation
• Memory Improvement
• Improved focus and concentration
• Better writing skills
• Vocabulary expansion
• Knowledge
• Stronger analytical thinking skills
• Tranquility
• Free entertainment

The list doesn’t stop there, but I want you to see that reading provides benefits for many areas of your life, that together can build a person that feels comfortable and confident when it is needed in today’s market.

Read Blogs About Your Area of Interest

In your everyday activities, finding space to learn about any topic is a boost for your creativity and productivity. Trying new ideas, strategies or thoughts, can open doors to infinite possibilities when done frequently in your life. You don’t need to attach to anything in particular, but to the understanding that nothing remains the same, so uncertainty becomes your ally and uncomfortable situations lose power over you. 

When you know that are several ways to face a problem, you feel and get less stuck. Also, when you read about topics that you like, even if they’re for work, you are taking care of yourself. These little details can lighten your day, can change your mood, or even bring you back to the present.

This mantra is related to taking action, so use that new knowledge and start applying it, it doesn’t matter how big or small.

Listen to Podcasts About Your Profession or New Skills

Nowadays there are as many podcasts and audio books as there are Starbucks in New York. This type of content is digested easier and another good thing about this is that they can be listened in groups, in cars, or in meetings. The interaction between teams can be enhanced and provides a different way of giving ideas or discussing topics.

It’s also easy to share, so in case the content has a lot of value, sharing it with a link is very simple. The alignment of any team can be improved and the culture of constant skill development can be spread.

Meditate or do Yoga

This is probably one of the most shared mantras among successful people, meditation can be a gateway towards self-enlightenment and personal growth. But, it also provides simpler and more basic tools, like returning to the present, emotional and tension release, stress reduction, sleep aid, more frequent periods of happiness, and many more.

I recommend you Calm app and Brain.fm, which bring the Tibetan knowledge and practices to your living room, or to any place at any time when you need help dealing with emotions or daily issues. 

Doing yoga helps your wellness by focusing on your body’s natural tendency towards health and self-healing. “The purpose of yoga is to build strength, awareness, and harmony in both the mind and body,” explains Natalie Nevins, DO, a board-certified osteopathic family physician and certified Kundalini Yoga instructor in Hollywood, California. 

While there are more than 100 different types, or schools, of yoga, most sessions typically include breathing exercises, meditation, and assuming postures that stretch and flex various muscle groups.

Practice Any Sport, Run, Exercise

Dynamism is a principle of life; we are created to move. Although nowadays this may seem inaccurate, the effort of standing up, going to the gym, or practicing any sport eventually pays off. It has both short and long-term benefits.

Short-Term:

• Productivity on Top
• Self-confidence
• Enhanced metabolism
• Happiness Boost
• Better skin
• Sleep Aid

Long-Term:

• Weight control
• Reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and some cancers.
• Strengthen bones and muscles.
• Improve mental health and mood.
• Improve your ability to do daily activities and prevent falls.
• Increase your chances of living longer.

Play An Instrument

Beyond the amusement and fun that comes up with playing an instrument, this activity is a powerful resource of youth and health for our brain. Just to name a few, here is a list of its benefits:

• Increases the capacity of your memory
• Refines your time management and organization skills
• Boost your team skills
• Teaches you perseverance
• Enhances your coordination
• Betters your mathematical ability
• Improves your reading and comprehension skills
• Increases your responsibility
• Exposes you to cultural history
• Sharpens your concentration
• Fosters your self-expression and relieves stress
• Creates a sense of achievement
• Promotes your social skills
• Boosts your listening skills
• Teaches you discipline
• Promotes happiness in your life and those around you
• As you can see, all the work that your brain does when playing an instrument is worth the effort, patience, and discipline.

Grow Your Social Network

This point is not adding randomly every “Trevor” on Facebook and LinkedIn, but being strategic to where you can take advantage of the people that surround you. For example, if you’re in a co-working, take advantage of open spaces, carry your business cards with you, start a conversation, you never know who you’re talking to.

How is your elevator pitch going? Polishing your communication skills can open you many doors, and help you escalate quicker. Turning people into your allies and letting them know who you are and what you do best brings the possibility of closing many deals.

Now with LinkedIn, it’s even easier to reach C level contacts, and use the benefits of the World Wide Web. For instance, here at Workep, we’ve been working with our developers for two years now, and it was fully through LinkedIn, as they’re located in Georgia, Eastern Europe. Our CEO hasn’t even met them in person, but that hasn’t stopped us from growing as a company.

So, fellow entrepreneur, do you think that merging any of these mantras into your life is worth trying? Hopefully you do and enjoy the benefits that come with them. 

Sources:
http://www.effectivemusicteaching.com/articles/directors/18-benefits-of-playing-a-musical-instrument/