Over the last few weeks I’ve been trying to answer the question of what makes extraordinary people achieve at the level they do. While there is no magic bullet for success in life, business or anything else, the most successful people all seem to have certain qualities in common.

1. Optimism

I’ve yet to meet a successful person who’s a pessimist.  Regardless of what’s going on their life, they tend to be highly optimistic.  The look for the opportunity in every setback and really embrace the idea that sometimes you take two steps back to take 20 forward.  They seem to know deep inside that our circumstances today don’t determine what’s possible tomorrow.

2. Confidence

When I asked Danielle Laporte what people like Chris Guillebeau and Marie Forleo have in common she said they look at something and say “I want that and I don’t see any reason I can’t have it.” Damn straight.  Best selling book, why not? 5- Figure speaking gigs, it’s only a matter of time.  Extaordinary achievers seem to live from the mindset of “It’s not a matter of if, just when.” They’re confident that anything is possible

3. Risk Tolerance

If you play it safe your entire life chances are you’ll never get beyond your current limitations. You have to stand on the edge of your comfort zone in order to get past it.  You’ll often see a relationship between tolerance for risk and potential for success. Extraordinary achievers have an ability to go to the edge over and over, while embracing the uncertainty of it all.

4. Resilience

Extraordinary achievers know the difference between settling and settling down. They’re the kind of people who don’t give up and go FAR past the point where most people would quit.  They’ve got a fighter inside that can last 30 rounds, get knocked down and come back with fists of fire in just the moment you think they’re out for the count. They will go to the point of no return to get what they’re after.

5. Focus

Have you ever received an automated email from one of your favorite bloggers, authors or entrepreneurs that says “I’ve gone into my creation cave?” or had them tell you about their social media blackout?. Well that’s what you call focus. This is why authors disappear when they’re writing books. This is why people shut down everything else when they want to get things done. Extroardinary achievers realize that time is the most precious asset they have and they don’t flush it down the toilet.

6. Commitment

Of  all the lessons I’ve learned from 1000 days of surfing, commitment is probably the most important one.  I definitely didn’t learn to surf because of my limited athletic ability. I just kept showing up because I was committed to learning.  Extraordinary achievers don’t dabble in things. They put their heart and soul into everything they do and it shows in their work.

7. Consistency

Extraordinary achievers show up every day. They do exactly what they say they’re going to do.

• If they say they’ll publish a blog post every Monday, they do it without fail. 
• If they say they’ll send out a newsletter on Thursday, they do it without fail. 

They do everything in their power to cement their reputation for being reliable.

 8. Vision

Ryan Holiday worked with people like Tim Ferris, Robert Greene, and Tucker Max. When I asked him what made these people so successful he said “they had an end mind.” Extraordinary achievers have a vision and the ability to tune out the world around them, their circumstances, and anything else in service of that vision.  Regardless of the critics, naysayers, and dreamcrushers  they charge on to the final destination of their ultimate vision.

Do you have the qualities of an extraordinary achiever? If not what you can you do to develop them? Are there additional ones you would add to this list.