Although becoming the best in the world is not an easy task, getting near the top is quite easy.

We live in a mediocre society where very few people are interested in becoming the best. Most people just want to have a good and comfortable life.

Almost everyone is more focused on looking good rather than doing good. It is comfort before progress. The focus is on fitting in rather than standing out.

In this watered-down society, even a small effort in the right direction can take you near the top.

The best in the world (BIW), however, are people who have some specific qualities that make them stand out from the rest.

They would rather be uncomfortable but make progress. These heroes and heroines do not focus on showing off but on showing up.

It is almost uncontested that the following are the best in the world in their fields:

·     Tiger woods- Greatest golfer

·     Donald Trump- Greatest developer

·     Elon Musk- Greatest entrepreneur

·     Michael Jordan- Greatest basketball player

·     Oprah Winfrey- Greatest TV personality

·     Vusi Thembekwayo- Greatest young public speaker

·     Steve Jobs- Greatest innovator

·     Bill Gates- Greatest philanthropist

·     Warren Buffet – Greatest investor

·     J. K. Rowlings- Greatest author

The list can go on and on. However, the fact remains that there are specific individuals whose names pop up when an industry is mentioned.

These people did not get there by sheer luck. They had to work hard and follow the principles of success.

Let us look at what it takes to become the best in the world.

1.   Focus on one field

The best in the world focus on one industry. They do not jump from one industry to the other.

Vusi Thembekwayo is not the greatest public speaker and the greatest footballer. He is just the greatest public speaker. The same happens to all other people at the top.

If you decide to do real estate, focus on it until you are successful. This is one rule that Robert Kiyosaki advocates for; follow one course until you are successful.

This calls for careful consideration. You cannot afford to put the effort into the wrong industry.

Consider the following when choosing an industry:

ü Your expertise and experience

ü Your academic training

ü Your purpose

ü Your passion

ü Opportunities in the industry

If you are to become the best in the world, the 5 points must support what you do. This is how success is achieved.

2.   Pursue excellence

You cannot become the best in the world without focusing on excellence. It is a necessity.

Why is Tiger Woods the best golfer? It is because he is so excellent at hitting the ball. That is just it.

Focusing on excellence is not easy. It means that you cannot just give mediocre output as many do. This calls for the extra effort. Many people just do things to finish them rather than to give out the best.

This is how you pursue excellence:

§ Decide that you will never produce anything substandard.

§ Always do due diligence in any undertaking.

§ Make excellence one of your values.

§ Integrate excellence in all your strategies.

§ Do not focus on quantity but quality.

If you will pursue excellence, you will start moving up the ranks in your field.

3.   Think big

Thinking big is a prerequisite for becoming the best in the world. All BIWs think big.

We become what we think about. You cannot succeed beyond your level of thinking. For you to achieve big, you have to think big.

Many people do not fail to succeed because they do not have the potential. They fail to succeed because they do not think they can and should.

A big vision should do the following:

v It should be crazy to your logical mind.

v You should know you can achieve it but you do not know how.

v Your friends think it is unrealistic

v It provokes you to think about it every hour

v It provokes you to work hard.

If you do not think big, you cannot become the best in the world. Big people did not start big, they started by thinking that they can become big.

4.   Learn as much as you can

The best in the world focus on learning. They are always reading books and learning from their mistakes. This is how they become the best.

Many average and poor people do not read books. They will start one and not finish. They will read one and go for months before reading another one.

Warren Buffet, the greatest investor read almost the whole day. Mark Cuban reads 3 hours every day. Myles Munroe read 4 books every month.

 Many other great people read at least a book every week. This is the standard.

Books give people a wealth of knowledge in just a few days. You can learn something that took the author a lifetime to learn in one day.

To become the best in the world, you have to develop the following skills

·     Technical skills

·     Financial skills

·     People’s skills (Leadership)

·     Management skills

The following will help you start your reading journey:

·     Have a reading schedule.

·     Build a home library.

·     Read the most common books first to gain momentum.

·     Have a reading partner

Keep learning and you will start moving up the success ladder.

5.   Work harder than the rest

There is no short cut to success. You have to work hard.

Apart from the people who inherited their wealth, everybody else became successful through hard work.

You may be putting effort but is your hard work enough? Is it enough to compete in the global space?

Working 8/9-5 cannot make you the best in the world. The best work for around 14-18 hours every day. You have to, especially at the beginning.

If you put a little effort, you will be far much behind the person who puts more effort. Do not oversleep. Focus on productivity.

Conclusion

Becoming the best in the world is not a walk in the park. It calls for greater dedication and more hard work. It also calls for focus and continuous learning.

However, even if it is hard, it is still possible. After all, some people have done it.