5 habits that will guarantee your failure in life

• Thomas Oppong, Entrepreneur

• Jan. 15, 2016, 10:26 AM
• 657,221
 
• 7

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REUTERS/Luke MacGregorYou need to get rid of your bad habits before it's too late.

Your daily habits define who you are. You are practically what you do.

In the words of Winston Churchill: "Success is not final, failure is not fatal — it is the courage to continue that counts." If you have ever failed in the past but never gave up, you are stronger than you think.

If you have failed recently and are considering giving up, don't. The obstacle is definitely the way. There will always be a way out. You just haven't found it yet. Keep on trying. Find out why and how you got stuck, and dig yourself out of the temporary setback. Unfortunately, most people refuse to do something about their failures. In the end, they give up on their dreams and stop working on projects that matter to them and continue to wallow in discontent.

Everyone fears to fail, experiencing it is inevitable, but it's your response to it that makes all the difference. Don't get stuck. You are not your failure. These are a few of the many habits that could guarantee your failure — and what you can do about them.

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1. Failing to plan

flickr/portofsandiego

You have a better chance to succeed in life if you have a plan.

It doesn't have to be perfect. The real world doesn't reward perfectionists but those who get stuff done. You should always think through whatever you want to achieve and make plans on what to do next at any point in time. 

You plans should be specific, measurable and time-bound. A complete big picture prepares you for execution. Don't make vague plans. You will be prone to procrastinate if your plan is not measurable. Work with timelines for better and faster results.

2. The fear to even try

Wikipedia

"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take." 

Wayne Gretzky could not have said that any better. You can only make progress if you take a step. Overcoming the fear of failing is the first step toward success. Start confronting your fears today. And take even the most basic step toward what you have to do. Remember the dream you were too scared to chase? It's still not too late to give it a try. Never miss an opportunity to try. 

"No matter how many mistakes you make, or how slow you progress, you are still way ahead of everyone who isn't trying." — Tony Robbins.

3. Giving up too soon

Flickr/robhardingii

How persistent are you about pursuing your dreams and goals in life? One of the most important secrets of success is learning to conquer your doubts. Most of us give up on our passion too soon. Every successful person you know today has a perseverance story to share. There is probably no better example of persistence than the story of Abraham Lincoln. 

He failed in business at 21, lost a legislative race at age 22, failed in business again at 24, and lost a congressional race when he was 34. At 45 he lost a senatorial race. And he failed in an attempt to become Vice President when he was 47. But he was finally elected President of the United States at age 52. Lincoln never quit. He could have given up after several attempts but pursued his ambition to assume the highest office in America. There is no substitute for persistence. As long as you are still actively trying after every failure, you have not failed yet.

4. Disbelief

Flickr/Sabine Mondestin

If you don't believe in what you do, you will give up at some point. If you have no reason to believe it's possible to achieve your dreams or goals, all the effort you are putting into it will be wasted.

You mind’s unconscious beliefs play a significant role in the amount of effort you put into your life's work. If you don't see a successful outcome, you won't push yourself further to get there. Your progress depends on your decision to try knowing that you will overcome your failures and rise above them.

5. Making excuses

orijinal/Flickr

There will always be a reason why it can't be done. People constantly explain away why they couldn't, shouldn't, didn't, or simply wouldn't do something. When you make excuses, you are simply saying, "I'm not in control." But guess what — you are the only person who is fully in control of your actions and decisions in the world. Making excuses robs you of your personal power. 

People make excuses because of the fear of the unknown. Others are just afraid of change, rejection, and embarrassment. Fear locks you in your comfort zone. And nothing magical or remarkable happens in your safe zone. You can stop making excuses if you learn how to eliminate all traces of fear from your life. The next time you experience a setback, don't make an excuse. See it as a challenge, learn from it, and move on. Excuses are distractions, and they reduce your confidence and self-belief. You don't want that — especially when you still have a lot to show the world. 

6 signs you aren't cut out to be an entrepreneur

• Neil Patel, Entrepreneur

• Oct. 10, 2015, 3:00 PM
• 67,592

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HBOA scene from HBO's "Silicon Valley."

Lots of people want to start a business. But not everyone has what it takes. 

The proportion of those who merely want to be entrepreneurs will always be higher than that of the few who actually start a business. The simple reason is that not everyone is cut out for the rigors of entrepreneurship.

So, you may be thinking about starting a business. But can you? Check out the following signs that you are not cut out for the entrepreneurial life.

1. You prefer following orders.

The world is made of followers and leaders. Which one are you?

If you're committed to being a comfortable order-taker the rest of your life, perhaps entrepreneurship is not for you. If, on the other hand, you feel a twitch of desire to make some decisions and give some orders, that may be the spark of entrepreneurship.

2. You prefer working to fulfill someone else's dream.

Businessman, investor and philanthropist Farrah Gray wrote, "Build your own dreams, or someone else will hire you to build theirs." Which do you prefer to do?

You may be content to pour your life and hard work into someone else's dream. And that's fine. Many people find true fulfillment in this pursuit. Parents, for example, are motivated by a desire to help their children achieve their dreams. Teachers give their lives to motivating and prospering a generation of students. Nonprofits exist to rekindle dying dreams.

It's not wrong to nurture someone else's dream. But if you have your own dreams, perhaps you should stop working to fulfill someone else's.

3. You don't like hard work.

Entrepreneurship is about hard work. It's about facing indecision, insecurity, instability and borderline insanity.

There's nothing really pleasant about that. Ironic as it seems, there's a certain satisfaction in hard work. Humans are made for hard work, and hard work has its own reward.

It's cliche to say "work smart, not hard." But here's the rude reality: You must work smart andhard. Entrepreneurship isn't a bag of smart tricks. It's smart tricks combined with heart-pounding hard work.

If you're not into the whole hard-work thing — rewarding as it is — then the entrepreneurial life is not for you.

OnInnovation/FlickrElon Musk says he never stops working.

4. You get along great with everyone in your life.

Take a quick survey of all your human relationships. Any interpersonal problems? A breakup? A shouting match? An argument?

No? None? Okay, that's settled. You're probably not an entrepreneur.

As it turns out, entrepreneurs aren't the wide-grinning, back-slapping, glad-handing socialites they may seem to be. Entrepreneurs tend toward the outer fringe of social behavior and cultural norms. Fortune magazine featured this bit of insight:

Want to find the future entrepreneurs in a room full of teenagers? Look for the boys who like to break a rule from time to time.

This makes sense when you realize that entrepreneurs are the ones who disrupt industries, chafe against the status quo and spark a good revolution.

PsychCentral even reported, "New research has found a childhood pattern of antisocial tendencies among entrepreneurs."

So, if you're sometimes labeled as a nerd or geek, or boring, or rude, don't sweat it. Instead, go do what you were meant to do — start a business or two.

5. You see everything in the world as being just fine.

Pushing the pessimistic or optimistic dichotomy aside for just a moment, how do you view the world around you? Is everything fine, or are there a few things that could use improving? Your perspective is a marker of your entrepreneurship tendencies. Entrepreneurs see things that need fixing. They see trends that need changing. They see a world that's not yet perfect.

USA Today reported, "Serial entrepreneurs find new problems to fix," because, let's be honest, there's a lot that needs fixing in the world.

Elon Musk was someone who wanted to fix the world. He wasn't content with online payment methods. That's why he launched PayPal. He wasn't content with the slump of space exploration. He started SpaceX. He saw a problem with the reliance on traditional methods of energy. Say hello to SolarCity, Tesla Energy, Hyperloop and Tesla Motors.

Look at the world. What do you see? No changes needed? If that's the case, you probably don't see a pressing need to start a business.

But if you see problems that need solving, and solutions that need inventing, consider entrepreneurship your calling. 

6. You feel very mainstream. (And you love it.)

AP Photo/Paul SakumaSteve Jobs was anything but mainstream.

Entrepreneurship is counter-cultural, because contemporary society tends to discourage risk taking.

We conflate protection with progress. The cultural "we" smiles approvingly at closed environments, safe decisions, sound investments, risk-free assets and cups that don't spill hot coffee on us.

Those are all fine things. But in moments of brutal honesty, we realize that some of life's risk is necessary and good. The mainstream obsession with safety and security tends to denude life of its natural and healthy risk.

The person who floats contentedly in the current of mainstream culture is, perhaps, not the choicest person for entrepreneurial pursuits. Apple's "Think Different" commercials famously commented:

Here's to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They're not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can't do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.

Those words inspire entrepreneurs. But the not-so-entrepreneurial among us hardly warrant a second glance.

Conclusion

The beauty of of these traits is that they are malleable. Entrepreneurship isn't a you-got-it-or-you-don't proposition. You can cultivate the qualities of entrepreneurship through sheer will, patient habit and intense desire.

Don't let anything get in your way of living out your dream. If you want it, you can be cut out for it.

Read the original article on Entrepreneur. Copyright 2015. Follow Entrepreneur on Twitter

Tablet market ended year on weak note

The global market for tablet computers ended 2015 with a whimper, as the once sizzling market showed further signs of cooling, a market tracker said Monday. 

PHOTO: SPH

FEB 1, 201611:18 PM

[WASHINGTON] The global market for tablet computers ended 2015 with a whimper, as the once sizzling market showed further signs of cooling, a market tracker said Monday.

Research firm IDC reported a 13.7 per cent year-over-year drop in worldwide tablet sales in the fourth quarter, with 65.9 million units shipped.

For the full year, IDC said the number of tablets shopped fell 10.1 per cent from a year earlier to 206.8 million.

Tablet sales had been gaining momentum through 2014 but failed to live up to many forecasts as consumers shifted to slim laptop computers and kept their tablets longer than expected before replacing them.

One bright spot in the tablet market however has been the "detachable" segment with removable keyboards such as the iPad Pro, which is growing at a strong pace, according to IDC.

For 2015, detachable tablets reached an all-time high of 8.1 million units, the report said.

"One of the biggest reasons why detachables are growing so fast is because end users are seeing those devices as PC replacements," said IDC's Jean Philippe Bouchard.

"We believe Apple sold just over two million iPad Pros while Microsoft sold around 1.6 million Surface devices, a majority of which were Surface Pro and not the more affordable Surface 3. With these results, it's clear that price is not the most important feature considered when acquiring a detachable - performance is."

Jitesh Ubrani, an IDC analyst, said the Apple's iPad Pro "was the clear winner this season as it was the top selling detachable, surpassing notable entries from Microsoft and other PC vendors." But Ubrani said Google's new detachable tablet had a "lackluster" reception and noted that its Android platform "will require a lot more refinement to achieve any measurable success."

Apple kept its position at the top of the overall tablet market with fourth quarter sales of 16.1 million units, a market share of 24.5 per cent despite a drop in unit sales of nearly 25 per cent.

Samsung was second with nine million units and a 13.7 per cent share, while Amazon took third place sales of 5.2 million and a 7.9 per cent share.

While Amazon has not publicly released sales data for its Fire and Kindle devices, IDC said it appeared to gain traction with its bargain tablets priced as low as $50.

According to IDC, Amazon tablet sales surged 175.7 per cent in the past quarter, but said its success "has thus far been purely based on price," adding that "while this bodes well during the holiday season, it's unlikely the Kindle's success will continue in the remainder of the year." China's Lenovo and Huawei were fourth and fifth in sales with market shares of 4.8 and 3.4 per cent, respectively.

AFP

      

 

Dubai stays busiest airport for international travel

Dubai International remained the world's busiest airport for international travel last year with a 10.7 per cent rise in passenger numbers, its operator said on Monday. 

PHOTO: DUBAIAIRPORTS.AE

FEB 1, 20167:26 PM

[DUBAI] Dubai International remained the world's busiest airport for international travel last year with a 10.7 per cent rise in passenger numbers, its operator said on Monday.

More than 78 million passengers passed through Dubai in 2015, led by an increase in travellers from India, Britain and Saudi Arabia, the state-owned airport said in a statement.

Almost 10.4 million Indians arrived at Dubai last year, a 17 per cent rise from 2014. Britons arriving increased six per cent to 5.7 million travellers, and the number of Saudi arrivals rose 12 per cent to 5.5 million.

Dubai last year announced it had overtaken Britain's Heathrow as the world's busiest airport for international passengers, and saw 70.4 million international travellers pass through in 2014.

Situated on transcontinental air routes, Dubai is one of several Gulf-based airports to experience prodigious growth in recent years.

Around 100 airlines fly to more than 240 destinations from the international hub, which is also home to carrier Emirates.

Like Abu Dhabi's Etihad Airways and Qatar's state-owned operator, Emirates has come under fire from US and European carriers who accuse them of receiving subsidies from the oil-rich region's governments.

US officials opened investigations into the alleged subsidies last year following complaints from three major US carriers.

Dubai's second airport, Al-Maktoum International, opened in 2013 and will be capable of receiving 120 million passengers a year once fully operational.

AFP

    
 

Chinese airlines to blacklist unruly passengers

FEB 1, 20169:25 PM

[BEIJING] China's leading airlines joined forces on Monday to blacklist rowdy passengers who have become an increasing problem as the number of travellers grows.

Air China, China Eastern, China Southern, Hainan Airlines and Spring Air said they would share the names of passengers who misbehave and ban them from any of their flights.

China's aviation market has been growing rapidly in the past few years, with outbound travellers topping the 100 million figure in 2014 for the first time. The country is set to surpass the United States as the largest passenger market by 2034.

Alongside traffic growth have come long delays and concerns over the behaviour of unruly Chinese passengers.

In July 2015, Chinese authorities suspended operations at a small airport in east China after a man set fire to a curtain and newspapers in the first class cabin on a Shenzhen Airline's flight from the coastal city of Taizhou to the southern metropolis of Guangzhou.

Thai authorities last year also detained some 30 Chinese tourists who decided to let off steam by singing the Chinese national anthem and refusing to board a plane in Bangkok after their flight was delayed for over ten hours.

That has forced some carriers to take initiatives on their own.

"We have come up with our own list already," said Zhang Wuan, Spring Air's marketing chief. "It includes (the names of) those who beat up our staff, refuse to get on the plane or block the exit." Airlines have tried to tackle the problem of unruly passengers on an international basis.

Members of global airlines group IATA have called on governments to adopt the Montreal Protocol 2014 which would allow companies to seek compensation for costs occurred as a result of rowdy passengers.

REUTERS

    
 

Oil falls on China data and fading prospects of Opec action

Oil fell nearly four per cent on Monday as weak economic data from China, the world's largest energy consumer, weighed on prices and an Opec source played down talk of an emergency meeting to stem the decline. 

PHOTO: BLOOMBERG

FEB 1, 20169:13 PM

[LONDON] Oil fell nearly four per cent on Monday as weak economic data from China, the world's largest energy consumer, weighed on prices and an Opec source played down talk of an emergency meeting to stem the decline.

China's manufacturing sector contracted at the fastest pace since 2012 in January, adding to worries about demand from the world's second-biggest economy at a time when the market is already weighed down by a large supply overhang. "The weak China PMI (purchasing managers index) is driving down prices because China weighs on the entire commodities sector from the demand side of the equation," said Carsten Fritsch, senior oil analyst at Commerzbank in Frankfurt.

Brent April crude futures were down $1.12, or 3.1 per cent, at $34.87 a barrel at 1243 GMT. The March Brent contract, which expired on Friday, settled at $34.74 a barrel.

US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was down $1.32, or 3.9 per cent, at $32.30 a barrel.

A senior Opec source told a Saudi Arabian newspaper it was too early to talk about an emergency meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.

Oil prices jumped last week after Russian energy officials said they had received proposals from Opec lynchpin Saudi Arabia on managing output and were ready to talk. "We do not expect such a cut will occur unless global growth weakens sharply from current levels, which is not our economists' forecast," investment bank Goldman Sachs said in a report.

Opec member Iran, which last month was allowed to return fully to markets after years of sanctions, is so far unwilling to participate in cuts.

Partly because of Iran's return, Opec output has jumped to 32.6 million barrels per day (bpd), its highest in years, adding to supply of more than 1 million bpd in excess of demand which has pulled prices down 70 per cent since mid-2014.

Oil exports from Opec member Iraq rose in January, its oil ministry said on Monday, reaching an average of 3.285 million bpd, up from 3.215 million bpd the previous month.

However, overall production from its southern fields fell last month from a record high reached at the end of last year.

Brent crude prices have surged more than 30 per cent in just under two weeks since contracts hit a 12-year low.

In a sign investors are speculating on an oil rebound, data from the InterContinental Exchange showed net long positions in Brent rose the most in four years last week.

"Part of the bullish action in Brent crude oil ... is from fundamentals in Asia where parts of the oil complex are supportive with very strong China imports of NGL (natural gas liquids) and Naphtha, which has put these products in backwardation both in Asia and in Europe," said Bjarne Schieldrop, chief commodities analyst at SEB Markets in Oslo.

REUTERS

    
 

Korea bond rally pushes yields to record low as exports falter

South Korea's government bonds rose, pushing yields to record lows, as slumping exports and a weak yen spurred speculation the central bank will cut interest rates to support growth in Asia's fourth-largest economy. 

PHOTO: BLOOMBERG

FEB 1, 20164:15 PM

[SEOUL] South Korea's government bonds rose, pushing yields to record lows, as slumping exports and a weak yen spurred speculation the central bank will cut interest rates to support growth in Asia's fourth-largest economy.

Shipments fell for a 13th month in January, contracting the most since August 2009, official data showed Monday. The yen weakened after the Bank of Japan adopted negative interest rates on Friday, boosting the competitiveness of Japanese goods. The two nations compete globally to sell everything from cars to electronics.

Following the trade figures there's a "substantial risk" the Bank of Korea will cut its policy rate from a unprecedented 1.50 per cent before June, Nomura Holdings Inc said in a report.

The yield on notes maturing December 2018 dropped four basis points to close at 1.53 per cent in Seoul, Korea. Exchange prices show the lowest on record for a benchmark three-year security. The 10-year yield declined six basis points to a historic 1.92 per cent. Global funds bought a net US$335 million in local bonds in January.

"Sluggish exports data after Japan expanded its stimulus spurred the rally in bonds," said Hwangbo Youngok, a Seoul-based director at Korea Investment & Securities Co, one of the nation's 19 primary bond dealers.

"Expectations of another rate cut have heightened considerably," and the three-year yield could fall below the benchmark rate if any BOK board member calls for a reduction at the next meeting on Feb 16, he said.

The Finance Ministry will consider if it's necessary for its officials to attend the central bank's policy meeting and share views on the economic situation with BOK's board, Finance Minister Yoo Il Ho said in a meeting with reporters on Monday. The Kospi index of shares rose 0.7 per cent.

The won weakened 0.1 per cent to 1,200.41 a dollar, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The currency fell as much as 1 per cent, the most since Jan 11, and is Asia's worst performer this year with a 2.3 per cent loss. The won surged 2.7 per cent to 9.90 versus the yen on Friday, its biggest jump since April 2013, as the Japanese currency retreated 1.9 per cent against the greenback.

BLOOMBERG