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You might be surprised to hear that there are quite a few rules of success to learn from Shadowhunters between all the fighting and heartbreak.
Yes, there is a lot of badass fighting with swords, arrows, whips, and magic. Also, yes, there is a ton of get-togethers, breakups, and makeups.
However, Shadowhunters is also a great show/book(s) to witness many different types of success.
There is Alec Lightwood, who is an incredibly young yet extraordinarily ambitious and capable head of the New York Institute.
There is Magnus Bane, a centuries-old high warlock who not only survived many wars but also remained a compassionate and capable protector of all kinds of people.
There are Isabelle Lightwood, Jace Herondale, Clary Fray, Raphael, Simon, Luke, Meliorn, and Catarina – all of them successful in their own right.
And of course, on the other side, there are Valentine Morningstar, Camille Belcourt, Lilith, Asmodeus, and the Seelie Queen, whose success stems from them all having their own interest at heart exclusively and mastering manipulation and deceit.
So as you can see, there are many perfect examples of successful people that we can draw some rules of success from.
Of course, I don’t focus on the latter group as their ‘rules for success’ are toxic and ill-founded.
Read also: 11 Rules Of Success From Inception
Read also: 11 Rules Of Success From Tommy Shelby Of Peaky Blinders
Now, let’s get into it!
1. Never stop improving yourself
One of the most notable rules of success from Shadowhunters is their never-ending strive for mastery.
There are many scenes in which Alec, Jace, Izzy, and Clary train their fighting skills alone and with each other.
Even Magnus, a century-old warlock, is visibly still learning and increasing his powers.
One widespread trait between successful people is that they don’t sit and relax on their success.
They celebrate it for sure, but they don’t fool themselves into thinking that just because they succeeded once, they will succeed again without the effort put into it.
No, they keep honing their already existing skills and learn new ones on top of that.
You should do the same! The great thing about our informational age is that you have endless possibilities to improve yourself.
You can use books, podcasts, youtube videos, online courses, masterclasses, seminars, coaches, mentors, college courses, and internships.
If you strive for improvement, there is almost no way to be stopped from achieving just that.
Read also: 55 Things That Happen During Your Personal Development Journey
2. Make compromises if the parties are too different
In Shadowhunters, vitally different parties collied more than once. Most noticeably in the Downworld Council, which Alec organized to improve the relationship between the Downworlders and the Shadowhunters.
Bad history, lost trust, misunderstandings, and different values collided and made the collaboration a work in progress.
Unless one party is decidedly more powerful and has no qualms about forcing their will on others, compromises have to be made in situations like these to come to any moderately satisfying result.
In life, we will always be confronted with situations like these. Admittedly, these confrontations will most likely not be as intense as the Downworlder Council on the brink of war.
Whatever shape and form they take, you should learn to compromise and find common ground instead of proudly and blindly insisting on your point of view.
Aggressive tactics like these may bring short term results but make any long term goals increasingly tricky.
3. Don’t spread yourself too thin – You can’t save everyone
Alec Lightwood is a born protector. He is a big brother and the head of the institute. There have always been big expectations placed upon his shoulders.
No wonder that he quickly spreads himself too thin, trying to put out hundreds of fires at once.
As someone striving for an extraordinary life, you most likely desire to change people’s lives for the better.
You see all the suffering that is still happing in our much-improved world, and you itch to do something about it.
However, you can’t go and tackle all problems at once.
If you want to be successful in helping people, you have to focus your efforts.
Don’t try to do everything at once. Do one thing after the other. Spread the workload with other people who desire the same thing as you.
Don’t spread yourself too thin, or else everything you do is doomed to fail.
4. Give people a second chance
The lightwood siblings’ relationship with their mother has been more than strained over the years.
However, they all recognize that people can change when Maryse Lightwood does her best to prove it to them.
They could have quickly abandoned her along with most of the Shadowhunter community.
Instead, they gave her this second chance and won back not only a loved mother but also a powerful ally who has their backs.
You shouldn’t let yourself be walked over and keep toxic people in your life just to please them.
However, sometimes it is also worth giving people a second chance. You can approach the topic carefully and at your own pace.
You need to decide for yourself when which action needs to be applied.
In the end, your intuition will know the answer.
5. Be unapologetically you
All of our Shadowhunter heroes have been forced to conform to specific standards and urged to fit into the box.
But being the strong and successful people they are, they gave society the middle finger and proceeded to be unapologetically themselves.
Izzy Lightwood doesn’t give a f#ck what people think about her clothing choice or flirtiness.
Alec Lightwood learned to proudly stand for his sexual orientation and the handsome warlock at his side.
And Magnus Bane has withstood centuries of racism, homophobia, cruelness, and fashion judgments and still remained his flamboyant and kind self.
Don’t be one among many faceless people. Be unapologetically you!
That’s what people will love so much about you. They will admire how fearlessly you allow people to see you vulnerable with your flaws on display.
They will be able to relate to your quirks and weirdness. And at the end of the day, you being you will make them feel better about being themselves as well.
That’s why reality shows are so successful. People love seeing the ugly behind the scenes, even if it is partly staged.
Success comes easily to those who are being their unique and quirky self without any shame.
6. The old way is not always the right way – Dare to change
We, humans, tend to cling to traditions because it is comfortable and seems safe.
However, history has proven more than once that beyond traditions can wait a much better and more equal life for everyone involved.
The Shadowhunter community is slowly learning this throughout the series and after it.
Their prejudice against the downworlders is more than ill-founded and stands in the way of beneficial and loving interracial relationships.
One of the most powerful rules of success is to dare to change. Dare to change your mindset, your worldview, your strategy, your routine, and your scenery.
Dare to change everything that you’ve been stuck with for quite some time.
You don’t even need to be unhappy about the thing to try and change it. Even things and routines you already are happy about could possibly keep you from discovering something even better!
So why not do things differently for once? The worst that’ll happen is that you don’t like it and change back to what you’re used to until you have a better idea.
The best that can happen is an unexpectedly massive success!
7. Surround yourself with likeminded people who have your back
Alec can always rely on his siblings. They support him no matter what and only want the best for him while striving for the same big goal in life.
Magnus has for centuries had his closest friends Catarina Loss and Ragnor Fell. They may live very different lives, but they have each other’s back and the same goals when it counts.
Your life changes when you finally find your soulmates, the people that just get you, people that are on the same wavelength as you.
Everything suddenly becomes easy. There is no awkward and always procrastinated meetup planning.
There is no annoyance and cluelessness when finding a present for their birthday because you know exactly what they like.
There is no holding back on talking about what lights your heart up because your inner circle loves seeing you shine like that and, a lot of the time, are equally excited about this topic.
And most importantly, you are each other’s biggest cheerleaders. They will empower you in your hustle for an extraordinary life. And they will combine forces with you to help all of you reach that next level faster.
You might not have found your Lightwood-siblings or your Catarina and Ragnor yet.
But if you keep looking for them and improving yourself, you will meet them when you are ready.
And they could be your most powerful asset for success.
8. Take small steps each day
Alec and Magnus want to revolutionize the relationship between downworlders and Shadowhunters.
But just like Rome wasn’t built in one day, they slowly and gradually work towards that.
Jim Kwik always says: Little by little, a little becomes a lot.
I love this saying so much because it truly keeps your hopes and motivation alive while you do your daily tasks that will create your dream life a few years down the line.
Don’t fall prey to the belief that it takes one ample and fortunate opportunity to create success.
More often than not, success comes from the small daily habits repeated hundreds of times a year.
I love that kind of success because it happens almost unnoticeable until one day you stop for a moment, look back, and realize just how far you’ve come.
Comment down below the little daily tasks you are doing to reach the successful life of your dreams.
9. Go the extra mile – Always strive to overdeliver
You can get through life by only doing what people expect you to do and not lifting a finger more.
But that’s for ordinary people with small dreams and not for ambitious and kind-hearted Felicity Seekers like you.
Over time people will always notice who does the bare minimum and who goes the extra mile. Naturally, they will gravitate towards the latter because they trust them more to have their best interests at heart.
That’s why both Magnus Bane and Alec Lightwood are so highly regarded by all kinds of people.
They not only care profoundly but do the actions that match this mindset.
If you want to be successful in life, you should always ask yourself how to give just a little more.
10. Don’t give up – Make the impossible happen
Everyone who has ever watched the Shadowhunter series or read the books that it’s based on knows that our heroes have done the seemingly impossible more than once.
Be it being a gay Shadowhunter in a relationship with a High Warlock, creating new runes, going into Edom, or becoming the High Warlock of Alicante.
There are endless examples in history where people thought something impossible before the dreamers and action takers made it happen.
Making the impossible happen can take some time and requires resilience, but it is very much possible.
So don’t give up, darling, if something seems impossible. If you keep feeling like this goal is meant for you, then you should never give up.
11. Be loyal
There are too many egotistical and ruthless people that throw everyone in front of the train just to reach their goals. People are only collateral damage to them.
Never lower yourself to the level of those people. They might reach success with this toxic tactic.
However, it is an undeserved success that wouldn’t make you feel proud if you have even a shred of morals in you.
You can succeed very well with fair play. Loyalty gets highly rewarded.
We trust loyal people much quicker and to a more significant extent. We are more willing to buy their products, hire their services, or support them if they need help.
Know where your loyalties lie and stand your ground for them!
I hope this gave you some ideas on what you can work on to reach your dream success.
Are there any other rules of success you recognized in Shadowhunters? Comment them down below!
Keep a lookout for the next set of success rules. What series/movie/fandom would you like to see? Tell me in the comments.
Until next week
Sophie
