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Excuses are the way we avoid, resist and deny the greatness you know yourself to be. They can be debilitating to us. Excuses can be hard to overcome and lend us to live an unfulfilled life. Are you ready to learn how you can overcome excuses today? Let’s talk about the Who, What, Where, When and How of excuses.
Who Makes Excuses?
Everyone is known to make excuses at some point in time of their life. Excuses perpetuate you to stay in the routine you are in and this allows you to feel comfortable. There is no one responsible for making excuses except for you. However, at times, you might think it is another person that you are blaming and he/she is responsible for keeping you stuck where you are. For example, perhaps you want to lose weight but you say to yourself, “If only my husband came home earlier from work, I would be able to have time to workout because then I would not have to care for the kids all the time.” The truth is there are ways to work out at home incorporating your children. There are gyms that have childcare. There are ways to be outside in nice weather and play with your children. Furthermore, there are options for your kids to go on play-dates where you are able to squeeze in a thirty-minute workout. I suppose the next viable question is, “If you are making excuses, are you wiling to take responsibility for coming up with a solution?” The solutions are out there, you just have to realize them. I encourage you to start saying, “Yes, I can.”
What Are Excuses?
Excuses are insurmountable or at least feel that way at times. Excuses are the comfort food you eat at night. They are the reasons we stay in a job or a defeating marriage. Excuses are the reason why you do not live your passion as a career. Can you learn how to overcome excuses? First, you can understand what they are. Let’s define how we view excuses: do we struggle to overcome a problem, achieve a goal, or pass by an opportunity? Do you lack money, confidence, time, support, education, creativity? Do you think you are not good enough, qualified enough, driven enough, connected enough, or lucky enough? Sure enough, some form of these types of excuses hold you back. Truth be told, if you want to get to point A to point B, you will not walk a straight line. The time and effort it takes to achieve what you want, overcome a tribulation or work an opportunity is far more time and effort than you might expect. It is not uncommon for you to work through excuses on one level and then start putting in time and effort, only to find yourself making new excuses on the next level of the goal you are working towards. You might feel mediocre, pressured and come back to all the excuses inside your head, I mentioned earlier (i.e., not good enough, qualified enough, driven enough, connected enough, or lucky enough).
Where Do Excuses Live?
Excuses mainly live inside our head. They are fueled by the meta-messages or the messages given throughout our life by our caregivers, parents, siblings, teachers, coaches and peers. They shape the way we live and guide our decisions. Excuses largely are living in our false or limiting beliefs. For example, if you think you are not good enough to achieve your goal, chances are somewhere along the lines, someone important in your life reinforced that message to you. Another example is if you think rich people are selfish and wealthy living is not for you, then somewhere along the way, your false belief was created telling you having money will lead you to act and become selfish. These limiting beliefs will hold you back in life and will discourage you from overcoming a problem, achieving a goal, and potentially allowing you to pass by an opportunity.
When is the Right Time to Overcome Excuses?
Now is the time. There is no better time than the present. In fact, when you commit to a) becoming aware of these false beliefs and b) educating yourself on the subject at hand (i.e., increasing your confidence, managing time, improving your revenue, enhancing your career, igniting your passion, networking for success), you take the first steps in using the present time to overcome excuses. Overcoming excuses takes time and there is a process to it as outlined below. The best time to start taking down the walls to your excuses is now.
How Can You Overcome Excuses?
So you are probably asking how can I overcome excuses? Instead, let’s say how I can overcome excuses is (fill in the blank). Awareness of your false beliefs is the first step in overcoming your excuses. Growth and education are the next steps in overcoming excuses. I encourage you to read as much as possible. By educating yourself, you start taking down the walls around your false beliefs. These are walls that you have built up through time. So creating a process to work through your excuses is going to take time. Educating yourself or navigating through new information can take time and I warn you that sometimes it is easy to get stuck on this step or the third step. The third step includes practicing or gaining familiarity with what you are trying to achieve. For example, if your goal is to increase your confidence, there might be a series of social exercises you can perform to increase your competency in this area; practice in front of the mirror or with a trusted person before going out into a new social situation. The fourth step is to get out and take some minor (or major) action into overcoming what you are trying to achieve. Many people feel anxiety or ride the wave of fear which typically turns out to be more terrifying than the actual, action-oriented task to overcome the excuse.
You’re Ready to Eliminate Excuses
At the end of the day, if you find yourself struggling with excuses know that you have the tools within you to overcome them. There is a series of steps that come along with overcoming excuses and the real work is done gradually and with determination or effort. Perhaps, hiring a life coach, reading self-help books, going to support groups or hiring a licensed counselor are ways to start breaking through your false beliefs. Overcoming excuses takes time, investigation, patience and self-love. This is a delicate process that can be personal. Even if you take small steps and breaks in between, you are still able to work towards your goals and take down the walls your excuses are built within. Don’t forget: the biggest and most important key to overcoming excuses is taking action. As Nike promotes: Just Do It.