Last Updated on by Michael Brockbank
You will fail 100% of the things you do not try. I wish I knew who said it first, but it’s a valid statement nonetheless. Unfortunately, too many people seem content with limiting their own success. In many ways, it’s often by choice. What’s worse is that a lot of us know it, we just don’t want to admit it. How can you be limiting yourself on purpose?
Being Too Lazy to Act
Perhaps one of the biggest failings a lot of people have is laziness. And yes, I am afraid I am also clumped into this group. For those of us who are chronic about it, laziness can be one of the most difficult things to shake.
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Let me give you an example. I am often content working for a couple hours a day with a client I have on retainer. They pay me enough to keep a roof over my head and a few extra bucks each month. But if I was to also put effort into something like Textbroker throughout the day, which I have more than enough time for, I would want for nothing.
It’s the part about being “content” that makes my own success extremely difficult to master. I can argue that my happiness should be the only real measure of success, but having the finances to take my kids out during the weekend and go bowling or play a round of golf would also make me happy.
So, why don’t I do what needs to be done? If I knew that, I’d fix the issue.
I see people do similar things all the time. From children having no ambition to middle-aged adults who are content with leeching from family instead of getting their own homes.
I understand everyone has their own reasons behind why they sabotage their own success. But can you imagine a world where everyone had ambition to be more than they currently are?
Being Easily Diverted
One of my biggest problems is I am easily diverted. I’ll start off strong in the morning and then get sucked into watching YouTube for hours. Before I know it, my day has been wasted. It’s been an ongoing issue for several years now. Before, it was video games.
When I teach people how to succeed at being an online ghostwriter such as myself, one of my biggest points is to remove diversions. I know I don’t practice what I preach, but I teach according to my own failures. It’s more of a “learn from my mistakes” type of thing.
I wouldn’t say that I am addicted to technology. Without the Internet, I would find another kind of diversion. In reality, it’s one of the biggest things I miss about being a smoker. At least that way, I had an excuse to walk away from my work.
When I decide to focus on a project, I can usually stay on task fairly well. It’s being able to talk myself out of something that I need to work on. It’s those, “just one video in between jobs” that wind up exhausting all my time.
Once you’re able to discover your own diversions, you can start taking measures to prevent them from getting out of hand. Currently, I am working on not watching anything until after 3:30, which is when I am usually done working.
For those who work from home, diversions are quite a problem. Perhaps one of the best tricks anyone working from home can do is to treat it like a real job. Because in reality, it is. The less you work, the less chance you have to advance your own success.
Not Committing to Your Own Success
I believe anyone has the capacity to learn anything, as long as they choose to put in the effort. Of course, this also requires that someone has an interest in the subject. Otherwise they will consciously or subconsciously torpedo the activity.
Not being fully committed will surely hinder your rate of success. For instance, I have no doubt that any of my past projects would have been successful if I was to commit the full effort they needed. And now, I look back and think of how much time I wasted and where I would be today if I had follow-through.
But that’s not a good way to look at past experiences. Nothing is truly a failure as long as you learn something from it. Instead of thinking about being a failure, why not learn what not to do and try again?
I’ve seen a lot of people outright fail at things they want to do simply because they lack the effort to make a change. In many ways, I do this to myself quite often. Without committing to your own success and being more tomorrow than you are today, you may never reach a better lifestyle.
You can’t merely sit around and hope things get better on their own. It takes effort to make change, and a lack of commitment ensures those changes will never happen. This is true whether you want to have good grades in school or publish a novel.
Not Learning More
One of the biggest failings many people have while hurting their own success is a lack of education. I’m not saying everyone should have a bachelor’s degree, but believing you know all there is about any particular subject is asinine.
Case in point, I started writing professionally in January of 2012. With no form of college training outside of graphic design, I spent more than five years learning everything I can about writing in AP style and providing the best customer experience.
Continuously learning your preferred trade and industry keeps you relevant and more valuable to employers and clients. The last thing you want to be seen as is obsolete.
There is no such thing as too much knowledge.
Banking on Your Own Success
Never believe that your success is finite. There is always something more that can be done to improve your situation. Battling with depression and a midlife crisis over the past year has made this difficult for me. But I don’t think it’s impossible. Strive to improve yourself and reach for the stars. Just make sure you take steps to build on your own success.
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