Top 5 Signs You Are Hindering Your Success
Are you hindering your own success without realizing it?
At this point in time I can honestly say that I have had more failures than successes. And you know what? I’m so proud of myself!
You’re probably thinking I’m a little nutty (and if you know me, you know that I am) but I mean it! In order to fail, you need to try something new. So, I’m so proud that every time I tried something new and it didn’t work, that I refocused and tried something else.
“I have not failed 10,000 times — I’ve successfully found 10,000 ways that will not work.” -Thomas Edison
Failure is success.
If you’ve tried and failed, congratulations! You successfully found what does not work! Now what do you do?
Obviously, if you’re Thomas Edison, you will simply continue to try until you succeed. But, trust me, failing 10,000 times can be discouraging for anyone.
However, I’m writing this post from Edison, New Jersey. Home of Edison’s lab, there’s a tower dedicated to him in town, and the local mall is Menlo Park Mall, again for Edison. Could you imagine if he didn’t keep going?
I was feeling a little down and out myself earlier, but that’s okay!
It’s completely normal to get discouraged, but as my grandmother always said, you can have pity party days, but not a pity party life. You know those people, that there’s a perpetual rain cloud above their heads and no matter how many words of encouragement you utter, they just can’t shake it?
Now, I’m not talking about depression or other mental health related issues. That’s a whole different discussion, and you should treat everyone respectfully and nicely because no one knows what someone else is going through. Read that again until you get it.
But sincerely, get those negative feelings out and move on! Again, if you know me, I’m prone to those negative feelings. They creep in like a weed you just can’t seem to yank out from the core. Which is okay! I’ve learned techniques to help me handle them now, and so can you.
When I’m down and out, these are some ways I hinder my success and maybe you do too.
5. You don’t know your worth — If you don’t believe in your own abilities, how can you expect anyone else to?
4. You’re a perfectionist — Constantly striving for an unattainable standard is a recipe for disappointment.
3. You’re afraid of failures — Embrace your mistakes and learn from them.
2. You procrastinate — Putting things off until the last minute only creates unnecessary stress.
1. You’re negative — A negative attitude will repel people and opportunities alike.
Raise your hand if you’ve done any one of the above! I know I’ve done all of them, and they are perpetual struggles I deal with. But, guess what? I deal with them!
Once upon a time (and maybe also recently) I would just try to run away from things I didn’t want to deal with. Which, is also totally normal in case you’re wondering. But if you want to be successful, you have to fight against your natural inclination to fight, flight, or freeze.
Do you know how many times I’ve broken things because instead of walking away from them I try to forcefully make it work! Or how many computer screens I’ve stared at until I was cross-eyed because I just couldn’t? You know, when you just can’t, just nope, not happening, can’t do it. And then you run away.
It feels unnatural sometimes.
Genuinely, it’s as if you’re doing the precise opposite of what you should be doing. And you very well might be! This might be the indication that this is not meant for you and you are destined to fail.
Who cares?
Do it anyway!
