Are You Getting in Your Own Way on the Road to Success?

“Keep your heart clear

And transparent

And you will

Never be bound.

A single disturbed thought

Creates ten thousand distractions.”

–        Ryokan

Have you ever found yourself dragging your feet when working on a task?

Do you ever feel like you are easily distracted when you know you should be doing something important?

Ever find yourself so sure of the answer that you feel you don’t really need to listen to anyone else’s advice?

Do you catch yourself constantly making excuses as to why you can’t move forward?

If you’ve answered yes to any of these questions in some fashion or another, then you are probably the biggest reason for your lack of success.

If you’ve thought “Of course not!” to any of these, then perhaps think a little harder and pay a little more attention and you’ll find that of course you are getting in your own way.

As human beings we have all made mistakes like these every once in a while or find ourselves stuck because we are participating in mindsets like these.

It is difficult to admit, or even see, that we are the problem and even more difficult to work towards fixing that problem.

A Little Help

Hope is not lost if you can’t seem to continue moving forward down the road of success. There are disciplines and concessions that you may have to make to yourself and your way of living in order to continue moving in the direction you wish to go.

In her article, Amber Singleton Riviere refers specifically to the “willingness to do whatever it takes.” She states specifically that she doesn’t mean any sort of illegal activity, but rather activity that gets us out of our comfort zones and away from things we are used to, such as putting ourselves out there for an unproven concept.

Another way thing we can find ourselves unwilling to do is moving forward when we are uncertain of the future. Stephen Key’s article focuses on our felt need to have everything perfect and how this mindset can keep us from completing the task at hand.

He goes further to say that “If you miss deadlines and are always late, in the end, you’ll have little to show for yourself.” In other words, the most perfect product in the world won’t be worth a dime to anyone if it’s always being improved and never being used.

Stephen Fry also explains how we can get in our own way by refusing to really listen to what others have to say. When we refuse help and advice from others, we close ourselves off to new and interesting ideas and opinions.

This is further explained when Fry says, “Unsuccessful entrepreneurs want to do everything themselves. They don’t believe anyone else can get a job done as well as they can. But even if they were actually right about this – which is doubtful since no one is good at everything – it’s an unsustainable business philosophy.”

A final article, written by Kevin Daum, focuses on the discipline required for the daily activities that will lead you to success as well as the appreciative attitude of those who achieve even a modicum of success.

Daum points out that you should think of those who you are competing with as individuals who are constantly learning, training, and practicing and that you cannot hope to beat them if you do not have daily routines that further your goals. We will inevitably end up distracted if we are every day reaching for and unsure of things that we need to accomplish to move forward.

Discipline, humility, openness, confidence, and action are just a few of the most indispensable traits required of those who are looking to be successful in life.

We cannot just wait around and hope for the success the smack us in the face. We must act and we must do so daily.

Get out of your own way!