Have you ever used excuses to avoid taking action on something? I know I have, and what I found later on is that I was likely trapped by an illusion. Let me explain it in greater detail.
Although excuses can seem incredibly powerful and valid at the time that we use them, eventually we can get to the point where we end up believing they are absolute truth. We repeat them long enough to ourselves that we think them right into existence. Excuses can not only cause us to miss out on a few opportunities, they can actually have the power to destroy our lives and dreams if we let them.
When we consistently allow ourselves to talk ourselves out of doing things we know we want out of life, we create a powerful downward spiral of decreasing opportunities, diminishing abundance, and shallow self-respect. Eventually ending up as an empty shell of the person instead of the powerful confident person we deserve to be.
We have to stand firm and not allow the excuses to destroy our life! Excuses are for individuals who have no desire or willingness to grow and develop themselves into the person they have always dreamed of being. For some odd reason they have talked themselves out of creating the lives they truly want and deserve. And with heals dug in, they will not budge from where they are right now unless a life crisis forces them to.
Is this you? Or would you rather be someone who laughs at limitations and faces their fears head on?
A quote that moved me from the first time that I heard it and since then has been engrained into my soul.
“We are each the center of a circle, whose circumference is defined by our own self imposed limitations.” – Gandhi
That one sentence defines truth for me.
Let’s look at some of the things that would be a tell-tale sign if you are in the habit of buying into excuses. For example you probably real out phrases like these from time to time:
“I wouldn’t be strong enough . . .”
“I can’t . . .”
“I don’t have the money . . .”
“I don’t have the talent . . .”
“I’m too old . . .”
“I don’t have enough time . . .”
“It’s nearly impossible for someone like me . . .”
“I don’t have the brains . . .”
“I’m not good at . . .”
“It would be too hard . . .”
“Other people are better at that than me…”
“I never went to college..”
And the list can go on and on. How many times have you ever said things like this? They are all excuses that keep you playing small in life, that hold you back from being the person that the world needs you to be. It’s just that simple.
Here’s the kicker: Let’s suppose that your excuse actually holds some weight to it, like if you’re really flat broke and don’t have enough money to go back to school or to start a business – the excuse itself keeps you caged in like an animal preventing you from even working toward the goal in some way.
Just because you don’t CURRENTLY have the money, time, talent, courage, or whatever else. . . does not mean you won’t have it in the near future. It doesn’t mean that you can’t shovel some cash under your mattress to save up until you have what you need, or work on it little by little.
Here’s the exciting news: if YOU refuse to believe in excuses, they suddenly start to go away. It’s up to you to remain focused and conscious of your thought patter around excuses.
Starting today, take a good hard look at the excuses that you allow to run your life. Are they really true, or have you been fooling yourself because it seems easier than shattering the illusion that you have created?
If you start to question the beliefs that hold you back and that you hold about yourself and your capabilities, you might be surprised to learn that you’ve been held hostage by your excuses. But since YOU formed the excuses, you can easily dismantle them too, one step at a time, one faulty belief at a time.
When you begin to do this even in small ways, you begin to develop a greater inner strength and empowerment of yourself, and your whole life will begin to shift and change in miraculous ways. You just need to remember to take small daily steps towards your freedom.
