8 Reasons That Explain Why You Fail

8 Reasons That Explain Why You Fail

Everyone that’s ever tried to accomplish anything knows what it’s like to fail. While there are numerous reasons for failure, most of them can be boiled down to just a few possibilities.

Understanding why you failed is important, because it educates you on how to improve your odds for success in the future.

See if you can identify the cause of your most significant failures in this list of common reasons.

These reasons may help you to understand why you failed:

1. Failing to learn from past experiences. You have the opportunity to be a little bit better at life each day. Every day you’re on this planet, you’re learning new things.
   • Each success, failure, neutral result, and interaction with others is a learning moment that you can apply to the future.
   • Analyze each day. What did you do well? Where did you go wrong? If you don’t evaluate your day and your results, you won’t recognize what you’ve learned.
2. Not acquiring the necessary knowledge. The more you know about what you’re trying to accomplish, the better your approach can be. When you first begin any new task, your knowledge is likely to be insufficient to ensure success.
   • Spend some time learning a little more each day. However, it’s important to avoid the common tendency to spend too much time learning and not enough time doing. This is just another form of procrastination in many cases.
3. Avoiding commitment. Determination and regular effort are important components of success. Many failures are due to a lack of commitment.
4. Distractions. Life is full of appealing distractions today. It’s never been easier or less expensive to find mesmerizing distractions than it is right now. Eliminating unnecessary distractions will do a lot to enhance the odds of your success.
   • Ideally, your objective will be the most interesting option available to you – more interesting than social media, cat videos, or mindlessly watching the TV.
5. Fear of failing. The fear of failure might be the most common fear. We fear wasting our time, embarrassing ourselves, and failure in general.
   • Ironically, failure is one of the primary ways in which humans learn. And the more you learn, the more successful you can be.
6. Not believing that you can succeed. If we don’t think we can succeed, we won’t waste our time trying. Unfortunately, we’re not very good at predicting how well we can perform over the long term.
   • This one is tricky, because you don’t know what you don’t know. The only reasonable course of action is to give it your best shot.
7. Giving up too soon. Persistence is one of the most powerful traits to have at your disposal. With small and consistent improvements, nearly any objective is achievable. Most people give up too soon to be successful.
8. Wanting to avoid the spotlight. Significant success draws attention, and many of us prefer the comfort of obscurity.
   • If this reason is stopping you, realize that much of this concern only exists in your head. A few people might admire your success. A few people might be annoyed with your success. However, there are already people that admire you and people that are annoyed with you.

We all hate failure, but failure is educational. What’s most important is to keep trying and to understand why you failed.

A little more commitment and perseverance are often all you require to be much more successful than you’ve demonstrated in the past. Determine the most common cause of your past failures and vow to yourself that you’ll never fail again for that reason.

If you can eliminate all of these common causes of failure, you’ll be nearly unstoppable. Fail aggressively, but never fail to learn from your failures.

A Lucrative Guide to Creating a Wealth Mindset

A Lucrative Guide to Creating a Wealth Mindset

Without a wealth mindset, it’s unlikely that you’ll do the things necessary to build and preserve wealth. A wealth mindset is necessary, but insufficient on its own.

However, a wealth mindset creates the potential to change your financial life in a big way. Your mindset is a starting point.

Most people have a mindset of short-term enjoyment. They spend money to make themselves feel better in the moment with little regard for the long-term ramifications. How many times have you been excited to purchase something that turned out to be less than exciting after you owned it for a week?

Would you like to create a wealth mindset?

Enhance your mindset and your financial situation with these techniques:

1. Take your spending seriously. A wealth mindset requires taking your money and your spending seriously. Each dollar you spend has the potential to decrease your wealth by more than just a dollar. Consider this example of how this works:
   • If you purchase a $50,000 boat, the impact isn’t just the price of the boat. It’s also gas, insurance, maintenance, and so on. There’s also the opportunity cost. You could’ve invested that money in something that would actually build your wealth.
   • You also lose the time you spend enjoying and dealing with your boat. That time could’ve been spent on creating more wealth. Is the enjoyment worth more to you than the money? Only you can decide what’s right for you in the long-term.
   • A wealth mindset takes spending seriously and considers the short and long-term impact of each dollar spent.
2. Focus on creating value. A job can be lucrative, but it can take years to reach the point in your career that you’re making a very large salary. The wealthiest people create the most value and charge others for it.
   • Consider how you can contribute the greatest amount of value to the world and get paid for it.
3. Spend your time wisely. One of your greatest powers is your ability to choose how you spend your time. A person with a wealth mindset uses their time effectively. How do you spend your free time? Are you building wealth, learning about wealth, or spending your time on something else?
4. Learn about wealth creation. The more you know, the more you can do. Unless you are very fortunate, no one pulled you aside and taught you about wealth. You might not even know anyone who is wealthy. It’s up to you to learn everything there is to know about wealth.
5. Think big. It’s important to have big goals, ideas, and plans. Conservative goals are for average people. Wealth and average don’t go together.
   • Imagine that you could make steady progress for 25 years. Where would you end up? Now, create a plan to accomplish that in five years. That’s thinking big.
6. Consider how your behaviors, thinking, and decisions relate to your wealth goals. Before you do anything, consider how it will impact the achievement of your goals. Each dollar you spend can take you further away from or closer to your goal. Each person you date will either be a help or an obstacle.
   • In a nutshell, ask yourself, “Is what I am about to do going to make me more likely or less likely to achieve my goals?”
7. Hang around wealthy people. You become more like the people you hang around with. Wealthy people have a different way of viewing the world and making decisions. You can gain a lot of ground just by hanging out with wealthy people on a regular basis.

If you want to turn your financial life around, your mindset is a great place to start. If you do some research, you’ll find that wealthy people don’t view money in the same way that financially challenged people do.

When your mindset changes, the way you view the world changes, too. This is the first step to creating wealth.

Fear Of Failure

Fear of Failure: The Greatest Threat to Your Success

The fear of failure has killed more dreams than all other fears combined. The fear of failure is insidious, because it’s largely in your imagination. It can also prevent you from even trying in the first place, which guarantees failure.

It’s interesting that very small children have no concept of failure. They couldn’t care less if they fail to do something. They just try again. There are no negative thoughts or emotions involved. They just keep on going.

But it doesn’t take long before children learn to fear the opinions of others. It’s usually around the time they start school. After that first day of school, we’re all changed forever.

It might not be possible to go recapture the mentality of a toddler, but you can come close. The fear of failure doesn’t have to impact your life significantly.

Consider these facts:

1. Failure is temporary – unless you quit. Failure isn’t final unless you give up. All the most successful people have experienced a lot of failure. But they ended up being successful precisely because they didn’t quit. Failure is just a temporary state that means nothing, because it’s only temporary.
2. Failure is common. You’ve failed thousands of times and managed to survive. Consider how many times you failed to walk or to talk well. Babies have constant failure.
   • Successful people fail all of the time. It’s a huge part of how human beings learn. We realize that our approach didn’t work, we adjust, and we try again.
3. Failure is educational. You can learn something from every single one of your failures. Failure makes you more knowledgeable and capable. The more you fail, the stronger you become.
4. Others are far less concerned about your failure than you think. A few people might notice your failure, but they quickly turn their attention back on themselves and their own challenges.
   • There’s nothing to worry about. Feel free to fail as much as necessary. Fail enough and you’ll quickly see that no one relevant cares.
5. Focus on how great it will be when you succeed. Instead of worrying about possible failure, consider possible success. Make yourself feel excited and positive about taking action.
   • With high enough expectations, you’ll do just about anything without worrying about failure.
6. Redirect your thoughts. Put your attention on what you’re doing. If a negative outcome isn’t going to cause any real harm, forget about the outcome. Stay focused on your actions or something positive. Thinking about failing will freeze you in your tracks.
7. Consider the cost of doing nothing. Taking action might be a little scary, but what will happen if you do nothing?
   • What will you feel about failing to take action?
   • What if you’re stuck in your current life for the next decade or more?
   • Maybe taking a risk is far more attractive than remaining where you are.

What would you do if you weren’t afraid of failing? Probably a lot more than you’re currently doing! How much has the fear of failure limited your life?

We’ve all allowed the fear of failure to influence our decisions. We’ve allowed this fear to stop us from trying new things or taking risks. We all have smaller lives than we could because we’re too concerned with what others think.

Rejecting the fear of failure is one of the greatest things you can do for your future!

You can start today. What are you going to do today that you’ve been afraid to try?

An Introduction to Stoicism

An Introduction to Stoicism

Stoicism is a philosophy founded in ancient Greece around 300 BC. This philosophy teaches how to focus on what you can control to live your best possible life.

Following Stoic philosophy, you learn how to enjoy things without being anxious about losing them. This is because Stoics believe suffering comes from your happiness being dependent on things you cannot control.

They see that dependence as self-imposed slavery.

Because of this, a common misconception about Stoicism is that people who practice it are unemotional or do not feel joy.

On the contrary, Stoicism is about being able to find calmness and joy even when things you cannot control do not go your way.

Here are famous Stoics:

1. Zeno of Citium. Stoicism was founded in ancient Greece by Zeno, the first Stoic philosopher.
2. Marcus Aurelius. Leader of the Roman Empire for two decades. Nightly, he wrote in his journals. Those journals are now published as a book Meditations. These journals are known for changing perspective.
3. Seneca. Lucius Annaeus Seneca was an advisor to the Roman emperor Nero. He is famous for his practical ways of viewing the psychology of emotion, the human condition, and consumerism.
4. Epictetus. Epictetus was born a slave. After he was freed from slavery, he started a philosophical school. His book, The Enchiridion, includes a summary of his teachings.

Of the famous Stoics, similar key principles were taught that are still used today.

Here are 5 key principles of Stoicism:

1. “Make the best use of what is in your power, and take the rest as it happens. Some things are up to us, and some things are not up to us.” – Epictetus

• This is a key principle that acknowledges some things are within our control whilst others are not. A recurring theme that comes up in Stoic teachings is the principle to focus on what you can control and accept what you cannot.
• Take Action: Practice focusing on what you can control – namely, your thoughts, judgments, and actions.

1. “If you are pained by any external thing, it is not this thing that disturbs you, but your own judgment about it. And it is in your power to wipe out this judgment now.” – Marcus Aurelius

• Stoics train themselves to look at events objectively as they happen. From a Stoic perspective, the events themselves are neither good nor bad. It’s the way that the individual Stoic responds that is either good or bad.
• Take Action: When you feel sad or angry, separate facts from feelings. How can you change your judgment about the situation to reach acceptance?

1. “How late is it to begin to live just when we must cease to live!” – Seneca

• Seneca wrote about appreciating the present instead of dreaming about the future. Stoicism also teaches its students to turn misfortunes into good fortune by accepting events as they come.
• Take Action: Although it may feel unnatural – learn to accept, and then look for the positive, in every situation.

1. “Every day and night keep thoughts like these at hand—write them, read them aloud, talk to yourself and others about them.” – Epictetus

• Journaling daily was a practice for Marcus Aurelius, Seneca, and Epictetus. Modern-day Stoicism keeps the daily practice of journaling as a part of the philosophy. In Stoicism, journaling is a way you can review the day, and prepare for the next day.
• Take Action: Journal daily – in the morning or evening. Reflect on the previous day and plan for the next day.

1. “There is a noble manner of being poor, and who does not know it will never be rich.” – Seneca

• Seneca believed poverty was good to test your discipline. Seneca observed wealth and the temptations that came with wealth as challenges to self-control.
• Take Action: What is one way you can put yourself in an uncomfortable situation? Take an ice bath, fast, or have a “no-spending” day. Do something that pushes you out of your comfort zone.

At its core, stoicism is a philosophy of acceptance. Stoics turn obstacles into opportunities because they believe external things do not affect their happiness.

Although some things – like looking for the positive in every situation – may feel unnatural, practicing stoicism can help you feel calmer and happier because you’re not focusing on the negative.

Conscientiousness is the Greatest Predictor

Conscientiousness is the Greatest Predictor of Success: How to Develop More of It

You might think that being intelligent or hardworking is the greatest predictor of success, but you’d be wrong. Those are tremendous attributes to possess, but it’s easy to find people with those qualities who aren’t highly successful. You probably know someone that is very intelligent but isn’t doing well in life.

You also know someone that works three jobs to make ends meet but is still struggling. Many manual labor jobs require hard work, but most of the people with these jobs aren’t commonly viewed as successful.

Conscientiousness is the best character trait to possess if you want to be successful. Someone that is conscientious does what needs to be done and does it with the intention of doing it well. Think about how much easier your life would be if you could just be more conscientious.

It’s simply the trait of taking care of one’s business and doing it at a high level. Think about the conscientious people you know. They are successful beyond what you’d predict from their intelligence and skills.

Practice these tips to become more conscientious, and you’ll become more successful:

1. Understand the importance of conscientiousness. Knowing how important it is to your future will fuel your motivation to build this important trait. Understanding is a great first step to developing a higher level of conscientiousness.
   
2. Be on time. A simple way to begin building conscientiousness is to take more responsibility for your time. When you decide to be someplace at a certain time, hold yourself to that agreement with yourself. Life is a lot easier when you’re not running late. The people that might be waiting on your arrival will be happier with you, too.
3. Plan your day and follow your plan. This is the bread and butter of building conscientiousness. Have a plan for your day in place before you begin your day. You’ll waste far less time and accomplish far more. All you have to do is put your head down and follow the plan.
4. Finish what you start. Conscientious people are great at finishing what they begin. Avoid leaving any task unfinished. Push through any resistance you feel and be a finisher. For example, if you plan on spending 30 minutes on the treadmill, don’t let yourself quit at 25 minutes. Don’t stop until it’s done.
5. Set goals and create a plan to reach them. The best way to make a good plan for the day is to have goals. Plan a day that will help you to achieve your goals. When you consistently work toward a long-term objective, you’re demonstrating conscientiousness.
6. Avoid being reactive. Put some thought behind your decisions. Respond, but avoid reacting. Take your time and make thoughtful choices. You’ll avoid a lot of unnecessary challenges this way, too.
7. Remove distractions. Distractions are essentially obstacles to focus. You have to be able to focus on what you’re doing if you’re going to be conscientious. Take control of your environment and make things easier on yourself. Create the most distraction-free environment you can.
8. Do your best. If you’re going to spend your time on something, do it as well as you can. It’s an easier way to live and is a big component of conscientiousness.

You might not have been born conscientious, but you can develop conscientiousness. This is great news. There are plenty of qualities a person can have that are difficult, if not impossible to enhance, such as intelligence. Conscientiousness is well within your power to develop and utilize. Start building your conscientiousness today.

7 Obsessions That Will Change Your Life

7 Obsessions That Will Change Your Life for the Better

Too often, we have unhealthy obsessions. We’re obsessed with celebrities, TV shows, a person in our daily lives, extreme wealth, or chocolate.

Potentially worse are obsessions with social media which can be all-consuming. Checking your social media feed every few minutes can really hamper your productivity and happiness.

The time wasted on these types of obsessions can be extreme. And not only are you wasting time, but many obsessions can be mentally, physically, or financially unhealthy.

However, not all obsessions are unhealthy. There are things you can be obsessed about that will actually make your life better!

If you’re going to be obsessed about something, choose wisely.

Consider these options:

1. Your health. What is more worthy of your concentrated attention than your health? Your diet, sleep, exercise, and medical care deserve your focus. Imagine if these four things were among your top priorities every day.
2. Learning and reading. There’s nothing wrong with having a healthy obsession around learning and reading. Both can add to your knowledge and enhance your life. When you know more, you can make better decisions. It makes you a more interesting conversation partner at parties, too.
   
3. Improvement. Perfection isn’t a worthwhile obsession but focusing on improvement is a great idea. Imagine if you improved just a little each week in your finances, health, relationships, work, and your hobbies. How amazing would your life be in the future? It boggles the mind to even consider it.
4. Your family. As long as you’re not micromanaging the lives of everyone in your family and driving them crazy, your family can be a healthy obsession. Most people wish their families were closer.
5. Mastering a skill that enhances your income. Many people like to downplay the importance of money, but those are usually the people that either have a lot of it or have none at all. Money matters. Money can solve a lot of life’s challenges. There’s nothing wrong with becoming an expert at something lucrative.
6. Mastering a skill that enhances your life. It might be mastering one-on-one communication skills, decision making, emotional intelligence, or equanimity. What skill could you learn that would greatly enhance the quality of your life?
7. An obsession that enhances your social life in a healthy way. Maybe you love to bowl on Friday nights, or ballroom dance, or play horseshoes. This type of obsession can be fun and can add greatly to your social life.

How do you know when an obsession is unhealthy? There are a few things to look for:

• It negatively affects other parts of your life.
• It impacts the quality or the amount of sleep you get.
• You spend too much time thinking about it when you should be focused on something else.
• It negatively impacts your health.
• You’re getting yourself into legal peril, such as stalking.

Even positive obsessions can be taken too far, so be sure to keep it healthy. For example, it’s possible to spend too much time thinking about or performing exercise. Or you can put so much attention on your family that you drive them all crazy.

Choose your obsessions wisely, because the right choice can have a very positive impact on your life. The wrong obsession can waste your time or worse.

6 Skills That Will Increase Your EQ

6 Skills That Will Increase Your Emotional Intelligence

Emotional intelligence is considered a much better predictor of success than pure intelligence. In many cases, it doesn’t matter how intelligent you are.

You know plenty of people that possess average intelligence that are very successful. The struggling genius is quite common. There’s more to life than being able to do calculus in your head.

Making good decisions, communicating effectively, having positive relationships, and managing yourself well can be far more valuable and powerful than a genius-level IQ.

Boost your emotional intelligence with these strategies:

1. Become an excellent listener. Think about the best listener you know. You probably hold that person in high regard. Listening is a lost art that few people are interested in resurrecting.
   • During your next conversation, notice what happens while you’re speaking. The other person is likely bored, distracted, and simply waiting to speak.
   • You’ll do much better with people and have fewer misunderstandings if you put all of your attention on the other person during a conversation. They’ll even think that you’re a great conversationalist. Try it and see!
2. Pause before you respond. Think of all the times you wish you’d kept silent. Taking a moment to collect your thoughts can be a real advantage. You’ll save yourself a lot of grief if you give yourself the opportunity to respond wisely, or to not respond at all.
   • Give yourself all the time you need to make an intelligent decision.
3. Develop self-awareness. Very few people are self-aware. We have little idea of how others perceive us or how we come across to them. Think about how odd it is to hear a recording of your own voice, or how you seem to look heavier in photos than you thought you were. That’s only the beginning!
   • You might be significantly more rude or obnoxious than you think. Maybe you’re dismissive to others and don’t even know it.
   • Ask someone you trust what they think your biggest problem is. You may be surprised by what you hear. You won’t like the answer, but you’ll know in your heart that it’s true.
4. Learn how to motivate yourself. Life is easy if you can get yourself to do the things you know you should do. However, few of us are effective in motivating ourselves to do those things consistently.
   • You can avoid most of the drama life has to offer if you can simply do the things that need to be done, when they need to be done.
   • Consider why you procrastinate when faced with tasks that are unappealing to you. You’re going to have to do them eventually. Why not put yourself out of your misery as soon as possible and simply get them done?
5. Analyze your emotions. Notice your emotions while you’re experiencing them. Try doing this in place of quickly responding to them.
   • For example, if someone says something that irritates you, rather than reply in a hostile manner, ask yourself why you’re experiencing this emotion. What caused it? Is it reasonable? What is an intelligent way to respond?
6. Be assertive. There are advantages to being assertive. You have a much better chance of getting what you want. You’ll also be more transparent to others. People won’t have to guess what you want from them.
   • Your relationships will have fewer misunderstandings, too, if you are upfront with your feelings and concerns.

Emotional intelligence might be what you’re missing from your life. You can be goal-oriented, committed, and capable, but it’s difficult to rise above the level of your emotional intelligence.

How would you rate your emotional intelligence? In what areas could you improve? There are several books on the subject, and many contain diagnostic tests. This might be a great place to start.

7 Common Lies to Stop Telling Yourself

7 Common Lies You Might Want to Stop Telling Yourself

We lie to ourselves each day. We tell ourselves that we’re going to start eating perfectly on Monday. We’re going to start a blog on January 1st. We blame our parents for our current financial mess even though we haven’t lived with our parents for the last 20 years.

Maybe we believe if we only had a swimming pool, we’d finally be happy, and that happiness would last forever.

These are all lies that we tell ourselves.

The lies you tell yourself are the most damaging lies of all:

1. I’ll be able to pay it off next month, so it’s okay if I buy it now. Using debt to purchase anything is a serious matter. It’s easy to convince yourself that you’ll brown-bag your lunch for the next month, or that you won’t go out for 30 days. However, we rarely seem to stick to these promises.
   • Debt has a tremendous potential to snowball. Avoid using debt as much as possible.
2. I’ll start on Monday. Whether it’s a diet, a budget, an exercise plan, or any other undertaking, it’s a lie to tell yourself that you’ll start on Monday. Of course, Monday might not be your day of choice. Some people really prefer the first of the month or the first of the year.
   • If it’s worth doing at all, it’s worth starting right now.
3. It’s all my parents’ fault. There’s no doubt that some parents are lousy at the job of parenting. But you’ve had plenty of opportunities to put your life back on track. Putting the blame for your present on the past limits your future. There is plenty you can do today to make your life better.
4. If I just had _____, everything would be perfect. Once you have the money, body, job, or whatever else it is you think you need to have a “perfect” life, you’ll likely find something else that you just have to have. There’s always another thing waiting behind the thing you currently want.
5. I’m different from everyone else. A lot of people believe there’s something wrong with them. And it’s not just something wrong with them, it’s something uniquely wrong with them.
   • Everyone is unique, but the similarities between people are far greater than the differences. You’re not that different, and it’s unlikely there’s anything wrong with you that can’t be managed.
6. It’s too late for me. For some things, it might be too late. But it’s not too late for a lot of things. Waiting longer than you should have can make a lot of things less convenient, but that’s not the same as being too late. It just means you’re going to have to work harder or endure more inconvenience.
   • There’s a penalty for waiting, but it’s rarely insurmountable.
7. The timing isn’t right. The timing is never right, and it’s never going to be right. Do it now while you can. Each day that you wait is another day of delay. You’re not going to live forever, and life never follows your plans anyway. Just do it.

We lie to ourselves to make us feel better. Telling ourselves that we’ll start losing weight on the 1st of the month puts our minds at ease and allows us to eat poorly until that start date. We blame others for our challenges, so we can convince ourselves that it isn’t our fault.

The lies you tell yourself make you your own worst enemy and stop you from making progress in your life. Be honest with yourself and give yourself a chance.

The Value of Organizing Tomorrow – Today

The Value of Organizing Tomorrow – Today

If you want to maximize your effectiveness and the amount you get done each day, organize tomorrow, today. The second that you open your eyes you can already be clear and certain about what you have to do that day.

It’s much more effective than trying to plan your day on the fly!

In the evening, you’re much more objective about the next day than you are when you’re in the midst of it. It’s easy to plan a trip to the gym the day before. It’s not as easy to do so on the same day when it’s raining, and you’re just not in the mood.

The best time to plan tomorrow is today!

Follow this process:

1. What do you want to accomplish? Depending on your job, health, family, hobbies, and life in general, what you want to accomplish will vary. Make a list of all the things you want to accomplish tomorrow. Include tasks that help you to reach your goals. Your list might have activities like this:
   • Make a nutritious lunch for kids.
   • Be at the office by 7:45.
   • Give a great presentation at work at 2:00pm.
   • Eat a healthy lunch.
   • Work out for 30 minutes.
   • Practice piano for 30 minutes.
   • Speak with an employee about frequent absences.
   • Call my financial planner to schedule a meeting about my portfolio.
2. What are the best ways to accomplish those tasks? There are many ways to accomplish something. But there is only one best way. Think of your resource constraints (including time) and determine the optimal way for you to accomplish the tasks you’ve identified as most important.
   
   • What foods will you include in your child’s lunch?
   • What is the best route to get to work? What time do I have to get up in order to be at work by 7:45?
   • What do I need to do to be prepared for the presentation? Do I need to reserve a room? Who should be present?
   • What will I have for lunch? Will I bring it or go out to eat?
   • What type of workout will I do? Where?
3. What are the obstacles you’re likely to face? Consider everything that might get in your way and develop a plan that will address those obstacles. If something goes wrong, how are you going to handle it?
   • Make a plan that has the greatest possibility of avoiding the fewest obstacles as possible.
4. When are you going to do your tasks? Decide when you’re going to do each of the items on your list. Bill Gates plans his day in 6-minute intervals. You might not have to be that precise. Find a method that works for you.
5. Evaluate your day and try again. At the end of the day, take a look at your day and look for ways to do better. Use what you learned to improve your planning process.
   • What did you accomplish?
   • What did you fail to get done?
   • When are you going to do it?
   • What could you have done better?

Make the most important decisions about your day the night before. The day is for executing, not deciding.

Save your decision-making time for the evening when you can be more objective and thoughtful.

Put your nose to the grindstone during the day and get things accomplished. Living life by the seat of your pants might be exciting, but it’s not the most productive way to live. Make a good plan and then follow it to the best of your ability. The quality of your life will soar!

8 Ways to Take More Responsibility for Your Life

8 Ways to Take More Responsibility for Your Life

Do you take enough responsibility for your life? Those that don’t often have challenging lives. There are so many forces working against you that it’s imperative to actively participate in your life.

Blaming others, relying on luck, playing the victim, or hoping that randomness will be in your favor is a loser’s game.

Your destiny is under your control, but only if you exercise that control.

Use these strategies and take greater control of your life:

1. Own your problems. Every problem you have is your responsibility to manage. Whether you have terrible parents, a bald head, ugly knees, or a lousy boss, you’re the only person that can save you. Own your problems and you’ll stop waiting for someone else to save you.
2. Make yourself a priority. It’s okay to put yourself first. If you don’t, who else is going to? No one. You and your life are important to you. If you don’t make yourself a major priority in your life, your life will suffer for it.
3. Avoid complaining. Complaining implicitly suggests that you don’t have control over the thing you’re complaining about.
   • If you can’t fix the thing that’s bothering you, then why complain? If you can fix it, then fix it. But fix it without whining.
4. Avoid making excuses. Excuses make you weak. There are people that look for excuses so they can let themselves off the hook and take a passive position. Forget about making excuses and look for solutions. Excuses undermine your power over your life.
   
5. Schedule your time. How you spend your time is critical. Avoid living your life by the seat of your pants. Make a plan for each day and follow it to the best of your ability. You’ll be stunned by how much more control you have over your life if you use your time wisely.
6. Choose the people you allow into your life very carefully. People can wreak havoc quickly. They’re unpredictable, distracting, and tend to act in their own best interests. You have an obligation to yourself to be very picky about the people in your life.
   • It’s better to be a little lonely than to deal with the burden of something that isn’t a positive addition to your life.
7. Track your time. Make it a habit to review how you’re spending your time each day. At the top of each hour, ask yourself how you spent the last hour. You’ll find yourself making better choices if you develop this habit of checking yourself.
8. See yourself accurately. This is incredibly challenging to fix, but it’s very likely that you simply don’t see yourself accurately. This causes a lot more grief for you than you realize.
   • You might not know how you come across to others or what it is about you that people like and don’t like. You underestimate and overestimate yourself in many ways.
   • It’s not necessarily enjoyable to see yourself accurately, but it’s certainly helpful.

It’s important to take full responsibility for your life. Acknowledging that your life is your responsibility gives you the power to control the outcome of your life. You’ll feel better about yourself and your future if you accept full responsibility for your life.

This is part of becoming an adult, but it’s more than that. There really isn’t another good option. To refuse to take responsibility for your life puts you at the mercy of others. No one will ever care about your life more than you do.

The only way to have a great life is to be responsible for every aspect of it!