What's Holding You Back?

“If it's important you'll find a way. If it's not, you'll find an excuse.” - Ryan Blair

There are many iterations to the quote above, but all of them hammer home a very important point.  Excuses hold many of us back from achieving goals and success.  I have tackled this topic in the past but wanted to revisit it after watching a powerful video recently. This sparked me to search out some other perspectives on the subject. I love this thought from Caroline Madormo:

Tonight before bed, pull out your trusty journal and start making a list of all of the reasons that you haven’t been able to achieve your dreams. Think of every reason big and small, and then read over that list. As you read over your list, notice that these reasons on the page are keeping you from getting the results you want and need to move forward.

Next comes the tricky part. Take a deep breath and consider the fact that each and every reason you wrote down is actually an excuse. Don’t beat yourself up or make things worse than they are. We all do it. Simply go through your list and say to yourself, “I forgive myself for using this excuse. I am ready to go bigger.”

When we value something, there is more resolve to overcome obstacles and challenges to accomplish a specified goal.  Many times it is our mindset that holds us back.  When you really think about it the number one adversary that each of us faces on a daily basis rests between our shoulders. We think we can't do certain things due to physical or mental limitations.  In some cases this might be true, passion has a funny way of helping us overcome certain perceived limitations. When passion is combined with intrinsic motivation, the impossible suddenly becomes possible. 

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I, for one, can think back to many instances in both my professional and personal life where excuses got the better of me.  Lately, I have been much better on this front as I have tried to foster more of a growth mindset.  My thinking was pushed even further when I watched the video below.  Take a few minutes to watch yourself and be prepared for an emotional rollercoaster as Cliff Devries shows all of us that excuses should not hold us back.

After watching and reflecting on this video, I am going to think twice about any excuse I might develop that prevents me from at least not trying to accomplish a goal or task. 

What's holding you back?