Change Your Mindset

10 Things That Stop You From Achieving Your Goals

Published

6 months ago

Dec 13, 2022

Lidiya K

Image Credit: Unsplash

In order to achieve our goals, we need to change our behavior, which leads to us becoming better versions of ourselves. Perhaps, we’re not quite ready for change because we haven’t developed the necessary success habits, haven’t eliminated unhealthy and unproductive activities, and have so many distractions that we hardly know what’s really important.

It’s important to remember that achieving what you want is absolutely possible. You’ll need to fall in love with consistency and start taking a step each day toward reaching your goals.

Here are 10 things that stop you from achieving your goals:

1. Perfectionism

Many people have deep desires within themselves and want to achieve certain things in life. But they are greedy and unappreciative even before they receive them, and want much more than they deserve.

Many, for instance, want not just to be offered a good job with a high salary and work hard to make money and increase the quality of their life, but they want to be rich, and they want it now.

That’s a wrong approach.

Because, first you need to be grateful for what you already have (and no matter how little that is, believe me, others have much less and still find the will to thank for it).

Only then will you feel some abundance and will realize that you have the power to turn it into something more? And you’ll feel the need to work for that, to give something in return and to then enjoy the fruits of your labor.

That’s how you can eliminate perfectionism from your life and still achieve what you want.

2. Failure

We have a wrong perception of what failure is these days. Most people fear failure and it makes them not even try because of the chance of not succeeding. Because it can be easy to fail in many things, people become paralyzed with the fear of failure, and they end up never seeing their dreams come true.

The truth is, failure is a precious gift. It’s an inevitable step on your way to success, and a step you’ll likely need to take more than once.

Failure is proof that you’re trying, you’re doing something to get what you want, and you’re not giving up. Failure gives you the lessons and experiences you’ll need to become stronger, have more willpower, and be more focused.

If you listen to failure, it’ll guide you in the right path because failure shows you what exactly not to do next time because it didn’t work out this time. If you keep trying, eventually you’ll get there.

There’s no better example than Thomas Edison – his whole life is proof of the power of failure and how you can work with it for optimum success.

“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” – Thomas Edison

3. Focusing on the end result

I know you’re eager to reach your goals, and it can make anyone impatient because we want it right away. We don’t want to wait and put in the work.

It’s important to remember that things don’t work that way. The only thing to do is fall in love with the process and focus less on the end result. When you focus on doing what needs to be done day in and day out, you’ll get the end result you wanted.

4. Taking big steps

There’s a certain path you’ll need to walk before you get there. And its purpose is to make you strong enough to handle the success that’s waiting for you.

That path consists of many steps. Small ones – because the big ones make us worry, fear and not even try.

So divide your goals into small steps, then into even smaller ones, until you have a list of simple tasks to do each day. And make them so easy and quick that it will be impossible to say no.

5. Excuses

You may often hear yourself say some of the following:

I’m not ready;
It’s not the right time;
I’m not good enough;
I’m too old/young;
I don’t have enough money/time/experience;
Most people don’t succeed anyway, neither will I;
Maybe I’m not meant to do it;
It’s too hard;
It will take too long;
I may do it wrong;
People will laugh at me.

When that happens, stop and reflect on why you’re saying this.

Realize that your mind is tricky and prefers to stay in its comfort zone, doing the same old activities and tasks on autopilot, and not try anything new. That’s why it’s making up all these excuses, which can often sound quite convincing.

Your job is to eliminate them, to even exaggerate them, and see how ridiculous they sound. Because if you choose the other option – if you believe them – you’ll never do anything different with your life and will never see the things you desire come true.

6. Procrastination

It’s another thing that stops us from taking action toward our goals. So it’s another thing we need to give up.

Keep in mind one thing: now is the best time to do what you want, any other time is later than now.

The present moment is where you create your future and the only time you can be productive and work on what you believe in.

The only cure for procrastination is to start doing something immediately, without thinking and giving your mind time to come up with excuses. Without doubting your abilities and fearing failure.
Just do a little something today that will help you move forward and get closer to your dreams.

7. Expectations

Stop expecting so much. It’s a destructive behavior that brings deep disappointment in your life.

You expect things to turn out in a certain way, you expect people to behave as you imagine them to, and whenever that doesn’t work out, you feel upset and lose any motivation to take action.

Ditch these fantasies you live in, eliminate the scenarios you play in your head of how things should be, and accept them as they are.

And meanwhile, keep doing what you know is right.

8. Distractions

There will be people who will doubt you and make you lose hope if you listen to them. There will also be many temptations on your way to success. Many of these temptations are likely to be pleasant, but time-wasting activities.

You may often feel that life is unfair because others have so much time and can eat or buy whatever they want and you can’t. But that’s not true.

It’s just that you’ve chosen to work on your goals and strive for a better life, while others prefer the easier way of living – indulging in activities that only bring temporary happiness.

9. Lack of consistency

Lack of consistency is a big one, because with whatever you do, you won’t see any progress if you don’t do it each day.

Consistency is a trait of successful people, and it becomes a habit, like everything else. But without it, you won’t get far. It’s better to do something for 15-30 minutes every single day than to only do something once a week for hours.

Stay consistent and develop that habit.

10. Hanging out with the wrong crowd

Someone once told me that if they hung out with the people I associate myself with, they’d be able to tell me if I’d succeed. As the years have gone by, this is absolutely true.

Think about the people you’re around on a daily basis. Are they just cruising by? Are they drinkers? Are they family people? It’s important to hang out with people that’ll help elevate you. It’s also equally important that you help elevate them.

In conclusion, I’ll tell you this about achieving your goals:

You don’t get what you want, or what you think you deserve.

Instead, you get exactly what you work for, what you focus on , what you take action upon every single day.

Ready To Achieve Your Goals? Read more blogs about reaching your goals and success on Addicted 2 Success

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Lidiya K

Lidiya K. is a writer and blogger in the fields of self-improvement, life hacking, human potential and minimalism. She's the creator of Let's Reach Success, where her mission is to motivate and inspire and think of creative and unusual ways to overcome fear, procrastination, insecurity, clutter, failure, overthinking, discontent and much more.

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Change Your Mindset

4 Tips On How To Write Down Your Goals To Actually Reach Them

Published

2 months ago

Apr 10, 2023

Janice Kersh

4 Tips to Writing Down Your Goals Effectively

Everyone has goals. Whether small (“I’d like to lose 5 pounds before the summer”) or big (“I’d like to make a million dollars next year”).

There’s a huge gap between having goals and accomplishing them. The act of writing down your goals plays an important part in closing this gap and reaching your goals. According to a study done on Harvard MBA students, within ten years’ time, the students who had written down their goals were making ten times as much as their classmates who hadn’t written down their goals.

What to write out in your goals

1. Clearly define your goals

This may be harder than you think. That’s because oftentimes, we get caught up in our daily routines and lose track of our true desires in life. Most people are guided by their circumstances. But there are a few people who shape their lives according to their goals. Who do you think is happier: the person who is defined by their circumstances or the person who creates their circumstances? Which category are you in now? Which category do you want to be in?

Chances are, you’re in the first group. But, the good news is that if you’re reading this article, you’re probably trying to make it to the second category. In order to do this, you have to take stock of your situation. That means taking some time to sit down and reflect. Find some quiet, alone time. Sit down and consider your current situation from all angles and write down your observations.

If you need some help doing this, consider answering the following questions:

Where are you now?
Where do you want to be?
What do you have to do to get there?

“It is not enough to take steps which may some day lead to a goal; each step must be itself a goal and a step likewise.” – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

2. Look at the big picture

Envision where you want to be next year, the year after or five years from now. Think about long-term goals. Don’t think about details or how you will accomplish them. Simply allow yourself to dream and to think about what it is you truly want. Whether it’s a personal or professional goal, just let your heart speak. Maybe you want to be married with children in five years’ time. Maybe you want to run a marathon. Or you want a job that you both love and that pays you well. Or you want to take time off to travel. Whatever it is, no matter how far from your current circumstances it may be, write it down.

3. Look at the small picture

Now, is when you start to fill in the gap between where you are now and your dreams. What is the first step? If you want to be married and have children, fill out a profile on an online dating site or let your friends know that you’re interested in meeting someone. If you want to run a marathon, get yourself a personal trainer at a gym or join a running club. Maybe visit a sports nutritionist to make sure you’re getting the nutrients you need in order to stay healthy and competitive.

If you want to land your dream job, think about your qualifications. Do you need to take some courses in order to be a candidate for the job you want? If you already qualify, start sending out your resume. If you want to travel, how could you convince your boss to let you take the time off? What about arrangements for a house-sitter or sub-letter? Who could take care of your pets? What other steps are there between you and your goal? Map them out, step by step.

4. Use positive Self Talk

When writing down your goals, try to put things in a positive way. Negative goal setting implies that you’re doing something wrong. It’s like scolding yourself for not doing better.

Below, I will provide 4 examples:

Don’t say: Stop dating losers. Instead say: Find a successful, loving, supportive partner.
Don’t say: Stop being lazy. Instead say: Improve my fitness to have the body I want and increase my health, energy and self-esteem.
Don’t say: Quit your dead-end job. Instead say: Find a job that matches my skills, passions and financial goals.
Don’t say: Stop putting off traveling. Instead say: Prepare the way for an incredible traveling adventure.

Putting a positive spin on the language you use can make you feel excited about tackling your goals. Such an attitude will help you overcome hurdles and make you determined to reach your future accomplishments.

“A goal is a dream with a deadline.” – Napoleon Hill

Whatever your goals are, studies show that the act of writing them down can have a significant impact on their outcome. Defining exactly what it is that you want, setting up the steps to get there, and saying it all in a positive way are powerful steps to realizing your dreams. So, grab a pen and get started.

Ready To Write Down Your Goals & Reach Them? Read more blogs about reaching your goals and success on Addicted 2 Success

Change Your Mindset

Need Help Reaching Your Goals? This 6 Step Process Is For You

Published

2 months ago

Apr 2, 2023

Shawn Lim

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Nobody wants to fail and everyone wants to succeed. Every day, people are struggling to reach their goals and achieve success. A failure is a painful event and one that almost all of us work tirelessly to avoid. However, no matter who you are, failure is unavoidable. Not only that, but as much as you hate to fail, failure is still necessary for your success. There can be no success without failure. (more…)

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Change Your Mindset

5 Ways To Achieve Your Goals (With Examples)

Published

2 months ago

Mar 29, 2023

Yogesh Chabria

Setting goals is a crucial first step, whether you’re striving to reach personal or professional milestones. However, achieving those goals requires planning, determination, and focus. In this post, we’ll discuss five actionable strategies that can help you achieve your goals in 2023, and we’ll provide real-life examples to inspire and motivate you. By implementing these tips, you can train your brain to achieve your goals and make meaningful progress toward your aspirations.

1. Write Down Your Goals

The first thing needed to achieve a goal is to have one. A goal becomes very clear and precise once you have written it down most simply and easily to remember.

Here are some examples:

I am the world’s best dancer!
I am the greatest athlete!
I have created the world’s most innovative tech company!

They are all written with the belief that these things have already happened. Once you start believing it has already happened, other people too can sense your confidence and things start happening.

“If you want to be happy, set a goal that commands your thoughts, liberates your energy and inspires your hopes.” — Andrew Carnegie

2. The One Page Plan

A simple one-page plan to accompany your goal is much more powerful than a detailed 30-page plan. After you have written your clear goal – write down all the things you will have to do to achieve it. Make it as simple and direct as possible so that you can refer to it every day and take action. A simple plan is easier to follow and keep up with.

3. Get The Right Skills

Once you have a clear goal that has been inked into your mind, and a clear plan in place, it is very important to invest in the skills you need to achieve your goal.

So for example, if you want to become a movie star, you should immediately start developing your acting skills. Observe how other actors perform, join an acting class, read about acting, and most importantly, start honing your craft by joining a local theatre group and going for as many auditions as you can. Practice is very important for mastering any skill.

Struggling To Achieve Your Goals? Here Are 9 Possible Reasons Why!

4. Surround Yourself With The Best People

The best way to achieve our goals is to make sure we have the best people supporting us. People who succeed are always those who understand the power of people.

So let’s say your goal is to be an entrepreneur and you have developed your entrepreneurial skills, the next step would be to get the best people to join your team to help you achieve your goal. These would be people who you consider to be the best marketers capable of getting you the best customers and investors.

Once you have the best people supporting you, it becomes much easier and faster to achieve your goals.

“It takes tremendous discipline to control the influence, the power you have over other people’s lives.” – Clint Eastwood

5. Power of Faith

Nothing beats the power of faith and belief. Sometimes you might face challenges, sometimes things might not be going your way, and you might feel like giving up – these are the times when faith and belief will keep you going.

So many people give up, just a few inches away from victory. I am sure you are not one of them since you are investing time into self-development which gives the highest returns! Now go out there and start achieving your goals!