Rethinking Your Excuses

“Ninety-nine percent of the failures come from people who have the habit of making excuses.” — George Washington Carver

Have you heard or been involved in sentences like:

I do not have money to do the things I want to do; My spouse or partner doesn’t listen to me, that’s why our relationship is failing; My subordinates don’t know how to do their job, that’s why my project is failing; My parents did not send me to school, that is why I cannot get a job or make a living….. and so on and so forth.

Well, all these are excuses. They sound good, true and sincere but they are the reason why several millions are living far too below their potentials in life.

There is nothing that hinders a destiny, a life (no matter how gifted) than excuses. Unfortunately, our excuses make us more incompetent and undependable to be trusted with potential and opportunities.

Sometimes, I see an opportunity or an opening and immediately someone comes into my mind. And I will feel like, “yeah, he/she will be able to maximize this.” So immediately, I put through a call or send an email to say, “hey, I just saw this opportunity and thought you should give it a go.” And he/she goes “oh thanks, that’s thoughtful of you. I will really put in for this one this time.” Several weeks down the line, I try to get back to him/her to know how far he/she has gone it what I shared. And the response is “oh, I am so sorry. I did not go on with the application again. I couldn’t get my CV ready on time.” And then, I feel like, I have waisted my time trying to help someone who does not want to help himself or herself. I am sure that some of us will relate clearly to either of both sides of the story….

Sometimes, you feel within you that you have a good reason for not trying. But if you look around, you will see several people trying to succeed for the same reason you are not attempting at succeeding in life.

The truth I want you to know today is that your chances of making success will improve when you stop making excuses.

One author went further to write something that really made sense to me about excuses and I will like to share it with you. See what he said:

“Excuses are the tools of the incompetent that builds monuments of nothingness, and those who make frequent use of them will seldom excel in anything. An excuse is the meat of a lie that is covered by the skin of a reason. There are no good excuses. All an excuse does is help you miss the mark. If you are going to learn to hit the mark, enjoy your potential and fulfill your destiny, you will have to come to an agreement within yourself, that there are no good excuses. As long as you dignify yourself with an excuse, you will stop thinking creatively, stop reaching your goals, stop stretching, and stop growing.”

Today, I want to share some great quotes on excuses and hope that as you read them, you will consider changing your mind about the next excuse you want to make. I hope they motivate you enough. Here they go!

1- The best job goes to the person who can get it done without passing the buck or coming back with excuses. G. M. Trevelyan

2- Excuses are nails used to build the house of failure. Don Wilder

3- Don’t give in to excuses that can keep you from really living the best life God has for you.Joyce Meyer

4- Most people don’t have that willingness to break bad habits. They have a lot of excuses and they talk like victims. Carlos Santana

-5 I do not believe in excuses. I believe in hard work as the prime solvent of life’s problems.James Cash Penney

6- He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else. Benjamin Franklin

7- No one ever excused his way to success. Dave Del Dotto

8- Hold yourself responsible for a higher standard than anyone else expects of you. Never excuse yourself. Henry Ward Beecher

9- The only thing standing between you and your goal is the bullshit story you keep telling yourself as to why you can’t achieve it. Jordan Belfort

10- I attribute my success to this. I never gave or took any excuse. Florence Nightingale

11- Do not make excuses, whether it’s your fault or not. George S. Patton Jr.

12- Excuses are useless, results are priceless. Ziad K. Abdelnour

“Remember that if it is important to you, you will find a way out. If not, you will find an excuse.”

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