7 Ways Focused Hard Work Crushes Self-Limiting Beliefs The only way to expand what is possible is by taking back your power from the doubts holding you back.
By Sherrie Campbell Edited by Dan Bova
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
The majority of the thoughts we think each day are unconscious and unmanaged. When our thoughts are unmanaged, they are almost always negative. Self-talk tends to be deeply rooted in and attached to past feelings and experiences. When we become reactive, our inner dialogue naturally becomes negative and self-recriminating.
These thoughts can be challenging to address because they don't always seem obvious to us when we're thinking them; they seem natural and truthful. For this reason, the development of your self-awareness and your willingness to work hard are the keys to your success. To follow are limiting beliefs you can dismantle through hard work.
1. It's not the right time.
Not the right time? For what? Hard work and passion are right now. If you wait, you will likely wait forever. Success is not going to walk up to your door, walk in, embrace you and make you rich without your participation and effort. You cannot justify procrastination, unless you want to justify why you're not moving on the desires you have. If you set goals, there is no time like the present. Start now, and be deliberate about your commitment, even if it is one small positive step. Take that small step, and then take the next, and the next. In reality there is no "right time" there is only "your time." Your time must be now. Get off the sidelines, and jump into the action of the game. Work hard, and your value will be proven. Waiting for the perfect moment to start, is nothing more than fear. Keep in mind that time is precious, and not something you can renew.
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2. I don't have enough time.
You can have anything you want, if you want it badly enough. We each have the same 24 hours in a day. You get to personally dictate how you're going to honor those hours. When you love something, whatever it is, if it is important enough, you will have no problem making the necessary time for it.
Succeeding comes down to how hard you're willing work and how positively you choose to think. Hard work is what separates the successful from the not-successful, the activator from the procrastinator, the dreamer from the doer. When you believe that you do not have the time, this is simply a fear-based excuse keeping you from executing. Thoughts are powerful, but when you put hard work into getting what you want, that hard work will dispel the false beliefs you hold around not having enough time.
Related: Pessimists Aren't All That Bad
3. I am too old or too young.
Age is only a number, and not reflective of your skill level, your willingness to learn, to work hard, to be passionate or your level of talent. Age doesn't define you. There are successful entrepreneurs spanning nearly all age groups. Your perception of your age is purely psychological; therefore, do not allow any canned idea of age deter you from pursuing your goals.
Do all you can, not to allow fears around age get in your way. Start working hard, and let the results of your success to the talking. Your results, not your age, are what will stand out.
Related: Don't Let Your 'Senior Citizen' Status Kill Your Entrepreneurial Spirit
4. I am not smart enough.
Hard work gets more results than idle genius any day. At some point, genius and hard work balance out where your hard work, education, training etc. put you on the same skill level as any genius. The information may have come easier for the genius, but when failure happens, the genius will feel there is an inherent flaw in their ability; whereas, you, the hard worker, will believe you simply didn't work hard enough, and you will work harder. The genius often quits. Your greatest qualification comes down to the depth of your passion and the quality of work you put out. If you love what you do, have the skills to do it, are willing to work your a$$ off, the success you achieve will speak for itself.
Related: There Is No Lone Genius. Hire a Team With These 4 Types.
5. I don't have the money.
We all have bills, debt, expenses and some lack much savings; however, this should not hold you back from living your dreams. Instead of looking at money as a resource you don't have enough of, be creative in maximizing the money have, and make it work for you. Or, are you willing to do whatever it takes to get the funding you need, even if that means taking out a loan or getting a second job? There are too many people who have made something out of nothing to say you cannot do it yourself. The people who make it, who make something out of nothing, work hard and do whatever it takes to achieve their goals.
Related: 63 Businesses to Start for Under $10,000
6. People will judge me.
People will judge you, okay, so what? People are always judging, and the more you stand out, the more you stand to be judged. It is what it is.
Is it hard to be different? Yes, it can be, but you cannot be afraid to act in benefit of what you want to achieve in your life. Do not get caught up in fitting in; if you follow the crowd you're likely to get lost in it. Embrace being different and unmistakable. Those who judge will soon understand. They will witness your success and quiet their nay-saying.
Fact: If people are judging you, you're likely doing something right.
Related: The Road Less Traveled: 5 Key Steps for Entrepreneurs to Stay the Course
7. I am not in a good place.
Life is full of storms. You cannot plan your efforts to start something or continue on with something around being in a good place or not. The one thing about storms, they pass. The most important thing, is not to allow your storms to halt your progress. If a storm comes, do all you can to learn from it; to get the lesson. Passing through storms is essential to the development of your maturity and resilience.
Hardships help you to embrace and understand the reasons why you're doing all that you are doing. Further, there is nothing more soothing, in times of uncertainty, than having a focus and pouring your mind, body and spirit into that focus. Acknowledge your present circumstance for whatever it is at this very moment, but keep in mind that your future is completely moldable to your likes and preferences.
Related: How Entrepreneurs Can Deal With Depression
As you focus, work hard, and remain committed, you will see that you can overcome any and all limiting beliefs you hold about yourself. The false, negative chatter that goes on in your mind is based in truth-less fears and beliefs; you are not what you think, you are not what you say, you are what you do. The results to come from your hard work will reflect the huge discrepancy between what you are capable of being, doing and having from the negative defeatist and useless thoughts telling you why you are incapable of having the success you want. Use those defeatist thoughts as your motivation to prove them, and anyone who has thought them of you, wrong. Your life will be as successful and as happy as the levels that you are willing to work for it.
