5 Reasons You Might Fail to Become Your Very Best Becoming the best you can be doesn't happen over night. It takes effort, progress and motivation.
By Thomas Oppong Edited by Dan Bova
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
Becoming the best you can be doesn't happen overnight. It takes effort, progress and motivation.
And while most people want to improve, they don't work at it. Others are doing everything they can to be better, smarter and awesome at their business or job but they reach a point where they aren't seeing results and give up.
Then there are those that fall into the excuse trap. I am too old for that. I don't have the time. Someone else will do it. It's too late now. I am not smart enough. I am not ready. I'm too scared. These are just a few of the most common excuses but they are definitely not the only ones.
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Here are five reasons below that could be hindering you from realizing your dream in life and business – and how to get past them,
1. You run out of time and quit.
Most people wish they had started earlier, but it's never too late to give it a go.
Leonardo Da Vinci was 51 years old when he painted the Mona Lisa. Jimmy Wales started Wikipedia when he was 35 years old. Your main challenge isn't your age, but the fact that you have little conviction in your abilities. If you want it bad enough, you will find a way. Make a decision today to push yourself one more time.
2. You run out of money and give up.
You don't need all the money in the world to be the best at what you do. But when your project or idea largely depends on how much funds you have, it could die the moment you run out of resources to push it further. For instance, if you manage a space project like Elon Musk, you success may depend on how many failures you can endure. A single unsuccessful launch can kill your business if you don't have enough resources for other launches.
The good news is you don't have to land on the moon to be successful or launch something significant. You can still be the best in the world at what you do or want to do without all the money investors could offer. Money isn't really your problem. And having more of it may not fix the other relevant issues like finding product-market fit, execution or having a product that scales.
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3. You get scared and don't even try.
So, you're scared. You are not alone. The fear of failure is one of the biggest reasons why most ideas don't get launched. And while it's OK to be scared, it shouldn't prevent you from showing the world what you are good at.
"The biggest risk is not taking any risk," says Mark Zuckerberg. "In a world that's changing really quickly, the only strategy that is guaranteed to fail is not taking risks"
The absence of fear is not courage but the triumph over it. Don't allow fear to dominate your actions.
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4. You keep talking about it but can't start.
Stop talking and start doing. You may have the most brilliant idea but if you don't get serious about it, it will probably stay in your head for the rest of your life. Do you want to spend the rest of your life dreaming of a better life or take action today and take your dreams to the world?
You can't change the your life or the world sitting on the fence. The middle is safe. The middle is where most people like to reside. Get out of your comfort zone. You alone have the ultimate power to move yourself a step further.
5. You lose interest and never finish what you start.
A lot of people lose focus easily and move on to something else. But guess what? These people will do the same thing with the next project: start it, get bored, move onto something else and never finish it.
Your new ideas can bring you lots of excitement, but if you can't stick to one thing and focus on getting it done, you may never achieve anything worthwhile.
