Maybe you can relate to the idea that we all have a vision for ourselves that we strive for, but it feels like we fall short time and time again. It seems we’re always tired, stressed out, overworked, and overwhelmed, so it’s easy to come up with excuses as a crutch for not doing more with our day.
I’m working on being more aware of when I use these excuses in my daily life. Hopefully bringing awareness to these will help you recognize when you’re doing the same thing too. So here’s the 7 most common excuses that I feel are a recipe for mediocrity:
1. “I’m Too Tired”
The reality is that a lot of us are overworked and under-rested. We dread the idea of adding more responsibilities because we’re already having trouble managing the ones we currently have.
Unfortunately, it seems that the way to start turning your life around means assuming MORE responsibility, even if it’s only for a period of time. For whatever your goals are, you’re the one responsible for getting your life together. No one else is going to do it for you.
Understandably, adding more to your plate when you’re already exhausted is a difficult thing to manage though. So I think the first important step is to try to get to the root of why you’re feeling so tired in the first place.
For me, the main causes of low energy come from improper rest, a poor diet, and not exercising. Any combination of those three, and I can almost guarantee I’m doing nothing productive with my day.
My biggest recommendations are to try to get more sleep (or at least get consistent with a sleep schedule), eat foods that fuel your body (less sugar, more greens), and exercise more. There’s a lot to unpack for each of those three, so I’ll work on more detailed guides in future posts. Even small steps in the right direction on any of these can help tremendously.
Of course, make sure to consult with a physician before making lifestyle changes. I’m just sharing what I have found best to work for me.
2. “I’ll Start Tomorrow”
I’m guilty of using this one a lot. We all have a lot going on in our lives, and it feels easy to underestimate what we’ll have on our plate the next day. For most, our established routines keep our days more or less the same; so if you’re having trouble finding time to start on a project today, then what makes you think tomorrow will be any different?
It’s about making time. If you don’t feel like you have time to “make”, then see what you can cut out of your day. Check your screen time, and I’m sure you’ll realize that you spend more time than you think on social media or video games.
Unproductive time spent on social media is the perfect opportunity to replace with whatever thing you know will move you in a better direction in life. Yes, it’s uncomfortable at first, but you have to decide which is actually more important to you.
If you’re looking for ways to save time on your phone everyday, I have a post where you can check out these 5 Simple Tricks.
Procrastination simply delays you reaching your goals. If you skip enough days, you might never reach it…
3. “Missing One Day Won’t Hurt”
Yes, this is likely true for only skipping one day, but it’s easy to keep using this excuse day after day. It’s the continuous postponement that will delay reaching the life you really want to live. Missing one day might not hurt, but missing a whole month can.
If you truly need a day to rest and reset, then take advantage of that. You have to prioritize your health and well-being too, but know when you truly need a break versus simply not feeling like putting in the work that day.
As a rule of thumb, if you miss one day, just make sure you don’t miss the second.
4. “I’m Fine With Where I’m At”
This can be a tricky one. Are you actually content and happy with where you’re at, or are you just telling yourself that because change scares you?
Complacency is a huge dream killer. For most, life is uncomfortable, but not quite uncomfortable enough to truly want to spur change. I see it a lot with people, and even with myself. The discomfort it takes to change your life is usually outweighed by the comfort of familiarity you have with your life right now.
I don’t want to be at the end of my life knowing I only did the bare minimum to get by. I’m scared to live with the regret of wondering what else I could have accomplished, had I not been so scared to test my comfort zone.
Discomfort with a direction can take you far in life. Don’t shy away from finding out what you’re actually capable of.
5. “I Don’t Feel Like It”
Especially before getting habits in place, this one can be a daily struggle. I know you’ve heard it before, but life isn’t always about doing the things you want to do. It’s about the discipline of showing up everyday, even when you don’t feel like it.
By choosing not to do things now, you’re just putting it on your future self. This can be detrimental because we often have a disconnect between our current reality and our future self; our future self is always just an idea, we never get to experience it, so it feels easy to pawn more off on “them” because it doesn’t feel like it’s actually us. When the time comes to finally meet the things we put off, it’s now our current self’s problem, which we push onto our future self again, and the cycle continues.
Just know that your future self likely isn’t going to want to start on the thing you’re postponing either. So if you don’t feel like doing it now, assume you won’t feel like doing it later; with that in mind, just get it out of the way and start on it right away. It solves nothing by putting things off, you’re just delaying the discomfort.
6. “It’ll All Work Out In The End”
This is another tricky one. This CAN be a good mindset if you’re doing your best and actively working on all the things in your control. But by taking a passive role and just hoping for things to work out, then you’ll teach yourself that you don’t have to do much and you’ll still get by. It’s about being active versus passive, and that’s the difference between taking responsibility for what you can control in your life vs just letting life happen to you.
Yes, things will all work out in the end, but tell yourself that AFTER you’ve done all you can to maximize your chances of success. Keep the positive attitude, but pair it with putting in the work needed to move yourself forward in life.
7. “It’s Too Hard”
The most satisfying goals are going to take sacrifice. Whether it’s time, effort, or energy, every goal is going to have a cost. Don’t just quit because it’s hard though.
Imagine what the end result would feel like, and then you can make the decision of whether the destination is worth the difficulty. If your goal is incredibly important to you, then it’s time to toughen up a little. Otherwise, you’re just going to teach yourself to always quit when things get hard.
In my opinion, if you want to be a capable adult that others can rely on, you need to learn how to problem solve anyway. This is something I’ve been trying to work on a lot recently, because I used to rely on others when I would get overwhelmed and not know what to do. I don’t think you want to be the person that panics and quits when times get tough though.
Just remember that the hard work is usually temporary, and then you’ll get to enjoy the fruits of your labor for long after.
Conclusion
Sometimes it’s hard to realize when we use these excuses, but it’s important to know that they’re holding us back. We chase comfort too often, and this is often what keeps us stagnant. I realized that my avoidance of discomfort and risk is what keeps me in the same place for long periods of time.
It’s important to know the difference between an excuse and a legitimate reason though. Are you avoiding the work because you’re actually burnt out, or because you don’t feel like doing it? Are you quitting because the effort genuinely isn’t worth the end result, or are you just afraid of applying yourself a little more? These are the types of questions you need to ask yourself.
If you want to stand out, you need to be the person that acts in spite of stresses stacked against you. Everyone has problems going on in their life, so excuses are easy to come by. It takes a different mindset to still consistently show up everyday, even with all the chaos happening in our lives.
No more excuses, start to demand more from yourself.