“Never ruin an apology with an excuse.” ―Benjamin Franklin
It’s tough to motivate others to do their work when they don’t want to do their work. I have found people make SO many excuses, especially when they are afraid. Students should realize that a mentorship isn’t a free ride and the work needs to be done themselves, and teachers can’t be doing the homework for students… where’s the growth in that?
As I noted after my mentorship with Theresa Reed ended, “On the one hand I thought, “I don’t have to do homework every two weeks!” On the other, I realized that the only person pushing me forward in the future would be me and me alone.”
You can’t let circumstances dictate your state, and whether or not the work you need to do gets done. “Leading with your state” is a little tip I learned from Matthew Hussey within his Impact program. He tells a great story of the difference between a good day and a bad day: all affected by external circumstances and the law of threes. Three bad things happen in the morning to you, such as sleeping through your alarm, getting to work late, and spilling coffee on yourself and you’ve decided it: that’s it! Today is officially a “bad day”. But the likelihood of good things happening in threes is just as possible. Unfortunately, people tend to focus on the negative instead of the positive, and the negative stuff is sadly easier to remember. What if you didn’t let external influences affect the status of the day? That’s what “leading with your state” is: acting as you want to feel, and not allowing the bad to wilt your confidence or hamper your innate personality.
Why do I bring this up? Because when people aren’t doing the work they need to be doing to make their business a success, they often blame external circumstances. Sometimes these situations are completely understandable and valid, such as illness in the family or birth, death, and marriage. But the world doesn’t pause when we decide to, and other circumstances like a stubbed toe or spilled coffee shouldn’t stop us from the routines that keep us on track.
We’re all looking for the magic bullet, the secret formula that makes our work 4x as easy or make it not feel like work at all. The secret is, there is no secret. And while you certainly shouldn’t be feeling downtrodden every day you go to work on your business, there WILL be days when you want to quit, or when it’s not feeling as breezy as you wanted it to be. Confession time: I LOVE what I do, but there are still days when I want to throw the covers over my head and not go to work that day. We’ve all been there. But when confronted with that feeling, it triggers the fight or flight response: and I choose to fight for my business, every time.
Will you fight for yours?
You know what you need to do. Now go do it. I believe in you.
Blessings,
~*~Hilary~*~
www.tarotbyhilary.com
Applicable Quotes:
“The most important thing about art is to work. Nothing else matters except sitting down every day and trying.”
― Steven Pressfield, The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks & Win Your Inner Creative Battles
“This is the other secret that real artists know and wannabe writers don’t. When we sit down each day and do our work, power concentrates around us. The Muse takes note of our dedication. She approves. We have earned favor in her sight. When we sit down and work, we become like a magnetized rod that attracts iron filings. Ideas come. Insights accrete.”
― Steven Pressfield, The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks & Win Your Inner Creative Battles
“Someone once asked Somerset Maughham if he wrote on a schedule or only when struck by inspiration. ‘I write only when inspiration strikes,’ he replied. ‘Fortunately it strikes every morning at nine o’clock sharp.'”
― Steven Pressfield, The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks & Win Your Inner Creative Battles
“The professional has learned that success, like happiness, comes as a by-product of work. The professional concentrates on the work and allows rewards to come or not come, whatever they like.”
― Steven Pressfield, The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks & Win Your Inner Creative Battles
For Further Reading:
The Daily Love: Procrastinating? How to live your best life, now.
StevenPressfield.com: Find What You Love and Let It Kill You
The War of Art by Steven Pressfield
Theresa Reed’s Soul Proprietor: You Don’t Have Time for This
Theresa Reed’s Soul Proprietor: What did you do today?
Alexandra Franzen: How hard are you trying, really?
Alexandra Franzen: Your reasons will always win the battle.
Alexandra Franzen: Warning: Do not read this if you enjoy clinging to excuses…
Let’s discuss: What excuses are you telling yourself today? What is keeping you from doing what you really want to do? Be honest. Leave a comment below and share!
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[…] Forleo’s How to Be Consistent: This directly relates to this week’s blog post about excuses and consistency… so listen up! It also includes two other related links on Follow-Through […]
I wonder why nobody has commented yet, your points are so true, and are backed with experience too. If we always do just what we feel like doing, we will be extremely lazy since, well, working is hard. One way I fight this is to use habits, like start writing immediately after breakfast. More action, less thinking = less procrastination.
btw, I enjoy The War of Art too, a brilliant book.
Yes, Yi Xiang! Excuses are convenient ways to be lazy. 🙂 Good habits definitely help combat Resistance in the form of procrastination. That’s what routines are there for: to help us form consistency in our lives and replace bad habits with good ones.
The War of Art is amazing. I reread it every time I feel myself slipping into excuse-land. Does the trick! Thanks for reading and commenting!