Five Things Successful People Avoid Doing
Obstacle #1 to Success: People Pleasing
People pleasing is not an easy thing to overcome. We are wired to find connections and find safety through others. Unfortunately, not all our relationships are good or productive.
People are fickle, one day they may love you – the next day they won’t. We cannot control how people feel about us, but we can control how we react to their input.
If you are facing pressure to please others – that is a sign you are not working from a spirit of helping but rather from a sense of ego. Perhaps you may be dealing with unresolved codependency issues. Now is the time to take a step back and check your motives. You may be doing things for all of the wrong reasons.
The people who value us are our ideal clients – focus on them. These people provide us constructive feedback and suggestions.
Emotional vampires and haters only provide us with grief, anxiety and wrongful expectations. Besides, we cannot spend our energy focusing on those who constantly criticize or demean our work – these people typically do not seek our help nor desire to help us grow.
If you are receptive to hearing feedback from others, here are some questions to help to discern whether the advice will help or hurt you :
- Is what they are saying designed to help me or themselves?
- If I follow tips/advice from (fill in the blank person), will I still like myself and my business?
- Does this advice align with how my spirit/soul operates? Does following their advice make me feel good or icky inside?
You will be less likely to be held hostage to the opinions of others as long as you are honest with yourself.
Obstacle #2 to Success: Fearful of Change
Change is scary, I know – it is scary because we cannot wrap our minds around uncertainty. If we are to grow and develop, we need to get comfortable with the uncomfortable.
Change is a good thing! Do not be upset or rattled when change happens. Think of it as your invitation to new professional and spiritual growth.
Challenging and uncertain situations help us to grow and think faster.
Let's face some undeniable truths: We've all messed up at some point in the past, and chances are, we'll make more mistakes along the way. So, dwelling on your shortcomings and undervaluing yourself won't do you any favors.
Obstacle #3 to Success: Hyper focused on the Past
I’ve got a question for you: When you’re driving your car, do you primarily focus on the front or the back? I hope you’re mostly looking forward. If you’re constantly fixated on the rear while driving, it’s only a matter of time before you end up crashing your car.
Now, let’s delve deeper into this car analogy.
The front of your car provides you with an almost 180-degree view of your surroundings. To enhance your visibility, you have side mirrors to check for any obstacles when changing lanes.
But here’s the kicker: you only have ONE rearview mirror.
The rearview mirror serves a specific purpose. It’s there for moments when you need to back up or navigate out of tight spots. You only glance back when it’s necessary to assess how to avoid potential obstacles.
Now, apply this analogy to your business life. Every missed opportunity, every failed venture—put these moments in the rearview mirror of your business journey.
Learn from your experiences, gather your lessons, and then shift your focus forward to tackle the next challenge head-on.
Obstacle #4 to Success: Low Self Image
If you find yourself looking down on yourself, I have one straightforward suggestion: Cut it out.
Seriously, stop it right now.
Thinking poorly of yourself is just as problematic as having an inflated ego—it’s all about excessive self-focus, whether positive or negative.
Let’s face some undeniable truths: We’ve all messed up at some point in the past, and chances are, we’ll make more mistakes along the way. So, dwelling on your shortcomings and undervaluing yourself won’t do you any favors.
Low self-esteem and a lack of self-worth will always stand in the way of new experiences and opportunities.
Tip: If you need more help boosting your confidence, here are some additional confidence tips to consider.
Obstacle #5 to Success: Overthinking and Perfectionism
I’ll admit it—I’m guilty of overthinking.
Overthinking is just another form of perfectionism, and successful individuals steer clear of this trap. It’s when we get caught up in ironing out every wrinkle, obsessing over the tiny details, and striving for flawless perfection in everything we do.
But the truth is, perfection is unattainable all the time. It’s an impossible standard. Sure, we can review our work diligently. We can even ask others to scrutinize it, yet we might still miss a detail or two.
The best approach? Take our time, give it our best shot, and let the pieces fall where they may.
That’s it! Don’t be too hard on yourself! Nobody’s perfect. Next, I will share my final thoughts.
Final thoughts
I hope some or all of these tips will help you and understand the things successful people avoid doing.
Growing a business is not easy, so feel free to contact me if you want to talk about any of these tips in detail. And do make sure you tune into my top business and life podcast for more tips like this!
