Tomorrow, I’ll present the FIVE P’s of exceptionally fast (and equally sustainable) business growth to a sold out audience of amazing business owners. I can’t wait. (If you HAVE to know what the P’s are, you can get a HINT here, but also be SURE you’re on my newsletter list, so you’ll get priority notification of a new video I’m launching in about a week.)
Anyway, what breaks my heart are the excuses I hear. Day in and day out. People making ZERO dollars in their business, but too busy (doing WHAT, I can’t imagine) to work on their business. Child care issues. Exercise classes. Timing b.s. Promises of “next time.” All of these people making excuses of why they can’t do this or can’t do that… all of them missing the TRUTH.
The truth is that if ONE excuse will allow you to let yourself “off the hook,” then ANY excuse will do. ANY excuse.
What TRULY breaks my heart, though, is the COST of such excuse-making. You see, the LONGER you sit on the SIDELINES of ALL that’s possible in your business, the harder it is for you to get in the game. Professional excuse makers will most likely NEVER get in the game.
Listen, I’m not immune to the excuse-making “escape.” But — as soon as I realized what it was COSTING me — I fixed it. I used to let myself off the hook with excuses of all different kinds. My kids are still young. This is just a slow season in my life. I don’t want to travel that much. Too fat. Too young. Time issues. TimING excuses. Money excuses. Yuck.
As I look back… and see MYSELF in each of the excuses I’m now hearing… I feel pity for the business owner making them.. and for (the old, excuse-making) me. The truth is that I am very hesitant to add up the monumental opportunities excuses like this cost me… Because — frankly — I don’t want to look at it. Like realizing you won the lottery after destroying the winning ticket. Never fun.
But I can boil it down to this. Excuses kept me playing small. Excuses cost me untold opportunities… and the opportunities that GROW from opportunity. And, of course, excuses cost me the very things I was after: Income and Influence. Did I already say YUCK?
I know there’s no real benefit in looking back… unless there’s some gold in the learning. For me, there was. And is. If you’ve found yourself making excuses lately — regardless of how TRUE they seem to you — ask yourself these questions:
- Is what you’re doing NOW — and how you’re doing it — getting you the results you want?
- What help do you need that you’ve been unwilling to invest in?
- How long are you WILLING to keep growing S-L-O-W? How long are you willing to keep telling that “business story” of lots of hope but no money? How long can you AFFORD to keep going at this pace?
Finally, what is your TOP excuse? What will you be open to doing if you JUST dropped THAT one excuse?
Fabulous straight talk once again! Thanks for the Sunday eve pep talk (as I sit down for my weekly biz meeting 🙂