Do any of these sound familiar?
You might not feel you are intentionally holding yourself back from the things you want in life, but when you take a closer look, even the choices that seem small can make a big difference.
Here are subtle, but important ways you might be holding yourself back.
1. You're always up for socializing
Socializing is fun and it's good for your mental health. Too much socializing can work against you though. If every time someone texts, calls, or asks to hang out, you say “yes,” you may also be using socializing as a distraction from what you really want to accomplish.
Imagine that you planned to work on your side business for thirty minutes tonight, but a friend called just to chat. If instead of telling your friend you'll call them back in thirty minutes, you sit on the phone for two hours and end up not working on your business at all, you are holding yourself back.
It would be easier to blame your friend, but you have the ability to say “not right now.” If you know your friend is extremely chatty and you still give in, it's almost as if you're sabotaging your own progress.
2. You make plans for tomorrow
Making plans is great. It helps to plan your strategy for whatever it is you're going after. The problem arises when you keep saying you'll start implementing the plan tomorrow. Stop considering the creation of the plan part of the plan.
Get started on something right away so that you create momentum. If you need to learn about something, get online and start. If you need to buy supplies, start looking at supplies right away.
When you put things off, you hold yourself back. Days turn into weeks that turn into months. Planning is good, but acting is better.
3. You have limiting beliefs
What you tell yourself you can and can't do is important. If you tell yourself you can't do better than you're currently doing in life, the chances of making the changes you need to to improve are slim.
You need to retrain your thoughts and your brain to believe you are capable of achieving anything you want to. Instead of living in the past and dwelling on what didn't work then, you focus on solutions that will change your life.
If you have bad habits, work on changing them. If you think negative thoughts, focus on turning them into positive thoughts. When you begin to think differently, you will begin to act differently.
If you're not where you want to be in life, you may have habits that are holding you back. The good news is you're not stuck where you are. You can make changes that will propel you forward.
