It’s easy to make excuses and even easier to give up. But deep within ourselves we all want to accomplish something in life, no matter what that goal or goals maybe. In order to do so it is necessary to take responsibility for your life and take concrete steps do to do whatever is required to realize your goals.

In spite of whatever situation you may be facing in life – there is a direct link between the excuses you keep on making for yourself in not achieving what you set out to do – with how much success you ultimately achieve. Remember ……..

• Making Excuses are a breeding ground for failure

All of us face disappointments in life at some point or another. We cannot always get what we want whether it is a promotion, dream job, or just the end of a good relationship. In such a situation what can one do

• think of what one could have done differently or
• tell yourself that it was not your fault

If you choose the second option, then research findings published in The Journal of Psychology says you’re doomed. WHY ?

An excuse is a way to shift the blame for your failures by blaming them on somebody or something else. We all do it at some point in our life sometimes also depending on the situation. The question arises as to why we do it.

It may make you feel better and shift the reason for failure. But the impact of this is that the results in your life are not in your control leading to a lack of motivation to put in an effort and work harder. Your performance suffers and the chain reaction of that ensures failure not just in the present but the future as well.

• Accepting Responsibility produces success

When you accept the responsibility for a situation whether or not you are totally responsible or deserve the blame for it – you will always end up doing better. Responsibility acceptance directs us to a process of self examination, we study everything that went wrong and identify what should have been done differently. Further we also pinpoint what needs to be done to fix a problem or situation.

When you feel in control of a situation you are motivated to work on a best solution and not only that you are also motivated to go the extra mile, put in all efforts to work better and achieve what you want.

Accepting responsibility means you assume ownership and can become a more effective contributor. This leads to a higher level of confidence and generally managers and employees who are more confident, initiate action, take steps, and produce results.

Responsibility acceptance also ensures that we have the courage to own up to mistakes without making excuses for them. Anyone can make a mistake, but coming forth and honestly admitting to it, makes one accountable and one both learns from the mistake and also it makes getting over a mistake easier.

HOW CAN YOU TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOURSELF

We all want to do well in whatever we do. However as human beings we tend to take the easy way out by making excuses. But if you want to get somewhere in life you have to accept responsibility for any commitments you make and work on them.

There are two faces to every coin – in the same manner as discussed earlier there are two choices to every situation – one that you can control, and one that you can’t.

LEARN to focus on what you can control and reach the heights of success.

LEARN to stop making excuses and instead find a solution

LEARN to stop wasting time and instead prioritize

And finally, do not engage in self doubt but instead do positive self talk – as believing in yourself is winning more than half the battle.