What are you rationalising away?

One of the things that stop people from achieving their goals is ‘rationalising’; convincing themselves that there are good reasons for not doing what they need to do to achieve what’s important to them. How do you know if you are caught in this trap of rationalisation? Here are some signs:

Comparing yourself to others:

When you rationalise, you identify someone you’re clearly doing better than and say ‘I am not doing badly’. Yes you may be doing better compared to others but if you were to compare where you are now to where you could be, how would you say you are doing?

Sticking with past achievements:

Everyone has a right to relive and treasure past achievements. However, when reminiscing the past stops you from reaching out to maximise your potential then you are unhealthily stuck in the past. Step out and seek new fulfilling experiences.

Deciding it’s sensible to play safe:

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with settling for where you are if that’s what you want. What you shouldn’t do is to be emotionally dishonest about yourself on what really matters to you or backing down because you feel not up to taking certain tasks.

Feeling you have too much on your plate:

Fair enough, but how much of what you are busy with is ‘must do’ or worthwhile? Have you got your priorities right? Might it be appropriate and sensible to prioritise and determine whether your important goals need to feature further up your action list? Don’t ditch your goals you care about before you’ve had a chance to give it your attention and make it work.

Always concluding ‘it’s too hard’’:

If you don’t commit the time, energy and other resources to making what you want happen, of course ‘it’ll be hard’. Before you give up on those seemingly ‘hard goals’, find support to help you move ahead rather than trusting yourself to go it alone or choosing to stay put.

Now take action:

What excuses are you using not to do what you know you should?