Negative Habits Will Stop You

…let us strip off everything that hinders us, as well as the sin which dogs our feet, and let us run the race that we have to run with patience

 There is one thing I have learned from my life experiences – and it is that I rarely learn from my life experiences. How else can I explain the obvious fact that what stopped me yesterday just stopped me again?

I am not alone in this. As you read your mind will take you on that short journey on memory lane and you will have clear glances at the things you know are slowing you down. It may be procrastination, or impulsive overspending, or a lack of basic integrity, or some moral flaw secret to the world but obvious to you. What it is does not matter much. What matters is that if you do not stop it, it will stop you.

Our success paths are like pipelines. As we journey through life we pick up (for lack of a better word) impurities that clog our path. Interestingly these impurities are scarcely big things. They are simple actions and habits that, when individually taken, mean little but after a while, and as they keep clogging, would block off your success completely.

You can stop these little things before they stop you by exposing them. Do not keep them as secrets. That is exactly what will ensure you remain trapped in them. Failure loves secrecy – don’t give it. Get someone you can speak to and open up. You do not have to look good or keep a “superman” visage when you know that you are going down.

Second, learn to follow mentors. I affirm that we all have unique individual paths but none of us is in a path that has never been threaded. Our paths are common to people though our experiences on them are unique to us. Keep these in mind: “There is nothing new under the sun,” and “There is safety in the multitude of counselors.”

Third, impose a firm stand for yourself. You should not dance around thoughts, ideas, attitudes, or friends that will add more to the clog building up in your success path.

Forth, Do not expect (though it is possible) to get it perfect the first time you try. If you are like me, you probably have built some habits for years. If/when you fail forgive yourself and try again. Don’t give up trying to get it right until you get it right.