“Making excuses instead of taking responsibility for actions and
goals are the hallmark of failures.” Dan Ekoko

It’s another Monday again. I pray it opens the door into a week
of new opportunities, growth and progress for you. Here’s the second part of
the piece I started last week.

?What
are Excuses?
▪Excuses are imaginary rationalizations and justifications we
make to ourselves and then to others.
▪Excuses are lies we tell ourselves so that it doesn’t have to be
our fault. 
▪Excuses are the nails used to build the house of failure. 
▪Excuses allow us to stay within our comfort zone.
▪Excuses are an easy way to shift the blame from an internal
problem (inaction, lack of discipline, laziness, lack of vision) TO an external
situation (finances, people, economy).

?We
always invent reasons to defend our excuses while we neglect taking action and
responsibility. Making excuses instead of taking responsibility for actions,
goals and situations are the hallmark of failures. Relinquishing control and
shifting responsibility for your decisions and life to others set the stage for
creating an unhappy life — a life that fulfills none of your dreams and
aspirations.

?You
are totally responsible for your life. This is the foundational principle you
must embrace if you truly desire happiness and success in life. For many
people, every problem can be explained away with reasons why they can’t change
the situation or the outcome. For many people, everything is someone else’s
fault. “It’s His Fault.” “It’s Her Fault.” “It’s Their Fault.” “It’s Not Me.”

Why You Need To Stop Making Excuses:
▪Excuses prevent you from living to your full potential.
▪Making excuses prevents you from recognizing resources, opportunities and skills you have which could be the answer to your problems.
▪Excuses won’t get you anywhere at all. Benjamin Franklin once said, “He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else.”
▪Excuses provide no value. Instead, they erode your self-belief and personal power to alter situations and outcomes.

?Accept responsibility for who you are, who you will become, the choices you make, and the consequences that result. Hold yourself accountable. The moment you take responsibility for everything in your life is the moment you can change anything in your life. To your success!