What’s your favorite excuse for not getting things done?
It may not even be something that you’re aware you’re using as an excuse.
🙋♀️ I’m guilty of it!
I believe that I have some sort of ADD or ADHD. I’ve never been tested for it, so I can’t say for certain, but knowing what I know about those and what I know about myself, (if I was a gambling woman) I’d bet money on it.
I used to catch myself justifying any distractions or lack of follow-through on this self-diagnosis…
But here’s the thing…
I’m sure you’ve heard a saying similar to this: “Excuses are like tushes, they both stink.”
There’s actually a lot of truth to that statement. There are reasons why something didn’t get done and then there are excuses. What’s the difference…?
Well, a reason is just that. It’s a fact. It’s the ‘why’ something didn’t get done. A reason doesn’t justify it, it doesn’t excuse it, it’s just a statement of why it didn’t get done.
An excuse, on the other hand, is our attempt to justify why we didn’t get something done. It’s more than a reason because we expect it to help others empathize with us for why we didn’t get it done. We want to lessen the blame.
There may be a fine line between the two, but it comes down to this: A reason is WHY something didn’t get done. An excuse is using that reason as a crutch.
In my case, when I allow myself to drop the ball due to a distraction or a lack of focus, the reality is, I have a choice of what to do about it.
I can either look at the reason why it didn’t get done (i.e. lack of focus) and DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT. Or, I can take the reason and use it to excuse myself from the deadlines I’ve set (which won't help increase productivity).
There are systems that you can put in place in your life and in your business to solve the problem that your reason is leading to and increase productivity. Sometimes it may take some trial and error to figure out what works for you and what doesn’t.
Using myself as an example, I know that I stay more focused when I have a clear plan laid out. So that’s what I do! I have 2 different to-do list journals. One has blank to-do lists where I keep a running list of what needs to be done that I can mark off, and the other is a weekly planner that I use to plan out my week.
At the start of the week, I look over my “master to-do list” and fill in the spots in the other planner for the week. This is the system that works best for me.
Now my excuse has lost its power because I have solved the problem.
So what areas of your business do you struggle with follow-through?
Once you’ve identified that, start writing down all of your excuses for why it didn’t happen.
Then it’s time to problem solve to turn those excuses into actionable steps to eliminate the problem and increase productivity.
“I didn’t follow through with ___________ because ____________ and in order to fix that, I will try ___________________.”
If you approach it with a problem-solving mindset, you may just surprise yourself at how many excuses you can kick to the curb!
The bottom line is, we all have things in our lives that are going to cause roadblocks or detours. It’s not about punishing yourself for running into those things, but figuring out how to get around them.
Once you figure out that, your productivity will start to increase and so will your results!
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