5 Habits You Need to Quit Right Now
Always do your best. What you plant now, you will harvest later. ~Og Mandino Click To Tweet
I was first drawn to this quote by Mandino because the first part is the Cub Scout motto. I have two Cub Scouts, so we say, “Always do your best!” All. The. Time. But the second part is what’s drawing me now. “What you plant now, you will harvest later.” While we normally think of positive habits and hard work, I think this phrase can also apply to examining our negative habits. Here are a few habits I think are worth examining to see what you’re planting so you can think ahead to the harvest.
Telling Yourself You’re Not Good Enough
To succeed, you need to believe in yourself. We often tell children they can do anything they want with their lives, and be anything they want. But do we tell ourselves that? Examine the internal chatter going on in your head, and kill off the negative thoughts before they can plant roots. You are good enough. Believe it, and act on it.
Comparing Yourself to Others
Your only real competition is yourself. Comparing yourself to others is just asking to feel inferior. It’s particularly difficult to avoid comparison since we’re constantly on social media, comparing other people’s highlight reels with our own bloopers and outtakes. You don’t know the stories behind those highlight reels, so you shouldn’t compare yourself to them.
Indulging in Scarcity Thinking
People who indulge in scarcity thinking believe there isn’t “enough” to go around — enough money, enough readers, enough jobs, enough love. They believe there are only a few winners and a whole lot of losers, and they’re afraid of being on the losing end. That fear makes them resent competition, and they may be reluctant to share knowledge or resources for fear of losing out. On the other hand, people who engage in abundance mindsets believe there is enough, of everything, to go around — plenty of money, resources, love, success. That abundance mindset creates in them the desire to share knowledge, to lend a hand, to think bigger than themselves. And that leads to confidence, gratitude, and generosity. Which one do you think will reap the bigger harvest?
Blaming Other People for Your Current Circumstances
Whether it’s a lost job, a difficult childhood, or a broken relationship, it can be easy to default to the position of blaming others for the difficulties we’ve encountered in our lives. But blaming others can make you feel powerless to take control over your life, and it invites chaos in. You’re only hurting yourself by blaming others, so it’s time to take a close look at where you might be shifting the blame onto others. Forgive them, take responsibility for your part, and move on.
Saying Yes When You Want to Say No
Saying yes when I want to say no has always been a difficult habit for me. A lifelong people pleaser, I didn’t want to disappoint, so I often said yes to things I wasn’t interested in or flat out didn’t want to do for fear of disappointing others. The result was an overloaded schedule, and I was so overwhelmed with tasks I wasn’t even interested in that I was neglecting the people and commitments that really did matter to me. If you want to say no to something, then say no. It’s important to be able to make intentional decisions that move you forward toward what you want in life.
What habits do you have that may need to be reevaluated for the harvest they may provide? Are there any habits you need to quit?
