Without us realizing it, there might be small habits we do daily that are stopping us from being successful. These actions, when not recognized can be detrimental to our overall satisfaction with our career or business.

In this article, we aim to point out what these bad habits are for self-awareness. But more importantly, we want to be able to share ways on how to overcome them by doing the opposite instead.

Here are the five bad habits that are holding you back from success:

1. Procrastination

One of the hardest, and the most obvious, parts of achieving success is the actual work. It’s easy to SAY you’re doing one thing, but the challenge lies in actually doing it. 

Why do we tend to procrastinate? Well, partly because the tasks required of us seem too daunting, especially when we’re talking about going after a dream as big as say, running a large corporation.

The reality is, if you want to get ahead in life, then you can’t let laziness be the reason you get left behind. To overcome such bad habits, you need to confront yourself and come to terms with practicing discipline. 

How to stop procrastinating:

• Set simple, achievable goals vs. tackling a big, vague plan.
• Don’t start your day with the first hint of procrastination by hitting that snooze button of your alarm.
• Get organized! Prompt your calendar reminders for the day and stick to the schedule.
• Learn how to say ‘no’ to yourself and others when presented with a distraction.
• Set deadlines, then use the time not meeting them to give yourself a break.

Read: Daily Routine of Successful People from Morning to Evening

2. Pessimism

Walking the path to success requires you to be prepared for whatever may lie ahead. This includes being able to overcome setbacks and powering through unexpected turns.

How can you be motivated to carry on if you’re a pessimist? The worst thing you can do for yourself when faced with such challenge, is telling yourself you CAN’T. Not only does it deter you from being successful, it can lead to a downhill direction that might be harder to get out of later on.

Whenever you want to achieve something, you have to always believe that you can do it. By replacing the negativity with a positive mindset, you’ll feel less worried and put your focus on taking action to meet your goals.

How to stop being pessimistic: 

• Don’t entertain self-sabotaging thoughts. There’s a key difference between managing expectations vs. self-sabotage and you must not do the latter.
• Focus on the feeling of gratitude for what you have instead of feeling disappointed with what you don’t have.
• Find what’s good and helpful when you’re in what looks like a negative situation.
• Work out regularly to release body tension and clear your headspace.
• Be kind to yourself and your surroundings so the stress doesn’t build up.

3. Constantly seeking approval

You may or may not realize it, but we now live in an era where we constantly seek approval by tracking how many “likes or shares” we get from our output. By doing what everyone else is doing, we sometimes forget our own uniqueness which can possibly be the very thing that propels us to success.

This may sound counterintuitive, but if you want to be successful in your career or business venture, sometimes you have to do exactly what others DON’T expect you to do. 

When you seek for others’ approval, you miss the opportunities to approve of yourself. You can’t always let others validate your worth, that’s only setting yourself for disappointment. Because the only person who could truly know what you’re capable of doing, is you.

How to stop seeking approval:

• Start to become more self-aware.
• Believing more in yourself.
• Trusting your gut by doing things that are important to you.
• Don’t be a people-pleaser.

4. Making excuses

Anyone who’s ever been successful didn’t go through life making up excuses. Instead, they had to make sacrifices along the way. It can be something as small as waking up at 5 A.M. for a 2-hour commute to work, or something as major as missing out a bachelor’s trip with their buddies because of an important work presentation.

Truth is, you can’t go through life thinking success will just fall into your lap without going really hard at it. You have to stop making excuses and start making sacrifices that even though may feel painful sometimes, will pay off in the long term.

Remember this: you need to be willing to sacrifice the person you are today, for the person you will be tomorrow. When we work on our priorities instead of mindlessly giving in to what we want right now, we are saving our time and energy for something truly more important—the realization of our goals. 

Start asking yourself, what are you willing to struggle for to achieve your dreams?

How to learn to accept the sacrifices:

• Time. Managing your time to prioritize one task over the other.
• Sleep. Staying up late and sleeping in but accomplishing less vs. sleeping on time but accomplishing more in the day.
• Personal life.  Letting your family or friends understand you may not be present on every special occasion or brunch date not because you care less about them, but because you have a deadline to meet or an important work to tend to.
• Immediate desires. For instance, putting off smaller purchases like clothes vs. saving up for a bigger house or nicer family car.

5. Succumbing to your fears

Fear is likely to consistently hold you back from getting what you want. Success demands that you conquer your fears and go after your dreams, all-in.

You must learn how to manage the fear of uncertainty, the fear of failure, the fear of rejection, the fear of change, and the fear of taking risks. These are all common fears that hold people back from the life they want to live. Yes, it’s absolutely scary but what’s more scary is living a life that is not your heart’s true desire.

How to start overcoming your fears:

• Stop playing safe and get out of your comfort zone.
• Understand that you will need to make difficult choices in life to make progress.
• There’s no shame in starting over again because you have the opportunity to make things better and perhaps even bigger.
• Invest your resources that can help leverage your work.
• Appreciate your courage but don’t be afraid to ask for help.

Best Books to Read to Help Kick Your Bad Habits

You can’t change what you don’t understand. Sometimes, that’s the only thing standing between us and our bad habits. That’s why we recommend reading these books if you want to kick your bad habits for good (and stay on track).

• Atomic Habits by James Clear

A personal favorite of mine, this book gives the reader a solid understanding of the science behind habits. “Atomic Habits” by James Clear, is the best book on habit formation and change. It’s an easy-to-digest guide full of practical tips you can apply to your personal life and career.

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With several personal development books available, this one is a standout. It’s well-researched without the blabber that’s all too common with many self-development books. It’s no wonder this book has been a New York Times best-seller, and author James Clear himself gained a huge following on his socials and mailing list.

• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey

“The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen Covey is a classic introduction to the idea that personal change begins with self-knowledge and self-awareness. This is a good book for those who prefer their nonfiction in serial format. It follows a set of guiding principles that’ll help you reach your goals (and yes, they’re based on things like honesty and integrity)

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This book is one of the most influential books on personal development. It covers simple yet substantial habit-forming ways one has to do to achieve success. A good read to help recalibrate our thinking these days—that not everything worth having come quick and easy.

• The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg

The book written by Charles Duhigg namely “The Power of Habit” gives insights about learned aka habitual behavior and the psychology behind why it’s difficult for us to change our habits. This is a useful book to learn about the experiences of other people and it also presents anecdotes that explain human nature.

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We recommend this book since it’s a fascinating read for anyone who wants to take control of their personal and professional lives. The concepts are easily digestible and applicable and it has the power to give you a unique perspective on life.

Final Thoughts

Recognizing that we control our life’s course is important if we want to achieve success. It’s up to us to build good practices that support the fulfillment of our goals.

On the other hand, tolerating bad habits undermines our ability to succeed.

Therefore, remember that success comes from a desire to be successful and the willingness to put in the hard work. But you first have to take a good long look at yourself and identify any habits that are keeping you from being your best self. It may not be easy in the beginning, but it’s well worth it!

Recommended Reading: Life of a Real Estate Agent: 50 Ways to Feel Inspired

—First Published on July 20, 2020

What are the bad habits that you want to change this year? Are you taking the right steps to correct them? Share with us your thoughts below!