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As an online coach and mentor I am privy to the thoughts of entrepreneurs from all walks of life and backgrounds. Within 15 mins I can pin point what challenges someone has and what has been holding them back – often before they even tell me what it is.

I also have a super power where I can predict how long it will take them to be successful – it could be a few weeks, a few months or perhaps never.

And that super power is this: I ask quality questions and I listen.

Crazy huh?

The way we often speak to ourselves is critical and a significant factor in our resistance to problems, conquering issues and overall success.

I can not bold that enough – The way we often speak to ourselves is critical and a significant factor in our overall success.

This is before pen hits the paper, before we talk about strategies and sales funnel.

This goes to the heart of the matter.

What I used to do which cost me (and I’m still working on this  as I even catch myself doing it today) – and what I spend time helping my clients with with is making sure they eliminate all of the Sub-Conscious Destructive Phrases they may say.  

The 7 most common destructive phrases to remove from your thinking

1.”I don’t know” …. When you allow that phrase to be part of your vocabulary, you are conceding defeat.

When you use the phrase “I don’t know” you are automatically allowing your brain to switch off.  As soon as you hear that phrase, you should quickly reply with “what if you did know?” It instantly activates the brain back into thought.

When you catch yourself saying or thinking this phrase counteract it with these much more useful ones:

‘Let me Google that… ‘ Seriously lol

‘I may not know right now but I can find out…’

‘Who do I know that might know…?’

‘I have the answer to this inside of me… let me ponder on it…’

or my favourite – ‘Let me find out…’

2.” I can’t” …. Is one of the most commonly used phrases in dodging and dishing off responsibility. Can’t is a killer. If you think you can’t, then you MUST (I have been guilty of this one). Henry Ford famously said

‘Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t—you’re right.’

And he’s right!

So change that ‘I can’t…’ to ‘I can’. I will. I must. I CHOOSE TO…

3. ” That’s not the way it’s done” … The be a stand-out, you need to act and think unlike anybody else. Great ideas and concepts come from those who are willing to think outside their comfort zone. 

Nothing revolutionary ever came from doing things “the way they are done” (in fact that thinking is the natural enemy of progress).

Sometimes there is such a thing as blessed ignorance.

It’s when some one so new to an industry or a field (but with enough work ethic and curioisty) just goes in and does something so left field, so different to the industry norm that it changes everything.

Only because they DIDN”T KNOW it couldn’t be done that way!

So your new phrase could be:

‘How Else could this be done?’

‘How can this be improved?’

and my favourite: “WHAT IF…’ Those two world spark your imagination and take you down a great path.

4. “That’s impossible” …. Similar to destructive phrase number 3. We are limited only by the limitations we place on our own realm of reality.

When you do what you love and love what you do, everything is possible once you apply your mind to it. Sure, it may take longer than you hope – however, that is life and the sooner we accept that the better.

5. “If we only had the money” … Many entrepreneurs often dream of the endless business possibilities that exist if only we had the flexibility of a large financial war chest.  There are countless stories of entrepreneurs with no money (even being homeless) turn into world known business leaders.

Tony Robbins is often heard saying.

It’s not the lack of resources, it’s your lack of resourcefulness that stops you.

In fact a lack of resources is often what spurs on innovation. PhilosiBlog writes:

‘Lack of resources is what drives technology forward. At one point in history, we were afraid we would run out of trees. That impending lack of resource lead to coal becoming an economically feasible replacement for trees. Now we have plenty of trees.

Then, when we thought we were going to run out of coal, the internal combustion engine and oil came forward as an alternative. That also left us with plenty of coal for other uses, and we kept finding more and more coal as mining technology progressed…

Through out history one can find examples of people, cultures, and societal changes that occurred because their resourcefulness overcame a lack of resources. To say the opposite is driving your life is to trade your potential for a handful of excuses. Not a good trade, in my humble opinion.

6. “The problem is” … There are 2 types of entrepreneurs in the world, one will focus on the problems and the other will focus on finding solutions.  Sure, you don’t want to stick your head in the sand and pretend everything is fine when it’s not and conversely you want to be a person who is getting stuff taken care of.

Successful business leaders are really very good at identifying solutions, which one are you? The fact you are reading my article answers that and I wish to thank you for taking the time to read this.

7. “I don’t have the time”…  Of all the destructive phrases this one may have the most substance. But not by much.

The undeniable fact is we only have 24 hours in a day. And all of us are already using all of those 24 hours!

But… the excuse of a lack of time almost invariably comes down to a lack of understanding the importance of setting priorities.

We don’t have enough time to do everything we want to do.

But we do have enough time to do everything we need to do. We have enough time for all the important things.

So instead of thinking ‘I don’t have enough time’ why not change that to ‘How can I make the time’.

What is the one thing that I can do NOW that would have the biggest impact on my business/ on my life?

“In the end… You can believe in your excuses or you can believe in your success. You can’t do both.” ~ Samith Pich

Here are is a cute video that continues on this topic.

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