Ah, Friday. For many people the anticipation of the weekend makes Friday a favourite day. We real estate agents of course usually work on the weekend too, but I think there is still a different feel to Friday. People are happier, and in the good old days of the 80s, often Fridays meant a half day when a significant proportion of business people would head out for a long liquid lunch. But I find that another thing Friday can often bring is complacency and excuses for not actually getting through everything you could, purely because "it's Friday".
That got me thinking, in everyday business, particularly for those who are running small businesses, such as a Century 21 franchise, how many times has your success been limited, or halted completely due to making excuses?
I'm talking about excuses like I'm tired, I don't have time, I don't feel great today…it's amazing that how many people will avoid stepping out of their comfort zone, even if it means increased success, and will rely on excuses to do so. Many of us, myself included at times, get uncomfortable when faced with the unknown so we find a way to avoid it.
The problem with this is that we fail to become the best possible version of ourselves, and we end up not reaching the heights of success that are actually possible. Now, for some people that might be just fine, but as a business owner, is it? There's an internationally renowned business coach and trainer by the name of George Zalucki who has the belief that excuses prevent us from fully participating in life. I suspect he may be onto something. He also suggests that the reason we shy away from participation in certain things is fear. Hmmmm.
When you feel yourself starting to make an excuse to avoid something that could actually benefit you, take a moment and take stock of the situation. Try to work out what negative feelings are arising and evaluate why. It takes some work to change old habits and patterns but if you can get to the source of why you're making excuses to avoid something, you'll probably find you're able to discard the nonsense you're feeding yourself and take on the task you're trying to avoid. It's like having the bad phone call to make and we've all done it – you avoid it and avoid it and the more you think about it, the worse making that call seems to become. Then nine times out of ten when push comes to shove and you actually have to make the call, the thought of it was usually worse than the reality.
Not to get all self-helpy on you on a Friday or anything, but imagine what you could actually achieve if you stopped restricting yourself and had no boundaries! Most of our fear is related to failing and other people's reactions or perceptions of that. The only thing holding you, and your business back, is you. Okay, enough preaching. I might go and try to reinvigorate that long 80s liquid lunch movement.