Everybody wants to be successful, but not everyone is successful. There are plenty of reasons why people fail to achieve what they want in life, and we’re going to drill into this topic and talk about why people fail.
First, it all depends on how you look at success and what does success means to you. Do you think that you’re successful? Are you living a successful life?
The answer is totally depending on how you think about success and what does success mean to you.
For some people, their definition of success is owning businesses and earning multi-million dollars each year. Some define success as living in their dream house, driving their dream car, having a happy family and are enjoying their work.
So what does success look like to you? Are you going to define success by how much you earn each year? Or are you going to define success by the car you drive? Or the work you do?
The answer is totally up to you. There is no right or wrong answer here.
Read this article to find out what success truly means to you: How Do You Define Success And The Real Meaning Behind
What is more important is to ask yourself whether are you experiencing the life you want while you’re on the journey to success? Are you enjoying the process of reaching your goals and dreams?
You see, success can mean many things to many people. Some people want to retire at age 45 and some want to continue to work because their work is their passion.
Whatever you want to accomplish in life, is completely up to your choice.
However, are you going to achieve what you want in life? And this is the question that we want to discover in this article.
Even though success can mean many things to different people, but the essence to achieving it will always be the same.
And from my opinion, I believe that there are 3 most common reasons why people fail in life. Here they are:
1. They Don’t Believe It
What you think, you become. Thoughts are things. What you choose to believe, you will receive.
Most people underestimate how their thoughts and beliefs can shape their life.
If you don’t believe that you can achieve what you want in life, you never will be. Similarly, if you truly believe that you are going to be successful in life, you will do things that are in alignment and your actions will lead you to the results you seek.
Someone who is pessimistic and who always complain about how bad things are will never be successful.
A pessimist will always find the impossibility in a possible situation. On the other hand, an optimist will find the possibility in an impossible situation.
This is why someone who does not believe that they can be successful will never achieve it because they don’t find it possible. Their minds are close to all the possibilities and because of this, they are either not taking any action, or their actions are not something that will get them the result they want.
It all starts with your beliefs and thoughts, my friend.
Our beliefs are important because everything we do in life is based on our beliefs. The way we brush our teeth, the way we talk, the way we sleep, the way we eat, are influenced by our beliefs.
In other words, our beliefs shape our habits and behavior.
If you think that everyone should get a job after they graduate from school, that is what you will do after you graduate. If you believe that smoking can calm you down, you will feel at peace when you smoke.
Whatever you choose to believe, you will become. This is why our beliefs are important and we have to choose to believe in things that will move us forward, not backward.
“Beliefs have the power to create and the power to destroy. Human beings have the awesome ability to take any experience of their lives and create a meaning that disempowers them or one that can literally save their lives.”
– Tony Robbins
So choose to believe that you can be successful. Choose to believe that you are destined for big success and every business you venture into, you will prosper.
It is easier said than done. How are you going to create an unshakable belief that will lead you to success?
The answer: Through REPETITION and AFFIRMATIONS
Affirmation is an old school technique where you affirm on the things that you want or the beliefs that you want to adopt.
As far as I know, it still works today. And don’t forget about repetition. If you want to get good at something, you must do it over and over again until it becomes your habit and so real to you that you can’t get it wrong.
Most people know that affirmation works and they understand that it is a powerful technique, but unfortunately, they are not consistent with it.
They may do it for the first few days, but after that, when they don’t see any changes in their life, they quit and stop doing it.
This is not the way success works. Can you be a successful basketball player by just practicing for a few days? Nope!
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence is not an act, but a habit.”
– Aristotle
A lot of people understand what they need to do to become successful, but the problem is that they are not consistent enough. Repetition is the mother of all skills.
If you want to get good at something, practice it daily. And this is where reason #2 why people fail in life comes into play…
2. Success Won’t Come Overnight
Most people will give up and quit way before they manage to taste success. They thought that success is something that will come fast, within a year or so, but it is not.
You see, success will not come to you overnight. Success is not going to happen in an instant. In fact, it takes a lot of time for things to happen.
The sad truth is that most people overestimate what they can accomplish in a year and they underestimate what they can achieve in 5 years.
If you read the book from Malcolm Gladwell, Outliers: The Story Of Success, you will understand the 10,000-Hour Rule.
It is said that you have to practice something for more than 10,000 hours if you want to master it.
I’m into badminton and I love playing the sport. It is fascinating to see how the former world #1 ranking player, Lee Chong Wei, rise from being just an ordinary player to become one of the world’s best.
Through repetition, consistent practice, and more importantly, his never give up spirit, he managed to rise and become one of the best players of all time. And guess what, he seriously broke the 10,000 hours rule.
Just like many other extraordinary athletes out there, Tiger Woods, Michael Jordan, Michael Phelps, Agassi, Usain Bolt, and even Michael Jackson, they trained hard and deliberate practice to become better.
And it is not something that happened overnight. They improve little by little, and over the years, they become the best in what they do. They become the best in their field.
You can achieve the same outstanding result and accomplish the success you want in life, but first, are you willing to do it over a long period?
Are you willing to work on your dreams for 10 years? If you are trying to build a successful blog, are you willing to work for it for the next 10 years? Are you willing to write and post articles for the next 10 years?
Whatever field you are in, ask yourself this question, “Am I willing to sacrifice, work hard and continue to work on my dreams for the next 10 years, no matter what happens?”
So what is your answer?
You don’t have to let me know your answer. You know it whether you are willing to work for your dream for a decade.
There’s no shortcut to success and it will never come overnight. You have to have the patience to work at it consistently for a sustained period.
This is why the following key is important; it is the third reason why people fail to achieve what they want…
3. Consistency Is Key
No matter what dream you want to achieve, you must be consistent with it. Stop jumping from goal to another like a frog. Focus, be consistent and take action until you achieve it, and then only you choose to go on to your next target.
Stay Focused On Your Target
More is not always merrier. When you try to do many things at the same time, you will fail at all of them.
This Chinese proverb says it perfectly:
“The man who chases two rabbits catches neither.”
So stop setting so many goals at the same time. When you split your effort too thin, you are planning yourself for failure.
Instead, focus all your energy on your most important goal or target. Do just that one thing until you get the result you want.
It is always better to have one completed project than to have 5 uncompleted ones at hand.
How Consistent Are You?
If you want to lose weight and are trying to workout in the gym, which approach do you think work best?
1. Workout for 20 hours straight for a day, or,
2. Workout for 2 hours a day, for 10 days straight.
You know the answer. But when it comes to achieving outstanding success in life, most people choose the first approach.
When they discovered something new, a business, a new method, a ‘secret’ to make money, they are so motivated and they work on it day and night.
And soon enough, their motivation started to wane and they started to lose steam. After a few days of hard work but no result to show for, they started to doubt the approach and themselves.
They started to take rest. They started to look for other ‘new and better way’ to achieve the success they want.
Does this sound familiar?
This is especially true and obvious in today’s world. People are always searching for a better and easier way to earn money.
When the internet comes around, they want to build a blog to earn passive income. When affiliate marketing comes, they want to build a website to make some quick cash from it. When e-commerce is available, people want to make easy money from it.
I’m not saying that you cannot make money or build a successful business this way, in fact, you can, and anyone can do it.
The problem is that most people are not consistent with it. They switch from one business opportunity too often. They jump from building one website to another. They switch company too fast.
You have to be consistent in whatever you do if you want to become the best in your field.
You can be successful in sports, in your work, in your business, and in your life, if only you are consistent with it.
You don’t have to work for 20 hours a day, but you must be consistent and work on it every day.
Do you know how Michael Phelps becomes one of the best swimmers in the world? Well, basically, there are only 3 things that he did each day. He eats, he sleeps and he swims. And he did it for years.
Ever wonder how people become extraordinarily successful in what they do? They do it each day until they become the best. Their skills improve and become their second nature.
You can be the same. You can achieve your dream and become the best in what you do, through consistency.
Thus, work on your goals and your dreams every day. No matter if it rains or snows, no matter whether you like it or not, just work at it.
The key is to develop the consistency and the habit of taking daily action.
When you’ve developed the habit, you will eventually become better at it because somehow, you are the one who is doing it and working on it each day. You will become better at what you do.
No matter whether you are in sales or trying to write a bestselling book, if you keep on doing it continuously for years, you will eventually hit the lucky pot.
One thing you have to make sure is that you don’t give up deviate from your plan.
As long as you keep on moving in the right direction and don’t stop, you will somehow reach your destination. You can slow down and take rests, but don’t give up.
Conclusion
In my opinion, these are the top 3 common reasons people fail in life.
First, they don’t believe that they can make it. Even when they have the capability and the potential to achieve more, but because most people don’t believe that they can do it, they choose to settle down for less.
Second, they thought that success will come to them overnight. They overestimate what they can accomplish within a year and underestimate what they can do within 5 years.
Success is not going to come to you that fast, so stick to your plan no matter what happens. Never let anyone or anything talk you out of your dreams. Always hold your dreams in your heart and your mind; think about them every day and work on them.
Finally, be consistent with what you want. Don’t jump from one business or project to another easily. Put in more effort and stay consistent with what you do.
Remember this quote:
“Dripping water hollows out the stone, not through force but through persistence.”
You don’t have to be the strongest or the best, you just need to be the most persistence to achieve extraordinary results in life.
I encountered some of the causes of failures in this blog and the author nailed exactly why. In the other hand, the tips and motivations given are great startup to bounce back from the failures in life. Good job author!
Hey Mike, great to hear that. I hope that this post can help inspire you further. 🙂