All Your Excuse Are Belong to Us

I have many friends who are broke and other friends who are very wealthy. When people are broke, their favorite excuse is “I don’t have enough money.” When people are wealthy, their favorite excuse is “I don’t have enough time.”

Anyone can come up with an excuse to avoid taking action, and their excuses always seem valid.

The difference between those who take action and those who don’t isn’t a matter of addressing the seemingly valid excuses. People don’t normally acquire more money to eliminate the “not enough money” excuse, nor do they create more time to overcome the time excuse.

The way they succeed is by realizing that they’re creating and feeding these excuses, and they decide it’s time to stop feeding them. They realize that as long as they’re willing to feed excuses, there will always be an infinite supply.

It’s never a good time. And there’s never enough money. And that isn’t ever going to change.

And despite how valid these excuses may seem, they can’t stop a committed person.

People don’t suddenly take action when they cure their apparent money or time obstacles. They get into action when they cure their deluded thinking… when they drop the silly act.

Take the Stage Anyway

Between the Edmonton and Winnipeg Fringe Festivals that I attended this summer, I saw 57 theatrical plays, which is probably more than I’ve seen in my whole life previously. I saw dramas, comedies, clown shows, murder mysteries, storytelling, performance poetry, modern dance, adult shows, acrobatics, and more.

Mainly I did this because I like independent theater, and I wanted to have an immersive experience.

In talking to some of the performers afterwards, it was clear that they all had to overcome laziness, timidity, and other blocks to get up and deliver something of value. Instead of feeding their excuses, they fed their creative ideas.

You don’t have to eliminate your excuses. You just have to tip the scales enough that they don’t create enough friction to stop you. You do this by starving your excuses for attention. Send all the energy to your creative flow.

Everyone has the option of allowing fear and hesitation to stop them. Even some of the best performers still feel some anxiety before they take the stage. Sometimes you can see them sweating during the first minute, notice their hands shaking, or hear their voices cracking.

But they still get up and do it. Why? Because they’ve tipped the scales.

If you don’t take the proverbial stage, you get nothing. No feedback. No income. No growth experience.

Go Forth

Not enough time. Not enough money. No good ideas. Not smart enough. No web traffic. Not technically minded. Kids to take care of. Too busy with the dayjob. No energy. Family is against it. Being held captive by the Dread Pirate Roberts. And so on…

Whatever your favorite excuse of the day is, it’s still not a reason to stop. Go forth anyway.

You have all the time, money, energy, and support you need.