The danger of making excuses

Reading Time: 5 minutes

How many opportunities have you missed in your life? Why did you miss these chances? The danger of making excuses is that it will paralyze you forever. When you make an excuse, you are justifying something to remove the blame from you. Despite your level in life, there are opportunities that suits you. You cannot be financially literate while you are ignorant of the fact that you have to take chances.

Some of the most popular excuses we usually make:

• I cannot invest because I am not earning enough.
• I am still far from retirement, therefore I do not need to save for retirement.
• There is no need for a life insurance because I am still young.
• I cannot invest because I am still in debt.
• Stock market is risky and I am not ready to lose my money.

Does not it bother you to see why there are very few billionaires owning and controlling a large part of your country’s income? Do you know that your opinions are less relevant when you are poor? Does not it disturb your mind to know that those who work for it are not necessarily those who benefit from it?

What separates a wise mind from everyone? Are wealth people any different from the poor? Is it about your race or sex? No. It is about excuses. The danger of excuses is that they make a big gap between the few who are wealthy and the majority who are poor.

Why do we make excuses?

Comfort Zone

It is in the nature of humans to pursue comfort. We do not want to do anything that can pose a threat to our comfort zones. Anything that challenges our comfortable lifestyles is perceived to be bad. Therefore, if an opportunity requires us to sacrifice our comfort then we let it go.

Most families wants to have a nice car, a beautiful house and they want the best for everything. Advising people to forego this comfort and invest more money is bound to be fruitless. Investing or saving for their future means they will not have the comfort they have today.

In addition, some will not do something because they think they are too educated to do it. Pride will force them to remain in their comfort zones and they will not utilize a life changing opportunity.

Fear

Many people are afraid of taking risks. They find it hard to take chances because they fear failure. Their desire to succeed is less than their fear of losing. Therefore, they would rather put their money under the pillow rather than investing the money.

At the present moment, the stock market crashed because of the Coronavirus pandemic. Stocks from great companies are very cheap but many people are not investing. Why? Some are scared that they will lose their money if the stock prices keep falling. Even though it can happen, Coronavirus is not going to last forever. The stock market will bounce back and you will be rewarded for that risk you take now.

Moreover, what really separates the poor from the wealth elite is the ability to take risk. Many people do not want to lose what they have in search of the bigger possibility they do not have. So what they do is that they keep hold of the little they have until it loses value to inflation or wear and tear. This is the great danger of making excuses – you will be stuck with the little because you do not want to take risks.

Procrastination

There is another category of people who are good at making excuses – those who are good at delaying the inevitable. The main problem with these type of people is that when they realize that time is running out, they will start panicking and rush things.

I recall when I was growing up, my mom used to warn me that I will never be young forever. It was very difficult to imagine a young version of my parents. Consequently, I was always thinking that I would depend on my parents forever. This is the reason why most people procrastinate – they think they are in control of time.

Furthermore, we have people who want to have big weddings yet they are not saving for it. Some want to live in beautiful houses but they are not saving or investing any money. They will wait until their friends do it. Their minds will become activated but since they do not have any savings or investments in place, they will sort after debt. Debt will then further reduces their chances of making money. And this further increases their excuses.

Blaming others

The poor will blame the rich. Those who fail to achieve something will find someone to blame. Their excuses for not being good enough is that others are stopping them from doing that. Even though we cannot deny this to be true, great minds will find a way to thrive out of a difficult situation.

Additionally, the blame game makes one focus on what they are blaming and he/she will stop thinking about new ways of overcoming the situation. Therefore, when a person is not taking responsibility for what has happened to him/her, then the person will remain imprisoned in that situation.

Important articles:

• Is age just a number on wealth creation?
• Why wealthy people get more wealthier.
• The mirror effect on your finances.

How to think beyond excuses

Unfortunately, it is very challenging to go against the human nature. It is in the human behavior to minimize risk and to strive to be as much comfortable as possible. This is why the danger of making excuses is real. But how did others do it?

1. You have to start.
   • Starting something is the most difficult thing to do but it will be easier as you get more knowledgeable about what you are doing.
   • Never underestimate your humble beginnings – what matters most is that you started and you did it.
2. Take the responsibility.
   • Despite the fact that someone did something unfair to you, never let your bitterness stop you from thinking beyond that pain.
   • Take charge of your future and take the blame for the things that already happened and find a way to move forward.
3. Ask those who did it.
   • The main reason why you may be scared of losing is that you do not have a good support system.
   • Ask the opinions of others who are more knowledgeable in what you desire to do. These people can advise you on how to do it efficiently.
4. Pain or disaster
   • Unfortunately, many people will never leave their comfort zones until a disaster happens. This disaster will give them a woke up call to do something.
   • Some will need to have a baby first before they realize that it is important to have a savings or investment account.
   • Many great people have a rough past. This horrible past gave them the drive to pursue greatness and this is what shaped the greatness they have.

Summary points

In conclusion, excuses are like a virus that can stop people from achieving greatness. The danger of making excuses is that you may not see the need to grow or do something. This is what separates those with little and those who have abundance in their store. The key point is that, you have to start doing something and never be scared to take risks. Whatever happens to you, take responsibility.