So, you think you may be sabotaging yourself and your efforts with your home business. What gave you that clue? Is it because you often find yourself asking “Why does this keep happening?” or “Why do I keep doing this to myself?”
Look, we all throw ourselves a pity-party from time to time, but...if you find that your pity-party has grown out of control and you suddenly have a bunch of S.O.B.’s running amok, it’s time to call the cops... on yourself!
Just who are those little S.O.B.s running amok at your party? Saboteurs of Business, of course! (You thought I meant something else, didn’t you?) Well...ok, I’m trying to keep it light-hearted, but it’s true. These little S.O.B.’s ARE running amok and you have to snag ‘em and bag ‘em - permanently!
There are lots of Saboteurs of Business and they’re very persistent. Be aware, S.O.B.’s can be very pesky and not likely to go away on their own, so don’t waste another minute. Show them the front door. Only good work habits should be welcome in your home business environment!
Ironically, self-sabotage is an odd little self-defense mechanism working behind the scenes to protect you from disappointment. It’s really an internal conflict between your conscious and subconscious mind. Your brain tries to protect you from getting hurt by making you do dumb stuff like, oh, everything else you SHOULD be doing to create success for yourself and your business!
Whenever you're pushing hard to move outside of your comfort zone, your brain senses the discomfort and goes to work undermining you in lots of devious little ways. For example, that time you wanted to develop a new marketing strategy but (fill in the excuse here) happened. Instead, you wound up at the shopping mall. What happened? Your brain made you take the path of least resistance because it thought it was helping you. Isn’t your brain thoughtful that way?
PUTTING THE QUASH ON THE LITTLE S.O.B.s
STEP #1: IDENTIFY THE WORST OF THE WORST
What are the real culprits that keep you from moving forward and what triggers them to occur?
Examples:
Dwelling on the Negatives -
You focus on what’s going bad vs. what’s going good, what is not possible vs what is possible, what you’ve done wrong vs. all the things you’ve done right, etc.
Poor Work Habits -
Procrastination, careless or poor communication (or even no communication-yikes!) sloppy work, and tardiness. Yes -even home business owners can be tardy by not starting their work day on time, being late for calls, webinars, one-on-one meetings, etc.
Beware the Time Suckers-
phone, email, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, the refrigerator, your neighbor, the mall, the dust on top of the ceiling fan, the dog that needs walking...you get the picture. If it doesn’t do anything to contribute directly to your business, 86 it! Or at least, assign it a time outside of the time you designate for your home business activity.
STEP #2: BECOME THE SOLUTION TO YOURSELF
In other words, get out of your own way! Stop throwing up roadblocks for yourself. Make a conscious decision to make the necessary changes and commit to it with integrity. Think about what it will cost your business going forward if you don’t make the necessary changes.
In order for this to happen you need to:
- Quit making excuses!
- Quit giving in to fear!
- Quit seeing obstacles that aren’t there!
- Quit giving away your personal power!
STEP #3: TURN DOWN YOUR NAUGHTY VOICE
You know the one I’m talking about; the voice that hovers over you, urging you to procrastinate and then beats you like a punching bag AFTER you’ve complied!
Instead, give it the good smack down it deserves, then employ some good ol’ R&R. What’s that you ask? It’s a technique I like to call Refuse and Replace, R&R for short. It means to Refuse to listen to self-defeating talk, the old limiting beliefs that make you feel less than adequate, unworthy, or doomed to a life of mediocrity. Then, Replace all the negative self-talk with empowering thoughts, words and actions that support you and guide you toward your goals.
Eliminating old patterns and replacing them with new ones isn’t something that happens overnight, but it can be accomplished with conscious, persistent effort. The goal is to bring the subconscious thoughts that drive your behavior up to the surface and into your conscious awareness. Only then can you make meaningful changes.
Some people seek professional counseling services to help them. Many people consult reliable respectable online websites devoted to this topic. I’ve included a few links to some online resources that may be of interest to you as you try to deal with your S.O.B.’s.
It’s like that old saying goes: “You cannot fix a problem you don’t first acknowledge exists.” Out with the old, in with the new!
-What kind of S.O.B.’s are you currently dealing with?
-What S.O.B.’s have you dealt with in the past that prevented or stalled your success in your home business? How did you deal with them?
Leave a comment below. It can help another reader!
Online resources you may find helpful: