Overcoming the Stumbling Blocks of Success

‘I knew I had to succeed, because I ran out of things that didn’t work’. - Thomas Edison

Most people would like more out of life than they already have. Some of them can even define it. They have it all penned out on paper. Yet, most of them will never achieve it, and it's because they’re so easily stopped. We all know who invented the electrical lamp. Yet, how many of us remember the morale of the story behind one of the world’s greatest invention?
Thomas Edison, who decided to invent the electrical lamp, had an idea and he believed he could do it. He knew that every failure was bringing him closer to success. When something didn’t work he tried a different approach.

During an interview on the secret behind his success, he answered, “I knew I had to succeed, because I ran out of things that didn’t work. And when a journalist asked him what it was like to fail so many times, he answered ‘I didn’t fail the first 9,999 experiments. Inventing the electrical lamp was a process of 10,000 steps, I just had to take each one of them.’ Practical dreamers never quit. Tenacity is embedded in them.

Now take a moment to think of all the things you’ve ever wanted to accomplish in your life, and then think why you didn't accomplish them. You would probably say you didn’t try hard enough or you never planned it out properly. But perhaps, it is because you were stopped by these stumbling blocks. Blocks, that deterred you, from being successful.

1. Limiting Belief
This is a huge obstacle to success. Other people are always so ready, willing and able to tell us "It can’t be done," and stop us from doing all the things we want to do in our lives and careers. There are many people who want to stop you, drag you down, so that you don’t become more successful than they are. They feel it’s easier to keep you down with them, than to get up off their rear ends and join you in achieving success. The next time one of these "Other people," tells you it can’t be done, say to them, "You’re right, you can’t do it, but I can."
On the other hand, not all these people are with ill- intent. In fact some may be your loved ones who genuinely care for you. They probably think they’re acting in your best interest, but they’re not. In fact, all too often, we have the over protective parents who refuse to let their kids try new things, which in the end stifle their independence as they grow older.

2. Fear
Fear of failure is the single, biggest obstacle to our success. Fear is a double- edged sword. A certain amount of fear can create a positive motivator in us. Yet, if unbridled, it paralyzes us. Most people don’t succeed because they are too afraid to fail. They are so afraid to fail, they don’t even try. This of course creates a vicious cycle since the only time we really fail is when we stop trying! Imagine a salesperson who keeps getting rejected on the phone when he does his cold calls? Selling is, like it or not, often about rejection, handling rejection and rebounding again! Selling is character building. It teaches one to overcome his or her fear and try again, before fear overwhelms the person. It is only when we paralyze in fear, that we STOP, and end up taking away any opportunity we ever had to be great.

3. Bad Habits
We all know the adage, “Old habits die hard”. Well, you can imagine how tough it is to start a good habit as well. Just like how we learn our ABC’s or nursery rhyme, the key to nurturing a good habit is: repeat, repeat repeat. Truly, repetition is the key to any good or bad habit.
Bad habits constantly stop us. One of the worst habits of a salesperson is the habit of procrastination. Sure, there are days where we feel a little lazier than normal. Habits, unlike addictions like drinking, drugs, gambling, have to be stopped cold turkey, while habits can only be changed gradually. After all, you didn’t acquire that bad habit overnight. What makes you think you can change it overnight?

Bad habits must be changed a little bit at a time. Mark out one day a week that you won’t procrastinate; make one more sales call a week than you normally would, wake up five minutes earlier every day. Do it for a month, then next month do a little more. Well, you don’t necessarily need to try to break out of your comfort zone immediately, just expand it.

There are no overnight successes. Success is a long journey over a road that has many roadblocks, such as limiting beliefs, fear and bad habits. It’s the people that go over around and through those stumbling blocks who become successful.