By Steven Le Vine
Most entrepreneurs have the drive and desire to succeed. It’s what we grow up learning and what we want from an early age. But many of us have also been adversely wired by negative experiences in ways that sabotage or hinder our chances of personal and business success. The good news is that we can rewire ourselves in ways that not only neutralize our negative programming, but also put us on an even stronger path to success.
First though, we need to identify the ways in which we harm our chances at growing both personally and professionally. Only then can we work towards changing these patterns. The following are five different ways in which we sabotage our chances at achieving fulfillment -- and how to start changing those harmful patterns of thinking.
Formative Years Programming
This is the programming that plays in a continuous loop inside our minds, and is self-perpetuating and detrimental. So much of how we think and interact is shaped by experiences that occurred during our formative years. Those experiences, many of which were negative or perceived at the time to be negative, have conditioned us to act or think in fear-based ways as we grow and move through our lives. We are our own worst critics, defined by unrealistic programmed voices inside our heads.
What You Can Do: Stop the tape. You can reprogram or erase these tapes, as long as you are able to identify what they are and that they are no longer relevant to your current situation.
Procrastination
You have probably heard of “analysis paralysis.” Most of the time, when we are procrastinating, this harmful behavior is due to the feeling that something is either too difficult to resolve, or will take too much work to overcome. So instead we stall and don’t make move at all, causing us to procrastinate even further and let more time pass.
What You Can Do: Build up to it. Instead of trying to face everything head-on, break things down into small pieces and try to accomplish it that way. There’s a well-known expression: “How do you eat a whale? One bite at a time.” Once you begin picking up momentum, the bigger tasks or problems at hand will seem much easier to overcome.
Bubble
When we insulate ourselves, whether completely or by only spending time with "yes men," we deprive ourselves of the opportunity to receive the constructive criticism of our work that can shape us for the better. When we completely sequester ourselves, we are our own “yes men" and trap ourselves in a bubble.
What You Can Do: Open yourself up. Network, join new groups and find people who aren’t afraid to be honest with you. Be open to this honesty and criticism, even if it's difficult to hear. No one is an island.
Thinking You’re an Impostor
Have you ever heard of the “Impostor Syndrome?” It’s a psychological phenomenon that afflicts some of the most gifted, famous and successful people we’ve come to know, from Oprah Winfrey to Tom Hanks to Sheryl Sandberg. It’s the inherent belief that one is a fraud and has not earned the success they have achieved, and that they're only getting away with it for the time being. It truly undermines your self-worth and confidence. Yet it's not based in reality and doesn’t go away no matter how many achievements one accomplishes or how much glowing praise one receives.
What You Can Do: Accept your role. Be honest with yourself. Was it really just everyone else who got you to where you are? It’s one thing to believe you have done everything and that you owe none of the credit to anyone else. But it’s an entirely other thing to not take any credit for your accomplishments. You are where you are because you have earned it. Remember that. Anything else will undermine your ability to enjoy the fruits of your labor.
Playing It Safe
We don’t get through life by playing it safe. Even going for a walk puts us in a position to get hurt. But many people take the path of least resistance in the hopes of evading potential risk, and in the meantime don’t take chances that can bring opportunities for advanced success, financial freedom or even pure excitement.
What You Can Do: Take small risks. No one is telling you to jump out of a plane with a faulty parachute or bank your house against your vanity project. But the fact of the matter is that there are risks you can take that will not only give you chances for added enjoyment, but can accelerate a growth trajectory. The key is to take calculated risks. What this means is that although you will never have a definitive answer of the outcome (that's why it’s called a risk), you can at least take a step back and assess the reality, strategize and calculate the chances of being disappointed versus achieving a larger goal.
Steven Le Vine is CEO of Los Angeles-based lifestyle and entertainment PR and consulting firm, grapevine pr + consulting and has represented some of the biggest names in music, fashion, film, and television, since his agency’s launch in 2006.
