It’s not my fault!!!!!!

Have you ever said those four, wildly popular words? If not, chances are you’ve secretly felt that way at least once in your adult life. I know this because you’re not alone…I’ve felt that way too!

Truth-be-told, we have all made excuses. The late, great Jim Rohn once said; "excuses are when the ego is trying to defend itself".

Who among us has never found themselves in a situation that seemed to be caused by some random, uncontrollable circumstance? Thats right, we have all been there! But in reality, for each legitimate excuse we make, there are at least 20 bogus excuses to go with it.

As you may know I built one of the largest companies of its kind in my home state. Here are a few of the classic excuses that I’ve have heard:

"I have a head ache"

"The power went out"

"My alarm didn’t go off"

"I was caught in traffic"

"The dog ate my car keys"

"I'm sorry I am late, but it was foggy and I missed the building"

"My fish is sick and I need to take it to the vet"

"I fell off a ladder fixing the roof and I landed on my elbow"

"Last night we had a party and I woke up with a stranger in my bed!"

All jokes aside…

People who experience great success have learned how to control excuses. Successful people know that excuse making is just "stinkin thinkin" and they have learned to take control of these dangerous thoughts because if left unchecked excuses will sabotage success. Successful people instead adopt a winner’s philosophy which says "if it is to be it starts with me"….aka, Personal Responsibility.

You see, personal responsibility is one of the 21 indispensable qualities that every successful leader has within him/her. Without personal responsibility you will find yourself embracing excuses and justifying poor results.

Below is a link to a great training video about "stinkin thinkin" by one of my favorite teachers, the great Zig Ziglar. I encourage you to take 10 minutes to listen to old man Zig tell it like only he can!

Enjoy training and I will see you at the top…unless, of course, you need to rush your dog to the veterinarian because he ate your car keys.

God Bless,

Travoris "TC" Carnes