Is rationalising getting in the way?

One of the things that stops people from achieving their goals is ‘rationalising’, finding reasons and convincing themselves that there are good reasons for not doing what they need to do to achieve what’s important to them. How do you know if you are caught in this trap of rationalisation? Here are some signs;

 

Comparing your progress with others: When you rationalise, you identify  someone you’re clearly doing better than and say ‘I am not doing badly’ Yes you may be doing okay compared to others but comparing where you are now to where you could be how would you say you are doing? There’s always someone you’re better off than and so this is the wrong gauge for what you should be pursuing or not.

 

Sticking with past achievements: Everyone has a right to relive and treasure past achievements for as long as they wish. However, when reminiscing on the past stops you from reaching out to maximise your potential, then you are stuck in the past. Treasure your accomplishments but don’t be so wedded to past success that you inadvertently give up the chance to do more.

 

Justifying feelings of inadequacy: This happens when one starts having cold feet. You have the goal and the desire to act on it but rather than trusting yourself to commit and step out believing that you are capable of what you aspire for you start thinking that you are biting off more than you can chew and choose to stay put. But how will you know what you are capable of unless you try?

 

Deciding it’s sensible to play safe: There’s absolutely nothing wrong with settling for where you are if you don’t really care about the goals you set in the first place. What you shouldn’t do is to be emotionally dishonest about what really matters to you or backing down because you feel inadequate and not up to the taking action required to make it worth your while.

 

Feeling you have too much on your plate : Fair enough, but how much of what you are busy with  is ‘must do’? Have you got your priorities right? It might be appropriate and sensible to ‘prioritise within the priorities’ and determine whether your important goals need to feature further up. The point is: don’t ditch the goals before you’ve had a chance to decide what deserves your attention and what does not.

 

Concluding that it’s too hard– Sometimes we make big goals when we are in ‘superman/woman’ mood- then reality sets in, the euphoria dies down and we might feel we have overplayed our hand. We are not sure we can commit the time, energy and other resources to making them happen. Before you give up on those seemingly ‘hard goals’, find out whether there support available to help you move ahead?

Now take action: What excuses are you using to abandon your goals?