Goal setting, blocking out the Naysayers and dogged self belief were ingredients of FAR more failure than successes.

Goal setting, blocking out the Naysayers and dogged self belief were ingredients of FAR more failure than successes.

We just don’t have all the biographies of failed business leaders to remind us these aren’t the paths to success they are touted to be.

The books tell a hero’s stories.

A retrospective, look back.

Projecting what they wanted to see.

Forgetting the self doubt, stress and anxiety, and complete lack of belief that accompanied their success.

That’s not to say that goal setting is always bad but more often than not goals serve to demonstrate where we are not and create spirals of self blame and criticism that rob us of the happiness state from which we operate with greatest clarity and focus.

It’s not to say that blocking out naysayers doesn’t have value but a valid and constructive point will often not feel good to hear or come wrapped in a poor delivery (it’s not like skilful delivery is taught at school) and remaining open to hear in might help to sanity check your ideas before walking off a cliff.

It’s also not to say that self belief is bad. Believe in yourself all you want. But the market doesn’t care. Your car doesn’t care if you believe in it or not, It’ll go whether you believe or not. Belief is not required to construct or follow a process for success. But again, the spiral of self blame and criticism that we carry when confidence and self belief are lacking takes us away from who and how we wish to be and are when we are doing the work we are inspired to do.

So if you’re plagued with self doubt, impostor syndrome and self criticism at the root often sits the belief that you are missing something.

You aren’t but you are focusing on the wrong thing. You are focusing of where and what you are not which is to say away from creating to processes that will produce what you are seeking to produce