Introduction

We all want to be more successful - in one way or another.

I don’t think that is a “hot take” or an even remotely controversial statement.

You might be perfectly happy with your lot in life, but you likely still crave something.

Maybe it is a bit more money. It might be a more exciting career. It could be as simple as wanting to finally beat your partner home during a morning run.

Success is sweet, no matter how simple.

There is a problem, though. There is often a lot working against us and our success. We might have had a chance at a big promotion, but there were too many other good candidates. Sure, we could switch careers, but there is never a right time. We are certain we would have beat our partner home if we hadn’t slipped on those wet leaves!

Sometimes it feels like everyone and everything is conspiring to steal your success!

To top it off, we haven’t even mentioned everyone’s biggest impediment to success: themselves.

It’s true.

We are often the authors of our own demise. We engage in behaviors and habits that hold us back from true success.

That is why this guide exists. It will examine eight key behaviors that typically hold people back from success.

If you are ready to learn what behaviors might hold you back, you are in the right spot. First, though, let’s take a closer look at what “success” means…

A Few Words on Success

The idea of being more successful sounds great. After all, who doesn’t want to be more successful? However, what does it actually mean? What does being more successful look like? How can my everyday, typical life benefit from becoming more successful?

suc·cess

/səkˈses/

1. the accomplishment of an aim or purpose.

This is a straightforward definition. Success is accomplishing something you aimed to accomplish.

“Being more successful” means accomplishing more of what you set out to accomplish.

It is as simple as that. And that is exactly why we wrote this book. We want you to accomplish the things you want to accomplish.

It’s important to note the term “you want” from that last sentence.

That’s the most important lesson in this section. You define what success means to you. Don’t let anyone else decide that for you.

Don’t let anyone tell you that your goals are too big, but more importantly, don’t let them tell you that your small goals are insignificant.

If your biggest goal right now is to just survive another day - achieving that is a success. If paying off your student loans would ease your burden - that is a success.

Success can’t be defined by anyone but yourself.

Running a marathon might be a success for a veteran runner. But getting off your couch, and committing to a new walking routine, might be an even more impactful success story for someone totally sedentary.

The point (and we can’t drill this into your head enough) is that success means different things to different people.

If you want to be more successful, you need to know what that means. We can’t tell you. Your colleagues, peers, and friends can’t tell you. Society at large can’t tell you. It’s up to you.

What do YOU want to achieve?

It’s important that you can define this before moving on. Once you have done that, you can keep reading to figure out what behaviors are holding you back – or blocking you – from success.

Success Blockers

What Are Success Blockers?

A “success blocker” is simply a behavior or habit that you engage in that negatively impacts your chance of success. These behaviors hold us back from achieving what we want to achieve.

Sometimes these are behaviors we are actively engaging in, and other times they are subconscious habits that we might not be fully aware of.

Exhibiting one or two of these behaviors won’t necessarily hold you back from success, but they will make the journey a lot more uncomfortable.

If you are dealing with many of these success blockers, you likely aren’t getting close to the results in a life you want, and more importantly, deserve.

The question then becomes, why would we deal with these obstacles when we can eliminate them?

And that’s the good news – while these behaviors can be nefarious, they are all within our control. There are plenty of forces in the world already holding us back that we can’t control – so focusing on the things we can, gives us a leg up

This department of the Pivotal U Academy will cover success blockers and how you can overcome them.