Successful People Are Able To Say "NO" To Themselves, Others, & Distractions
You become unstoppable when you don't want to fail yourself
The more boundaries you set with yourself, the higher your self-worth.
The fewer boundaries you set with yourself, the lower your self-worth.
If you struggle to say “no” to yourself regarding your desires, temptations, and distractions, you will struggle to say “no” to other people and other external variables that deviate you from your intended course.
Boundaries always start with you.
The sooner you can implement boundaries with yourself, the sooner you will be able to implement boundaries with others.
Think about it: If you don’t respect yourself, others have no legitimate reason to respect you and will quickly sniff out your weakness and low regard for yourself.
People will know they can run over you, take advantage of you, talk to you in any way, treat you poorly, and lead you down an unintentional path.
But that can all change instantly the day you set standards with yourself.
Goals & Dreams
If you have a goal, there will be times you need to say no to certain activities (e.g., watching television, social life, or engaging in your favorite activities).
You should still have fun and enjoy your favorite activities, but there is a balance.
If you only focus on having fun, you can’t make much progress on your goals.
People with high self-regard, self-respect, and self-worth don’t have a problem telling themselves, things, and people, “No, I got sh*t to do.”
It’s all temporary sacrifice; nothing is permanent.
Delayed Gratification: An Underestimated Art
Delayed gratification is tough to master, but once you do, you will notice an entire shift in the results you’ve been receiving from life.
A perfect example of delayed gratification is debt.
If more people implemented delayed gratification, they would have little to no debt.
Instead of forcing things when they don’t have the resources to pay cash, they could delay the purchase until they had enough to cover the purchase in cash before the billing statement rolled around.
But delayed gratification is painful.
Why wait when you want it now, and nothing is stopping you?
There is always a price to pay.
One price comes with insidious APR penalties and immediate but temporary gratification.
The other price tag comes with long-term gratification and no financial penalties.
Implementing delayed gratification separates the average person from a world-class person.
Food
There are times when I eat whatever I want, and there are times when I don’t.
When I’m not eating freely and have a craving, I tell myself “No” and remind myself that I’m in control.
What is the goal? Optimal health and discipline.
Why am I eating clean? To continually promote good health.
Why am I saying “no” right now? Because I’m in control. Not food.
Am I a master of delayed gratification or a dopamine addict? I’m a master of delayed gratification.
Sometimes you need to have conversations with yourself to remind yourself who you are and who you desire to be—even if you’re not all the way there yet.
Working Out
Living an active lifestyle is a daily choice.
Some days you rest, but most days you don’t.
You’ll want to take off some days when there is no real reason to.
It’s okay to take off days here and there—when you’re consistently active.
But there’s a difference between taking a day off here and there versus consistently taking days off.
Sometimes you have to tell yourself, “NO! I’m doing this shit. And I won’t allow my emotions to impede my progress.”
Accumulating Self-Respect
The more boundaries you have, the higher self-respect you tend to have. The more times you successfully say “no” to the right things, the more power you gain.
People can’t run over you.
When people try to disrespect you, you’re immune to it and unaffected.
When people try to peer pressure or veer you, they fail. Because you have that laser focus and firm boundaries in place, you’ve become a machine built for success in whatever endeavors you choose to pursue.
Attack your goals.
Implement boundaries with yourself. And watch your life shift.
Remember, the only person you need to be accountable to is yourself.
Your life will change the sooner you start prioritizing yourself as the most important person to be accountable to.
Consider adopting this mentality:
I can only fail myself, which I am not willing to do.
It’s okay not to want to let others down, but not wanting to let yourself down…that’s world-class behavior.
Off-Topic But Related: Enhance Your Relationships
As you implement boundaries with yourself, you will naturally respect and become more sensitive to others’ boundaries, creating more refreshing relationships.
Inspiring ❤️