Excuses are expensive. They keep us from doing our best work. They cost us time, resources, and opportunities. Benjamin Franklin once said: “He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else.” Creativity can sometimes be daunting and there are times we all look for reasons NOT to be our creative best. Here are 25 lies we believe and present as excuses:
- 1. We do the things we do because it’s what we have always done.
- 2. “That’s not how we do things.”
- 3. We believe vision is not clear.
- 4. We have no urgency.
- 5. We allow our attention to detail to drift.
- 6. We have “too much to do.”
- 7. We believe the lie that “My boss won’t let me,” even if we haven’t asked.
- 8. “They” wont like it.
- 9. We’re not empowered to do “it.”
- 10. There’s no trust.
- 11. We lack the desire to take a risk.
- 12. There’s not enough money, time, or people.
- 13. Assumptions instead of innovation.
- 14. Fear.
- 15. No one has done this before.
- 16. Everyone’s doing this.
- 17. Insecurity.
- 18. “Not my job.”
- 19. I don’t have the authority.
- 20. Rules & procedures.
- 21. Lack of encouragement.
- 22. No teamwork.
- 23. Too many meetings, emails, or tweets.
- 24. Fear of trends.
- 25. Low morale.
Excuses cost us too much. Change starts with us. We can stop the excuses and work to change the culture around us.
A combination of 4 and 14. The idea that when my schedule gets disrupted it’s okay and I don’t have to make up for it.
All of the above. BUT I can do all things through Christ. Just need to drill that in.