Some of the best decisions you will ever make are to stop doing something. Developing new habits and mindsets helps you achieve the changes your life needs to move you forward. However, sometimes you can’t bring new habits to your life when you are holding on to the bad ones.
Here are fifteen things to give up that hold you back from being the best version of yourself. It’s time to give the world what’s best of you rather than what’s left of you.
1) Doubting Yourself
Too little self-doubt can be dangerous. Yet left unchecked, the fear that feeds your doubt will drive you to be overly cautious and keep you from taking the necessary actions that will move your forward or provide service to others. If you don’t give up self-doubt, doubt wins, and actions go undone. Let go of doubting yourself so you can achieve all the things you deserve in life.
2) Negative Thinking
Negative thinking has a strong and devastating impact on your relationships, health, work, and quality of life. Negative thinking causes worry, stress, anxiety, and depression. These things will weigh you down and cause you to stand still. Let go of negative thinking, so you can move forward.
3) Fear of Failure
The fear of failure causes you not even to try at all. Even more, the fear of failure can cause you to self-sabotage and undermine your efforts. There is always a chance you will fail. But facing that chance, and embracing it, demonstrates courage. Give up the fear of failure to move forward with a fuller, more rewarding life.
4) Destructive Relationships
You have to let go of people who no longer serve a purpose in your life. That includes toxic family members, dead-weight friends, disengaged employees, or clients who don’t act like partners. Even more, lovers who have conditions to receive their love. Let go of destructive relationships so you can choose yourself. You deserve to be free.
5) Gossiping
Give up gossiping to move forward. Gossiping is wrong, no matter how it spreads. Spreading malicious gossip not only hurts the person you are gossiping about but also makes you look bad. It probably makes the people you are gossiping with uncomfortable. Gossiping hurts your friendships and professional relationships. Once you say something, you can never take it back. Let go of gossiping to move forward. Just walk away when invited to participate.
6) Criticising Yourself and Others
Being too hard on yourself or others isn’t productive, and it holds you back. Criticism is a deadly trap that stops you from making the changes in your life that will move you forward. Let go of criticizing yourself and others by embracing compassion.
7) Anger
Feeling anger at all of life’s annoyances is a normal stress response. However, spending all your time being upset is destructive and holds you back. Allowing ager to rent space in your head or heart hurts your personal and professional relationships. It also impacts your well-being. Let go of the anger that is holding you back so you can move forward.
8) Comfort Eating
You have to let go of emotional eating because it is an admission that how you are feeling is not OK. Eating comfort food will make you feel better in the moment. But when that moment passes, you will feel worse because comfort eating results in feelings of guilt, hopelessness, and disappointment. Let go of comfort eating and get comfortable with being uncomfortable.
9) Laziness
Laziness in moderation is great, and we all need that from time to time. However, chronic laziness holds you back and keeps you stuck in a place of excuses. Identify the root causes of your demotivation. Let go of laziness to get stuff done so you can move forward.
10) Negative Self-Talk
You spend so much time telling yourself you aren’t good enough, smart enough, talented enough, or thin enough. Negative self-talk convinces you that you don’t deserve the things you want. When you think you are a good person who deserves to live the life you want, you create that life. However, holding on to negative self-talk causes you to sabotage your efforts and stops you from moving forward. Let go of negative self-talk because it is holding you back from moving forward.
11) Procrastination
Procrastination is often confused with laziness. However, procrastination is an active process. You are actively choosing to do something besides the task you know you should do. Conversely, laziness is an unwillingness to act. When you procrastinate, it results in guilt and shame. It reduces productivity and causes you to miss out on achieving your goals. Let go of procrastination to unlock your potential and accelerate your career.
12) Fear of Success
Fear is an ornery companion to walk through life with. Fear paralyzes you. It keeps you living in desperate situations and stops you from living the life you deserve. Of all the negative emotions that reduce your capacity for achieving what you deserve in life, fear is the most potent. Let go of fear and become open-minded to accept what you have so you can make the most of it.
13) Anything Excessive
Society pressures us into thinking our life goal should be to have more in our lives. But when you constantly search for more, it causes you to miss living in the moment. The pursuit of excess means you are waiting for your life to be complete with more and striving for a day that never comes. What is stopping you from finding your own path? Let go of anything excessive so you can stop deferring living and appreciate how far you’ve come.
14) People Pleasing
Trying to be perfect and striving to be appreciated and liked by everyone around you. Trying to fit in with different groups to feel accepted and approved of. People-pleasing is unhealthy behavior. It is disempowering, inauthentic, and robs you of time and energy. Let go of people-pleasing and start giving yourself the love, care, and attention you deserve.
15) Putting Others Needs Above Your Own
We are raised to put others above ourselves. Indeed, you don’t want to be selfish. But how can you take care of someone else if you aren’t healthy yourself? Sometimes you have to let go of putting other’s needs above your own and consider how you can take better care of yourself. Let go of putting other’s needs above your own, so you can start hearing your inner voice. Reconnect with your inner voice to rediscover what makes you content so you can pursue what you deserve.
