A person with these traits will probably fail instead of thrive.
Not everyone will succeed at everything. People fail all the time. But some people will consistently fail at the things they attempt. Why? Well, it’s because they possess certain traits and qualities that limit their chances of succeeding very significantly. Perhaps they weren’t destined to fail at the moment of their birth, but through their upbringing, they have learned things that inevitably hold them back.
1. Lack of self-discipline.
Inspiration and motivation are fickle emotions that come and go. That’s why it’s so important to understand that success is built on self-discipline. Self-discipline develops habits that will bring you closer to what you want out of life.
The simple truth is that you have to do the things, take the steps, whether you’re motivated or not. You have to get up and do them even when your brain is telling you that you’d much rather enjoy the comfort of your warm bed. That’s self-discipline and that’s vastly more important than motivation.
2. Entitlement mentality.
According to WebMD, entitlement mentality is the consistent notion that you are owed something by the world. The idea that anyone owes you anything will drag you down until you realize that’s not how it is. Most people out there are for themselves first. They don’t think about you or want to hand you success without any effort. Entitlement mentality is insulting to those who have worked hard.
Most people earn their success by investing a lot of time and effort into something. It’s a lot of sacrifice and hard work with just a little splash of luck for the right time and place. You’re never going to get it if you wait for someone to walk up and hand it to you.
3. Accepting toxic environments.
A flower can’t thrive in a toxic environment. Similarly, you’re going to have a hard time thriving by staying in an environment that is toxic to you. Toxic environments pile on stress, anxiety, depression, and even worsen your physical health! And whether you’re working or at home, that toxicity is harming you.
Staying in toxic relationships can do far more damage. Instead of love and support, you may have people around you making passive-aggressive comments about your effort. They may cause you to doubt yourself which is setting you up for failure, rather than being uplifted in a positive relationship.
4. Fear of failure.
The fear of failure has destroyed far more success than risk ever will. So many people are unable to get out of their own way so they can walk through their fear into the unknown. Ultimately, that’s what chasing a dream or improving yourself is all about. Failure can just be a step on the way to success if you let it be.
A fear of failure is often tied to other mental health problems. As Kendra Sherry, MSeD writes, a fear of failure may be tied to trauma, depression, anxiety, or even perfectionism. The root cause of it is often much bigger than a lack of motivation.
5. Poor work ethic.
It’s wrong to say that everyone who works hard will be massively successful. That’s not the case at all. Plenty of people work hard but don’t attain the degree of success they’re hoping for. However, there is a saying that goes, “Luck is when opportunity meets preparation.”
That is, you’ve done the work, you’re currently doing the work, and now an opportunity has presented itself that you can capitalize on. That opportunity is more likely to go to the prepared if it does come along. Furthermore, people are more likely to give opportunities to people that help themselves.
6. Negative attitude.
Opportunities can pass you by just due to a bad attitude, particularly if the opportunity comes from another person. The truth is that, given a choice, most people aren’t going to want to spend their time around someone who is perpetually negative.
A negative attitude, woe is me, it’s all going to fail—these are not things that bring you closer to people or success. Furthermore, pessimism often causes you to focus on the negative rather than seeing the abundance of opportunity around you. It’s easy to miss positive things if you’re not looking for them.
7. Procrastination.
Delaying your tasks and decisions creates a cycle of missed opportunities and goals. Preparation is a big part of success. Procrastination puts off the preparation, meaning the preparation is not available when the opportunity rolls around.
People often talk about how short life is. In reality, there is plenty of time for many things, we just waste a lot of it doing things like binge-watching shows or doomscrolling social media. Confronting tasks and getting them done is the preparation one needs for success.
8. Bad decision-making.
Consistently making bad choices leads to repeated failures. That should be an obvious statement. Many people make their decisions with a lack of information which steers them in the wrong direction. It’s easy to make the wrong decisions if you’re impulsive.
Good decision-making is about getting the right information and considering it well before making your choice. It can also help to run things past people you trust or a counselor if you don’t have anyone close in your life. Research helps.
9. Avoiding responsibility.
Growth requires you to take responsibility for your actions, choices, and the role you played. Granted, not everything that goes wrong will be solely your fault. However, one must take the time to consider what role they played in the wrong decision so that they can fix it.
Furthermore, no one wants to work with someone who can’t take responsibility for themselves. A person who can’t take responsibility is untrustworthy. Avoiding responsibility often means pointing the finger and throwing someone else under the bus.
10. Unwillingness to learn.
The world is alive with so much knowledge and wisdom. There’s an infinite universe of information right at your fingertips on your cellphone. Yet, so many people are happy being ignorant of the world around them or their personal development.
It’s liberating to be able to admit to oneself that you may not know everything, that you have room to grow. That freedom allows you to embrace the experiences of others and learn from them. That’s one amazing thing about books. You can learn from anyone in the world from any time period you want.
11. Resisting change.
Life changes, for better and worse. There is no avoiding it. Time marches on and the circumstances of life will twist and turn. Yet, some people choose to remain stuck in the past. It’s not that these people couldn’t grow if they wanted to. Instead, they just choose to remain where they are.
Granted, change looks different from person-to-person. Stability can look similar to being stuck. The difference is that a person in a stable life is still able to accept change as it comes rather than clinging stubbornly. Sometimes you just have to go with the flow of life.
12. Lack of goals.
Purpose, direction, and goals lead you to success. Aimlessly drifting through life won’t help you build anything concrete, something you can be proud of. A majority of things worth doing require some dedicated focus to get there. It takes time.
Small goals are signposts that provide direction to the big goals. Purpose is one way to set goals. What sets your soul on fire? That’s the easiest way to find purpose. And if there is nothing, that’s okay. It may not be time for you to feel that, yet. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t keep working.
