EXCUSES OR LIFESTYLE? CHOOSE ONE

HASAN SAFIN

Yesterday, I was listening to a talk of Hasan Safin who has become the youngest IPS officer in Gujarat Cadre at the age of 22 years. He has joined as ASP Jamnagar on 23^rd Dec 2019. When he qualified UPSC exam, people told him that he is LUCKY. I give you some information about him so that you can decide how lucky he has been:

1. He comes from a village with a poor background.
2. His father is an electrician.
3. His mother makes Rotis for restaurants and marriage gardens to earn Rs 6 to 8000 pm.
4. He met with a severe accident just half an hour before his UPSC Mains Exam paper. He decided to appear for an exam rather than going to the hospital because he thought he could survive for the next 3 hours.
5. He was admitted to the hospital one month before his interview for UPSC and could start his preparation just one week before the interview. Still, secured the second-highest marks in UPSC interview.
6. At 22 years of age, he is now the youngest IPS officer in Gujarat cadre.

Do you think he is lucky? Friends! He could make a number of excuses at several points in his life. But he had a dream of having a lifestyle of a Collector, whom he had seen while studying in primary school. He is successful today because he put aside all the excuses and worked for lifestyle.

If you want to have a great lifestyle then it is essential to say goodbye to excuses.

WHY DO PEOPLE MAKE EXCUSES?

Let us see some of the reasons why people make excuses:

1. They are not passionate about their dreams:

Since Roy Jorgen Svenningsen was having a great passion for his dream, he proved himself as the oldest person ever to complete the Antarctic Ice Marathon at the age of 84 years. He finished the race in 11 hours, 41 minutes and 58 seconds. He is a winner because he had no excuses even at this age.

https://nypost.com/2019/12/16/84-year-old-canadian-completed-grueling-antarctic-ice-marathon/

If your dreams are not emotional and you don’t have passion to achieve them, you will make several excuses, as soon as you come across the first hurdle. But remember, excuses cannot give you a great lifestyle.

2. They love their comfort zone:

Comfort zone is the zone where you have been working for some time and now you feel safe or at ease. Doing something else looks difficult. If you have a habit of waking at 7 am then getting up at 5.30 am for going to the gym may look too difficult. But for keeping fit and healthy, you must come out of your comfort zone and wake up early. Your potential is utilized only when you leave your comfort zone, make no excuse and prepare yourself appropriately.

3. They take guidance from failures.

When Arunima Sinha decided to climb the Everest Mountain she went to take advice from Bachendri Pal and not from those who had no achievement in that field.

https://thelifeuddeshya.com/who-can-be-your-guide/

Sometimes people take guidance from failures or from those who have no experience in that area. Based on the negative guidance, they can always make excuses.

https://thelifeuddeshya.com/learn-to-overcome-challenges/

4. They have a habit of procrastination:

Procrastination is a habit of postponing things which must be completed within a deadline. The philosophy behind this is:

Aajkare so kaalkar, Kaal Kare so parson,

Itani jaldi kya padi he, Jeena he jab barson.

People with habit of procrastination can always find excuses for not starting or finishing a task.

5. Fear of what people will say:

When I resigned from the senior position of a Maharatan PSU for doing my own business, several of my well-wishers approached me to tell that I am doing a blunder. A few of them insisted that I must take my resignation back. If I had bothered to see what they were saying, my life could not have become so exciting.

Based on their expectations of how others will react, people often do not take big decisions and make excuses.

6. Fear of failure:

The biggest excuse often comes from fear of failure. If your confidence level or self-image is not high, you will not be sure about your success. Consequently, you will not start a new venture.

But if you don’t begin, you will never achieve. Your excuse will not make you successful. Fear of failure will keep you down in life.

TYPES OF EXCUSES

These are self-explanatory. I am just writing their types:

1. I am too old or too young.
2. I don’t have money.
3. I don’t have a proper education.
4. I am too busy already.
5. I am not clever.
6. I don’t have support from anyone.
7. I will start tomorrow.
8. It is not my cup of tea or coffee.
9. I am not that lucky.
10. What if I don’t succeed?
11. I did not get proper advice.
12. I come from a poor background.
13. It is too hot or too cold.
14. I don’t have any backing.
15. I am not good on computers or mobile apps.
16. I am not smart enough.
17. I did not have the right teachers.
18. I can’t save money.
19. This is not the right time.

SAY GOODBYE TO EXCUSES FOR A GREAT LIFESTYLE

You need a strong will power to eliminate excuses. Understand that excuses always stop your progress and you must get rid of them. Following points may help you:

1. Learn from failures but don’t make them excuses for the future.
2. Don’t focus on problems, focus on solutions.
3. Don’t compare yourself with others. Compare yourself with what you were yesterday and keep upgrading your skills.
4. Have a long-range vision. Be passionate about your dreams.
5. Accept challenges. Take risks. No risk no gain.
6. Ensure that you are changing with time and adjusting well with the new generation and new technology.
7. Do SWOT analysis. Know your Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. Then act accordingly.
8. Develop some good habits viz. patience, persistence, strong will power, and confidence, etc. Change some of your habits. Wake up early. Use social media only for your personal and professional growth. Stop watching unproductive programs on TV or your mobile. Read selectively the newspapers.
9. Learn new technologies. Your mobile is nowadays your computer. A lot of things can be done if you know how to use it. Don’t be afraid to use it.

EXCUSES OR LIFESTYLE

1. Excuses can take you nowhere. Do an exercise. Take a sheet of paper and a pen. At the top write down the heading as, “MY EXCUSES: MY I CAN’Ts”. Then write down all your excuses one by one. Number them. Take that sheet and burn it or bury it. Your excuses are now dead. In the future, whenever any excuse comes to your mind recall that it died on this day and is no more.
2. Friends! If you do not stop making excuses, you cannot make big achievements. Great deeds can only be done with great sacrifices. Hasan Safin is not alone in the journey of success. Every-day, people somewhere in our own country may be quite near to your own place, are making great achievements because they don’t choose excuses. If someone can do it then why can you not do it?
3. No matter how big your dream is, if you can learn to say goodbye to your excuses, you can achieve it. Those who are enjoying a great lifestyle today are people who have put aside their excuses and worked hard for their dreams.

Finally, remember that those who make excuses do not live great lifestyles and those who enjoy great lifestyles have learned to make no excuses. Now decide: Excuses or Lifestyle? What is it that you really & passionately want?

Dr. Lokesh N Rai

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