Excuses, Excuses, Excuses

“Well, if it weren’t for the fact that I have some physical problems I would be able to do…..”.
“I am just not gifted enough to be athletic”
“I am too fat to do …..”
“I can’t do …… because it’s too hard.”
“I just don’t feel up to it today….”
“Only certain people are gifted enough to do this. I was not brought up that way so I can’t ……. So I am not going to try and do it”
“Kevin, you have been doing this your whole life. You are not the norm. That is why it comes so easy for you”

First things first. Let’s define the word excuse. According to Webster the word excuse means:
· To make apology for
· To try to remove blame from
· To grant exemption or release

Think about it guys, most of our excuses are lame. I was watching a movie the other day and there was a line in this movie that really explains how I feel about life and excuses. Let me set it up for you.

Here was this old guy getting ready to live his dream. Everyone said to him that he would not be able to achieve it. His trainer said that he was too slow. He had arthritis in his knees so he could not do much running. He was 30 pounds overweight so his conditioning was not what it used to be. He had very little money so he could not get the best trainers to help him.

On the other hand, his opponent was much younger, much quicker, much stronger, and had much more endurance then he ever had. Finally, he also had the best trainers that money could buy.

He looks at his friend/trainer and says, “So let’s make every punch count.” His trainer said that he wanted him to be so strong that when he hit him his “ancestors” would feel it. They began a workout regimen that was very intense but something he could handle with his conditions.

At one point his son went to his place of business to try and talk him out of this ridiculous thing. He turned to his son and said, “All we have is our self and our dignity. Life is hard and it will hit you as hard as it can. What makes a person, though, is not want they have or accumulated but when life hits you hard and you fall, you always get up. Because as soon as you get up the first time it will hit you again and again. What makes your character is as hard as life hits you, you get up and keep going. Keep striving for that goal, that dream, even when they tell you that you can’t do it. Don’t let anyone tell you or stop you from achieving your dreams. That is all we have and should try to achieve. At least at the end of my day I can say I dreamed, I tried and I succeeded.”

I have a sign on my wall that talks about winners and losers. It says the following:

· The Winner is always part of the answer
· The Loser is always part of the problem
· The Winner always has a program
· The Loser always has an excuse
· The Winner says “Let me do it for you”
· The Loser says “That is not my job”
· The Winner sees an answer for each problem
· The Loser sees two or three sand traps near every green
· The Winner says “it may be difficult but it’s possible”
· The Loser says “ It may be possible but it’s too difficult

Are you a Winner or a Loser? Every excuse you use does not put you in the winner’s category but the loser’s category.
I had a member come in the other day and I gave her a workout to do. The last thing that I wanted her to do was two-minute abs. She said to me that since she was a child she could never do crunches the way I wanted then done. Her words to me were “I CAN’T DO THESE, I HAVE TRIED”. My response to her was “now that you have tried, when you are done with your workout let’s go and do it”. I told her that if it is in her heart to do something and she gives it her all and is determined to achieve it she will do it. Well, on her second try “SHE DID THEM!” She walked out of here with tears in her eyes and I think finally got a clue.

Guys, it is now January, stop the excuses and get it done.