Three Words That Mean Failure

People ask me all the time how I’ve managed to create as much success as I have. In the four years since I left my job to stay home with my newborn daughter, I’ve had a second daughter, begun a career in writing that has me writing for some of the biggest parenting websites in the world and receiving invitations from the NFL to attend luncheons with the commissioner to discuss children’s safety in sports. Many people wonder how I do it, especially since I do it from my dining room table. I don’t really have an amazing, life-changing answer other than to say that I have the drive to make things happen. However, I do have some advice for people who want to succeed and don’t seem to make it past their failures (and trust me, I’ve had failures). There are words I do not use, because all they do is inspire failure.

Luck Is Not a Word

No one has luck. I get so sick of hearing people tell me how lucky I am. I’m not lucky; I’m fortunate. If you believe that you need luck to succeed, you will not succeed. You can’t rely on winning the lottery to make you a millionaire; you have to work hard and make money yourself.

Hate

Hate is, in my opinion, a hugely wasted emotion. To hate someone or something implies that you spend entirely too much time thinking about something unimportant. I dislike things and people, but I don’t hate them. I don’t have the time or energy to focus hating someone or something that doesn’t mean anything to me.

But

This word is one of my least favorite, at least when it comes to success. When people say things like, “I’d love to live my dream….but…” I find myself very frustrated. There is no but. When you “but” your success, you’re just making excuses as to why you won’t achieve it.