Success Tip Number Five – Shake off criticism

My first success tip was that telling people about your goals increased your chances of success.  The problem with this is there are always going to be people who criticise what you’re doing or try to advise you against doing it.  For many, it’s done with good intentions…..for example, because they don’t want you to be disappointed if you fail, because they’re worried you may not earn enough money, they are worried of what people might think of you, etc.  Some people may do it out of jealousy, because they are envious of your courage to follow your dreams when they are stuck in their dead-end job. Whatever the reason, this kind of criticism and envy is very demoralising and for some, like me, it can be quite easy to let these words get under your skin and allow yourself to slip back into a negative mindset, thinking “maybe they’re right, why would I think I’d be able to do this?”  I have had this challenge this week, and on countless other occasions in my past.  I have stopped pursuing many of my dreams in the past based on the mindset of ‘it’s too risky, I’ll probably fail so best stick to something safe’.  It can be tempting to challenge these people and defend what you’re trying to do. But it’s very difficult to change someone else’s belief (I know, I’ve tried), so it is likely to end up in a “who’s wrong and who’s right” argument and ultimately get nowhere.  The best thing you can say to these people is “thank you very much for your advice, I appreciate your concern”, and then promptly put their negative words out of your mind and go back to visualising yourself feeling fantastic having succeeded your goals.