When Bridget Jones finally knows what she wants, it’s too late. She arrives at a party to hear the announcement that not only is the love of her life, Mark Darcy, moving to New York for a new job but that he is going to marry another woman.
“No! No!”
The room grows awkwardly silent and all eyes fall on her.
“It’s just that … it’s such a terrible pity …”
Oops, that’s not much better.
“… for England … to lose such a great legal brain. For the people of England, like me and you, to lose one of our top people. Our top person, really.”
Bridget, Bridget, Bridget, why did you wait until it was too late?
Excuses for Self Sabotage
There is a natural tendency to wait. It’s a sickness really, one of our worst human traits.
We wait for the perfect time to chase after what we want, and our procrastination becomes a sort of self-sabotage. I should know. How many years have I been talking about publishing a novel?
It all comes down to excuses, those falsehoods we keep telling ourselves. These justifications litter our brains with tomorrow-isms that will never come to pass if we don’t act. What reason do you use?
- Don’t know the right people
- Need to set enough money aside first
- Need to focus on the people who need me
- Not good enough
- Timing isn’t right
- Too busy
- Too old (or young)
Admit it. You’ve used at least one of these excuses and more than once. I know I have. While there may be some truth in some of these statements, there is no absolute truth. You always have room to grow and change. You can overcome any obstacle, but you first have to make an effort. When you sit back on the excuse, you only fail yourself.
Stop Sabotaging Yourself
Regardless of your excuse, one thing holds true. They are based in fear. Fear that you will embarrass yourself on the journey, fear that you are somehow not worthy of the success, or even fear that you won’t know how to adjust to life if and when you do succeed.
To be honest, most people are afraid of the unknown. That’s unfortunate because life is insecure. There are no promises, no guarantees. If you refrain from taking any risks, then the things that could potentially make you happy will remain out of reach.
Bridget finally spoke out when she saw it all slipping away, when she saw what waiting almost cost her. She was lucky enough to still snag Mark Darcy in the process (ah, the joy of a rom-com!), but not all of us will be so lucky. Sometimes late is too late. So stop the self sabotage!