40 Powerful Ways to Self Sabotage Your Success

Before we begin our journey through the 40 powerful ways you can self-sabotage your own success, let's take a moment to define "self-sabotage".

Self-sabotage is most recognizable by the experience of an internal "tug-of-war" between having a desire to do something and feeling like you can't or shouldn't do it.

Any time you hear yourself say, "I want to do this, but I can't (or I shouldn't)!" this is the inner conflict of self-sabotage.

Self sabotage is when there is no logical or rational explanation for why you can't do the things you want to do or why you can't have the things you want to have. If there is anything you really want to do or have, but are unable to bring it into your life--and there is no logical, rational, or otherwise, "real" reason why you can't do and/or have it--you are experiencing self-sabotage!

It's not a lack of desire, skills, knowledge or effort that holds you back. Rather, there's something inside you that's stronger than your desire and it blocks your efforts to do the things you want to do and have the things you want to have.

Self-sabotage can show up in many different ways and on many different levels of severity. For example, if you really want to develop an Internet business, but the moment you sit down to start working on it, you start distracting yourself with all the other things you "should" do instead... this is the internal conflict of self-sabotage.

Or for example, you really want to hire additional people into your business, but keep putting it off for fear of not hiring the right people to get the job done... this is the struggle of self-sabotage.

Or for example, you really want to conduct more sales and/or marketing activities but find yourself doing all sorts of “other” things to distract yourself from ever getting to these activities... this too is self sabotage.

While it may seem difficult, you can break free from your self sabotaging barriers. The first and most important step is to recognize your specific self sabotage behaviors and barriers. Once you have accepted full responsibility for your self sabotage behaviors and barriers you can begin the process of breaking free from their strong-hold on you.

To follow is a list of the 40 most powerful ways in which people sabotage their own efforts to create the success they desire. Use this as a checklist to begin taking an honest look at your own behaviors.

You are experiencing self-sabotage behavior if...

You start projects designed to create your success, make some progress, then lose interest and don't finish them.

You procrastinate doing the tasks that will actually produce the success you desire. (Procrastination is the poster-child of self-sabotage behavior!)

You worry too much about what others will think of you if you confidently promote yourself, your products and/or your business.

As soon as an idea begins to produce revenue you begin distracting yourself away from this idea and on to new "even better" ideas.

You work diligently to create a business plan and/or strategy for developing your idea into something profitable - so you know exactly what important things need to be done (setting up a website, developing e-products, building a marketing list, networking, etc.) - but you constantly do other things instead of these important things.

You tell yourself that your “excuses” for not doing the important activities are real “reasons”.

You let yourself get discouraged by how hard it is to make money in today's economy.

You let yourself get overwhelmed by the massive money-making opportunities that all promise “riches beyond belief”.

You let yourself get overwhelmed by the massive marketing and prospecting opportunities that all promise “results beyond belief”.

You try a few things that don't work very well and let disappointment and discouragement stop you from persisting onward.

You pigeon-hole yourself into one or two “safe” money-making behaviors that limit your revenue and income.

Despite the fact that you know your topic inside and out, you are uncomfortable marketing yourself as an “expert” in your field.

You don't focus on any subject or product long enough to actually be an expert, which significantly decreases your self confidence.

You try to implement too many ideas at one time which only serves to diminish the focus of your work.

You spend all of your time, money and energy trying to learn how to be successful and never actually get around to doing the things that will create your success.

You don't set specific goals for guiding your success-making efforts and decisions.

You can’t get yourself to stick to realistic long-term money strategies that will guide your spending decisions.

You set your goals as things you “don't want” (debt, struggle) that cause you to focus on the negative instead of what you actually “do want”.

You won't delegate.

You set your goals based on what you think other people want you to do.

You have secret fears about people criticizing you for making and having an abundance of financial success.

You have secret fears that being successful will make other people not like you.

You are afraid that if you try to create success and fail people will criticize you.

You are all talk and no action.

You make the same poor money decisions over and over and over again.

You are addicted to struggle.

You do things to create debt and other negative consequences.

You have come to believe that you cannot make money doing what you really want to do.

You’ve been knocked down enough times that it is becoming harder and harder to get back up and try again.

You have a product or service that you want to sell but tell yourself that no one will think it is worth paying for.

You constantly devalue yourself and your talents by “giving away” your services.

You acquire a large sum of money and sabotage your way to losing all of it.

You have inner programming that tells you that making and having lots of money is sinful or otherwise bad.

Deep down you have this nagging feeling that you really aren't worthy of the success you seek so you have trouble motivating yourself to really give it your very best effort.

You have sooo many great ideas that it seems impossible to pick one and get started.

You make compulsive decisions that jeopardize your financial stability.

You know you have the potential to do more with your life, but are afraid of failure (or success).

You wish you could procrastinate less and accomplish more.

You constantly avoid completing the important things on your to-do list.

You have to force yourself to stay committed to your goals.

Everyone has self-sabotage barriers and behaviors!

Self-sabotage happens to people of all ages, professions, financial and social status! Few people are exempt from this frustrating fact of life!

However, authentically successful people will do whatever they need to do to break free from their self sabotaging barriers and behaviors so they can easily and naturally move toward the successful accomplishment of their goals.

Consider this: A person making $100,000 per year has very different internal thought-processes and beliefs about money than someone who makes $20,000 per year.

If you are experiencing self-sabotage barriers and behaviors, it is because you have internal thought-processes and beliefs that are out of alignment with your desired goals.

Look at what you are currently creating in your life. This is what your internal thought-processes and beliefs are currently in alignment with creating. Successful people are in alignment with focusing on doing the work to create success, while frustrated "want-to-be" people are in alignment with focusing on the challenges and problems that repel success.

You must put yourself into genuine and authentic alignment with the mindset of the person you want to be! Only then will you allow your success to come into your life.

Every single person on this planet has the potential to be abundantly successful! If you want to be counted among the abundantly successful people of this world you must break free from your own internal need for the challenges, problems and barriers that are sabotaging your success.

The most effective way to successfully break free from your self sabotaging barriers and behaviors is to...

1) Uncover your hidden, unhealthy thought-processes and beliefs that are out of alignment with your goals (often referred to as the "ah-ha moment") and

2) Replace them with thought-processes and beliefs that support your desires and compel you toward the successful accomplishment of your goals.

Unfortunately, many people stop after step 1 when they have uncovered the source of their self sabotage and had their "ah-ha moment".

Some people only work on step 2. They will spend hours and hours and hours feeding their brain with positive affirmations and other means to try to "override" their self sabotaging thought processes and beliefs without first uncovering its source.

In order to create long-term, lasting change that puts you into genuine and authentic alignment with easily and naturally moving toward your desired success you must do both steps 1 and 2! You must uncover and identify the old ineffective thought-processes and beliefs and then install new, more effective thought-processes that show your brain how to easily get you safely to your desired success.

Note: If your brain already knew how to get you what you want in a more effective manner it would have done it already. When your brain is lacking the internal thought-processes for moving you toward your goal - it is your job to install a new more effective thought-process. Did you grow up in an environment filled with people who were successfully doing what you want to do? If not, you probably do not have effective thought-processes already installed in your brain.

Once you are in genuine alignment with your goals and desires, you will find yourself being naturally and easily compelled toward the accomplishment of your desired success from an abundance of new internal forces. Your mind, body and soul will come together to naturally and easily move you toward the accomplishment of your goals!