Self-Sabotage Is Sneaky

The human mind is amazing in so many ways. Its ability to remember and imagine life is remarkable. It is extremely good at what it does and is responsible for the innovation we’ve experienced as a species. The problem is, it’s too good. Especially when it comes to its core purpose to keep us safe.

The reason that we ‘get in our own way’ or struggle to do the things we tell ourselves we’re going to do is because our mind just wants to protect us. The unconscious mind works hard to maintain a certain version of reality that often conflicts with what we consciously want. It deploys things like fear, confusion, procrastination, avoidance, and many other forms of deception to keep us squarely within what’s familiar and safe.

Collectively, any psychological trickery your unconscious mind employs to prevent you from doing something you know you want  to do is called self sabotage. Self sabotage disguises itself as logical, rational thinking where in the moment it genuinely convinces us that not taking action, or taking safer action, is the right thing to do. Self sabotage is sneaky because a lot of the time, you don’t even know it’s influencing you.

Here’s an example: I was chatting with a client last week who clearly told me that the main thing he wants to improve in his life is his career. However when it came time to making a commitment for the month, he started talking himself out of it. That daily networking and relationship building wasn’t actually aligned with his goals.

It was textbook self sabotage and fortunately I was able to call it out for him. His mind was just afraid of doing something different, and creating a less familiar reality that was more uncertain. He was rationalizing something that wasn’t true in an effort to protect him. 

What happened here happens in all of our minds, with most things, and we don’t even know it. But when you are more aware of the ways it likes to show up, or you have someone in your life that can help you see it when you don’t, you’re in a better position to build the life that you want!

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