No Excuses

Written by Josiah Birchard

I have recently listened to a book called “No Excuses” by Brian Tracy. Some people will say listening to a book isn’t the same as actually reading it, but I’m still retaining the information, so I’m going to say it counts. This book has some very good insight on how I should set my goals, and how it is up to me, and only me, to accomplish those goals. Yes, there will be help and opposition as well along the way. However, it is me that must apply that help and defeat that opposition when accomplishing the goals I make for myself.

One of the first things that is talked about in the book is Self-Discipline. Here’s a quote from the book, “Do what you should do when you should do it, whether you feel like it or not.” This is a great way of explaining self-discipline. The important thing I took from this is to GET YOUR WORK DONE. Whether it be in school, work, or the rest of life, this idea should be second nature to someone who has self-discipline. Self-discipline is a skill that can always be worked on.

Another thing that hit me when reading this book was another quote, “This is my life, not a rehearsal for someone else’s”. There are no do-overs. Every choice that I make affects me and those around me, and those decisions have real-time rewards or consequences. That makes it all-important to make the right choices.

One last interesting point from the book was the author’s definition of a hope as compared to a goal. “A hope is a goal without energy.” Something the author recommends is to write down goals so you can see them all the time. Without being able to see your goals and work on them day after day, the idea of them drifts away, and they become hopes.

There is a lot of good content in this book, and I couldn’t write down all of my takeaways in just a few paragraphs. These are just a couple things that stuck out to me, and ways I can improve everyday living. I hope they were helpful to you, as well.