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THIS BLOG POST’S ROI: Remove the phrase “I DON’T KNOW” from your vocabulary and start making difficult decisions faster.
Time to read: 4 minutes
“I Don’t Know” is Bullshit. You know, you just don’t want to admit it.
This phrase is single handedly keeping you stuck in your sh*t.
The phrase itself is a perfectly orchestrated excuse that absolves you of any and all responsibility.
YOU KNOW, you just don’t want to admit it, because if you admit it, now you are CHOOSING not to make the changes, as opposed to using the lack of knowledge as a nice easy layup of an excuse.
You are just CHOOSING the easy and oftentimes cowardly way out of ignoring the problems in your life and getting comfortable staying stuck.
Instead of saying “I don’t know,” try saying:
“I”m not taking any responsibility because I’m more comfortable staying stuck.”
Wow, that stings a lot more doesn’t it?
“Well Brett, what if I actually don’t know?”
Then get help immediately from someone who does.
Even going to look for help actually IS knowing what to do. Which again makes the “I don’t know” statement complete Bullshi*t.
Take the examples below to start calling yourself out on this phrase and either make the change, or admit you like being stuck.
Either way, stop complaining. It’s not cute.
RAISE YOUR WEEKLY PERFORMANCE:
Health:
“I don’t know why I’m not losing weight.”
‘
Yes you do.
You just don’t want to admit it to yourself because then you’d have to take responsibility for choosing not to do anything about it.
So we are going to improve together, right here right now.
Now, no matter what you just rated yourself, I want you to ask yourself what it would take to raise each score by just one point? So, if you rated your current fitness a 7, what would need to happen to take it up to an 8?
Most people try to do too much too quickly. You see, they take where they are at and ask themselves what would need to happen to get to a 10. They come up with a list of ten different things. They try doing all ten for like a day and a half, realize it’s not going to happen, and then they fall right back into the score they were currently at.
Don’t allow yourself to say I don’t know.
You know.
And it’s time to admit it, pick just one actionable task, and do something about it.
I want you to put all your energy into identifying one single action that you will add, remove, or be more consistent with, that would allow you to improve one point.
That’s all.
Stay consistent with that new score for at least four weeks. Then ask yourself the same question to improve one more point.
The reason this seems so easy is that most people don’t value one point as much as they should.
Most people only value MASSIVE CHANGE, huge transformations, and overnight delivery. That’s why small, incremental change is viewed as unsexy.
DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE the power of raising your fitness, nutrition, and mindfulness one point each. Improving each just a little bit could result in a MASSIVE difference in how you feel.
Relationships:
“I don’t know why other people don’t respect my time.”
Yeah you do.
It’s because YOU don’t respect your time but don’t want to do the work on why you allow people to dictate and abuse your time.
Other people will only match your current level of respect and never exceed it.
If you want to have people respect your time better, it’s time you start leading by example and start with yourself..
Ever notice how much more you respect your boss’s time, who’s usually pretty inaccessible?
That’s because he or she values and protects their time from nonsense meetings, calls, and interactions, which in turn makes other people do the same.
Also, people who are very deliberate with their time and less accessible, are viewed as more important, smarter, and even more valuable.
Start protecting and respecting your time better, and watch the people around you follow suit.
Career / Fulfillment:
“I don’t know why I stay at this job when clearly I’m unhappy.”
Yeah you do.
It’s because it’s way easier to stay at a comfortable job you hate, than choose the uncomfortable route of looking for a new job that may be incredibly fulfilling but it will be uncomfortable to change and start over.
So you do actually know. You are just CHOOSING to stay in a comfortable and unhappy role.
You see how much more that last sentence stings!?!
You know the first step would be updating your resume.
However, if you update your resume, then you may have to start looking for jobs.
If you start looking for jobs, you may have to start applying.
You see how this goes? One forward action leads to another.
“I don’t know” is the universal excuse that keeps the train in park, and therefore absolves you of control and responsibility for where your life is.
If you hate your job and feel unfulfilled you have two solutions:
That’s it.
Those are your answers.
You do know…..and it’s time to decide.
LADIES, You Need To Take Ownership Over Your Own Finances…..
Best Podcast I’ve Listened To Recently:
How To Be Dialed In, With Jay Siano (the HOW TO: With Anne Mahlum podcast)
It’s an easy concept.
Remove the phrase “I don’t know” from your vocabulary and start forcing yourself to make decisions and start with step one.
Start being brutally honest about how saying “I don’t know” is just a convenient excuse to not take ownership or responsibility over your problems.
It will either sting real bad or you’ll finally start taking some action in your life.
Either way, YOU DO KNOW, and you need one of the two to happen.
Your Coach,
Brett Eaton
