Have you ever felt like you hit a wall, and stopped growing?
If you’re like me, you put in countless hours reading books, listening to podcasts, and networking.
Sometimes, however, it seems like you’re learning curve inverts, and you have hit a personal development wall.
There are many reasons you could be feeling this burnout, but here are some of the things I commonly see holding people back, and how to fix them!
Watching TV
I am guilty of watching TV more than I should.
Sometimes this is a good way to relax and decompress for a bit at the end of the day.
If I do watch TV, I limit myself to one episode of a TV show a day, or two movies in a week.
The problem with watching television isn’t that TV is bad for you. It is that you are aimlessly wasting time that could be used for learning.
I watch YouTube videos on my television at night. This allows me to relax and watch something on TV, without completely wasting time. I will find YouTube videos on a subject I want to learn about and watch some videos specific to it.
For example, this week I have been watching videos from a few professional speaking coaches with YouTube channels. This has allowed me to hone in on some key areas I need to work on, and some actionable steps I can take to improve upon them
YouTube videos may not be as entertaining as The Avengers, but it won’t keep you awake all night either.
If you’re going to spend time watching television, at least try to make it somewhat educational…or read a book!
Wasting time watching the news
The news is full of negative bullshit.
Seriously, watching the news does not improve your life at all.
I promise that you will be made aware of any life-changing events that take place.
The news is biased, and depending on which source you are reading or listening to you may be lead toward different conclusions.
It sucks, but finding a completely objective news source is a difficult task.
Objective news is not as exciting and doesn’t sell as well. Subjective news is more likely to pull on your emotions, and news stations exploit this.
Interestingly enough, the strongest human emotion is anger.
When you’re watching the news, and getting frustrated, understand that it is all a part of their plan to get you to watch more news.
For these reasons, among others, I don’t watch the news.
I didn’t notice any negligible effects when I stopped watching the news.
You won’t miss it either.
Do yourself a favor and read a book, learn something new, or interact with people instead!
Social Media
Social media is not inherently evil.
In fact, for those of us building a network or business, it is necessary.
Take our incredible Facebook group for example!
The problem with social media is that you can get hooked. When you get a “like,” or a “heart” on social media your body releases Dopamine. You can get hooked on this “high” and spend entirely too much time on the phone throughout the day.
Another problem with social media is the overwhelmingly negative posts that spread like fire across the internet.
For this reason, I have unfollowed all of my friends on Facebook that constantly posts negative crap online.
By unfollowing, you are still their friend, but will not see the negative crap they post.
That is a win-win if you ask me!
I won’t tell you to stay off social media, but make sure it doesn’t consume you.
Wasting your commute
Don’t listen to music on your commute!
Listen to audiobooks and podcasts!
I have roughly a 20-minute commute to work. I love this commute because it ensures that I will listen to at least 40-minutes of content every day!
The nice thing about Audiobooks and podcasts is that you can speed them up!
I listen to books on Audible at 2.25X the usual time. That means I can listen to a 10-hour audiobook in 4.44 hours, which is much faster than I could read the book. At this rate, I can listen to a 10-hour book every week!
I can read 52 books a year during my commute to and from work. That isn’t including all of the other time I have driving and physical books I read!
Listening to music during your commute is a waste of valuable time. Make sure you take advantage of this “window time” in order to maximize the time you spend learning new subjects.
Partying/drinking binges with friends
I shouldn’t need to elaborate on this, but I will.
I’m a Marine, and I like to throw a few beers back with the guys, but I don’t get wild anymore.
There are several issues with partying and binge-drinking aside from the obvious ones like DUI’s, making a fool of yourself, and blowing a ton of money.
For one thing, you stay out really late, which inevitably leads to either sleeping in, or not sleeping enough. If you sleep in, the next day will be unproductive, and if you don’t get enough rest you’ll get burnt out, and fail to accomplish a lot of tasks.
Sleep is paramount to your success in life, and you need to make it a priority to have a normal sleep cycle.
You will also feel like crap the next day, which will make it hard to perform at a high-level.
You will save money, have more energy, and be more productive if you minimize partying and/or binge-drinking.
Unintentional Networking
I’m not talking about showing up at meet-ups without a plan.
I’m talking about “networking” with friends who aren’t going anywhere in life.
Whether you realize it, or not, anytime you talk to people it is a form of networking. If you network with deadbeats, and people from work with no aspirations, it isn’t helping you improve.
You need to be intentional about your networking.
Go out of your way to meet with people that are crushing their goals!
Your network is one of the key components to growing your net worth and achieving success. The more time you spend with high-achievers, the more success you will achieve!
You should take the time you would have spent partying, drinking, watching the news, and being a bum, and turn it into intentional networking.
Find people in your market that you want to emulate, and offer to take them to lunch. Pick their brain, add value to their life, and build those solid relationships.
Networking is a huge force multiplier. It will either multiply in a good way, or in a useless way, the choice is yours!
The Bottom Line | You’re not growing because…
The reasons you’re not growing can generally be traced back to decisions you made, whether consciously or unconsciously.
You need to take some time, write down ways that you are wasting time, and find productive solutions that will force you to grow.
Growth isn’t (always) easy, and it takes time, but it is 100% worth it!
Now, stop reading this and go crush the day!
