SITUATIONS often occur in our lives which may set us back 10 steps, but at the end of the day our professional growth in business is still important and sorry excuses don’t cut it.

Dr Sandra Palmer, motivational speaker, life and business coach, said while there are many excuses as to why a job cannot be done, there are also ways to make a crooked path straight.

“The story of Wilma Rudolph, the 1960 Olympic triple gold medal winner is a powerful one. She beat severe polio in her leg and rose from being a bedridden child to becoming one of the most decorated female track stars in history. Wilma had more than enough reasons not to succeed. However, she defied the odds. Wilma had a strong belief in her dream and like her we must throw away the ‘crutches and braces’ of regret, self-pity, doubt and all their cousins. If we don’t, we will ‘hobble’ through life,” Dr Palmer said.

Here are five reasons to quit making excuses.

1. Everything starts with an idea

Dr Palmer said nothing exists before an idea and all ideas originate in the mind. “Therefore we have to agree with Theodore Roosevelt that, “We have all that we need to create what we want because all the resources we need are in our minds”. I hear you saying, ‘I don’t have the money, I don’t have the education, I don’t have the connections’, and the list is unending. However, the solution to any identified gap is also in the mind. All the resources you need are available,” she said.

2. There is never a perfect time

“You will never be rich enough, pretty enough and perfectly ready to do what you dream of. Waiting on the perfect time is a sure way to do nothing. It keeps us busy getting ready for the perfect time. This is an illusion. It will never come,” Dr Palmer said. Instead, she suggests starting now. “Start where you are right now. If you just start and take one single step every day in the direction of your dream, you will get there. Perfection is a flaw. It is the enemy of excellence but it is seriously allergic to creativity,” she said.

3. Feel the fear and do it anyway

According to Dr Palmer, it is natural to feel fear, anxiety, doubt and see all the roadblocks when a new idea or opportunity is considered. “This makes us human. Accept these feelings as a natural part of the landscape in building your dream. If you are not willing to be uncomfortable you will not grow. Do not allow fear to immobilise you. Feel the fear but take the riding lesson anyway. Nothing would be accomplished if all fear had to be overcome before taking the first step,” she said.

4. You still miss every shot you refuse to take

Dr Palmer said some persons can boast that they have never failed at anything, but the simple reason is that they never did anything. “If you don’t take a shot at an opportunity it is worse than taking the shot and missing. Every shot you miss is practice. You are much better prepared to take the next shot.”

5. Set the date and just do it

According to Dr Palmer, if you do not set a date to get something done you are not serious. “What do you want to accomplish? I want to weigh 145 pounds by December 31, 2015 midnight. Anyone can show up and check if you achieved it. I will begin exercising at 6:30 am on Monday March 2, 2015. Why are we so afraid to set the date? I think we don’t want anyone or ourselves to hold us accountable,” she said. Dr Palmer added that it’s much easier to say, ‘when I get around to it’, ‘when I have more time’, ‘when I buy some new gym clothes’ and the list of some unknown time in the future is unending. “Stop making excuses and just do it. We simply have no excuse but to be great,” she said.