I read a really interesting fact the other day, it went like this ….
A Chinese farmer quit school in 3rd grade. However as an adult he spent 16 years teaching himself law to sue a chemical company for polluting his village. Wang Enlin couldn’t afford to buy all the law books he studied at a local bookstore, so he paid the store in bags of corn to let him sit and read, he then copied all the information by hand, and learned what he could with the help of a dictionary.
He took the chemical company to court and he won the case in 2017.

What’s your excuse?

When I read what Wang Enlin was able to achieve the first thing I thought was when I hear people making excuses about why they can’t live the life they want or do the things that they would like to – I just thought “What’s your excuse?”  So I felt I needed to share this story with you and ask YOU … What’s YOUR excuse?

Wang Enlin didn’t like what the chemical company was doing and he was right to feel that something should be done. Yet, he didn’t sit around waiting for someone else to do something. He didn’t sit there and make excuses as to why he wouldn’t be able to take on the chemical company and seriously, he had some pretty good excuses!

  • He didn’t allow the fact that he barely had any education to stop him from learning.
  • He didn’t allow the fact that he couldn’t afford to buy the books stop him from thinking of another way in which to still learn
  • He didn’t allow the fact that he didn’t have a computer or photocopier to stop him from making notes
  • He didn’t allow his lack of knowledge or understanding stop him
  • He didn’t allow a big chemical company to make him feel inferior.

 

What is your definition of an excuse?

If you look up the dictionary it will come up with something like ….. “Attempt to lesson the blame attaching to a fault or offence”

But I came across this one and I feel that it is a much more real definition of what an excuse is:-

“The lie you tell yourself to make yourself feel better about justifying your lack of responsibility for your own life.”

Have a read of Wang Enlin’s story again and then think of the excuses you have been making to not go out there and live the life you want – how real are those excuses? Or are you just lying to yourself to feel better about not doing it?

If you want a better life, it’s up to you.

Terrifying isn’t it? That your own happiness is totally up to you – you can’t use the excuse of your upbringing, job, family, friends, childhood, partner, kids – they are all excuses.  When you are an adult, you being happy and taking charge of your own happiness is 100% up to you, but we don’t like that.  We don’t want that responsibility because it’s so much easier to blame someone else and use them as an excuse.

No more excuses!

What changes are you going to make today to stop using excuses and actually do, achieve and be happy?

Katrina-Jane