My good friend Sarah Robinson wrote a great post on her blog, Maverick Mom, on Monday about the things that hang her up so much that she can’t move forward. She asked her readers what three things hang them up.

I thought I’d share here what I commented. The three things that get in the way of my own success.

1) Last year I thought bigger was better. I ignored the bottom line, but drove top line growth and added more staff. And we lost money. For the first time in our history. And I had to make a lot of hard decisions about both staff and clients. Bigger is not always better.

2) My cycling goal for this season was to ride 20 mph, average, when I ride alone (easier to do that in a group). I push myself really hard, but my personal record is only 18.5 mph average, for the season. I was really hard on myself and then I realized I might not get to 20 mph, but that’s okay…18.5 mph is still pretty freaking fast and I can spend the winter working really hard in order to hit 20 mph next season.

3) My entire life I’ve been good at things. My college roommate hated that I didn’t have to study and still got straight As. But I’m a perfectionist and really hard on myself. I think I have to be superb at everything that I do. I have to be the best cyclist (see #2). I have to be the best skier. I have to grow a business as quickly as Zappos. I have to be like Tiger Woods or Michael Jordan – the top of my game in everything that I do. So when I perceive something as failure, I have a really hard time. I beat myself up. I go introspective. I question why I’m doing what I do. I keep a quote on my wall to remind me that everyone fails and that’s how we, as human beings, learn. It is “It’s not in failing, but how we get up when we do.”

What are the three things you do that get in the way of your success?

Gini Dietrich

Gini Dietrich is the founder, CEO, and author of Spin Sucks, host of the Spin Sucks podcast, and author of Spin Sucks (the book). She is the creator of the PESO Model and has crafted a certification for it in partnership with Syracuse University. She has run and grown an agency for the past 15 years. She is co-author of Marketing in the Round, co-host of Inside PR, and co-host of The Agency Leadership podcast.

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