The Benefits of Excuses

Jake Luehrs
February 07, 2026

ONE QUESTION (TWO THIS TIME)

How often do you fear the consequences of truly being yourself?

And do you know what truly being yourself actually looks like?

ONE THING TO PONDER

Compete externally and success is based on comparison.

Compete internally and success is based on alignment and evolving.

ONE PERSPECTIVE

Most of our limitations…..We built them ourselves.

Brick by brick. Excuse by excuse. Story by story.

We suggest that things aren’t possible, or we don’t want to do them, yet it’s far more about that little voice that finds all the logical limitations that are simply obstacles, not success stoppers.

That voice is not protecting us from failure. It's keeping us from trying.

Here's what makes this so hard…Excuses are available to all of us. Even the best, most valid ones don't actually help us.

They soften the pain, but stop us from evolving, they keep us stuck.

The question isn't whether excuses serve us. They do.

The question is…What's the cost?

What Do Excuses Do For Us?

1. Excuses play an interesting role in making us feel ‘better’.
We've developed unconscious habits of finding excuses before we've even tried.

2. They give wiggle room not to “fail”
It’s not a failure in our minds if there is a good enough reason that something didn’t work out.

Our goal shouldn’t be to avoid the feeling of failure, it should be to put forth our best effort.

3. Protects our Ego
Our ego is precious and loud. We care about what others think, how other people perceive us, what they think about us. And I completely understand and get it.

When we make excuses to protect ourselves, we attract other people who make excuses.

The truth is, most often we are more committed to our ego than our growth.

Looking for excuses is the first sign that a goal or outcome is in trouble.

People that have a laundry list of built-in excuses will never get anywhere near their potential.

Not because we can’t, but because we won’t.

Before we commit to anything, consider answering this question:

What would happen if I relentlessly avoided looking for excuses at all?

A few things will change:

1. We’d set goals differently.

We’d be far more intentional. We'd stop half-assing things we don't actually care about.

2. We’d say yes to less, but to more important things.

Rather than getting good at making excuses, become better at saying no.

Overcommitment is a significant challenge we face when it comes to not being able to follow through. We simply take on way too many things.

It's not that we lack discipline, it's that we lack boundaries.

Excuses are success stoppers. But only you can choose to use them.

Only you can choose goals that don't resonate with your soul.

Only you can choose to overcommit, underdeliver, and hide behind reasons why it couldn't work.

And only you can choose to stop.

I’ll see you along the way!

Onward and upward!

LEAD & LEARN : WEEKLY PICK

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PODCAST

Change your Brain with Dr. Amen

The Ed Mylett Podcast

It’s interesting to assume we are in full control of our brains. And yet so much of it is subconscious that understanding how you can work with your brain rather than trying to force it to do what you believe it should is the path. This was a fascinating listen. The things that are showing up in your life, so many things, they are showing up because of so many unconscious patterns. So rather than forcing discipline, understand how to work with your brain! Highly recommend it if you're looking to develop how you think!