You may or may not be surprised, depending on how you think, that lying is a part of the human condition. Nobody likes to admit it but we all lie from time to time. Usually lying to someone is perceived negatively but lies can be good in some cases and bad in others.

You could argue that lying to someone else, no matter the intentions, is bad but you know what is worse? Lying to yourself. In my opinion, there is no good intention of lying to yourself because it only results in you harming yourself.

There are many lies that we tell ourselves from time to time and keep doing it despite knowing and realising that we are being dishonest to ourselves. Let’s look at some of the most common lies we tell ourselves.

1. I Will Do It Tomorrow

No, you won’t! Tomorrow is this concept that never arrives. This is actually a popular saying and rightfully so. Because, when that tomorrow comes, it becomes today and the tomorrow becomes the next. It is something that remains ever elusive.

Procrastination is one of this generation’s biggest problems. There are so many distractions nowadays with the advent of social media, video games, and this new age ideology of perpetual online presence; being plugged into the system.

Sure, there are positive sides to this but it also serves as a massive distraction for individuals today to complete their work in time. We keep lying to ourselves that there is always more time when in fact time is very, very limited.

Our focus, is not what it used to be and focus is the only thing that will lead you to success. You cannot reach success if you keep telling yourself that you will go for it tomorrow.

2. I Am Not Good Enough

Ok, I admit, this is not something that ‘all’ of us tell ourselves but a lot of us do and it is a complete lie. You may have heard of the saying, “Where there is a will, there is a way.” This is not some collection of fancy words to be used to make people feel better. It has an immense truth behind it.

The people that are successful today, they too started at some point. They too were little and insignificant at some point. But people rarely think about that. They just see the unreachable level of success they have and think, “oh, I am not good enough to do that!”

Do you think Bill Gates would have been the richest person on Earth if he had told himself that when he started Microsoft? Or, do you think Apple would have been the most valuable company in the world if Steve Jobs had thought that he was not good enough to save Apple from sinking in the late 90s?

No one is born ready, in fact, you don’t even have to be. You just have to go do it and you’ll become ‘good’ along the way.

3. I’m Too Old For That

We all go through the same stages in life. From small children to old people, we see and experience a lot of things. As we grow older, we become more mature and have a more realistic and for a lack of a better word, ‘serious’ in life.

I think enough of us have noticed this that it is safe for me to say that the older we get the less ‘fun’ we have. Life becomes all about responsibilities and work and keeping up with both of these.

So, when there is an opportunity to have fun or to do something different or new and exciting, we often tell ourselves, “Nah, I’m too old for that!”. But the fact is, you are never too old to do anything! Age is just a number.

So, if you want to travel the world, learn a new instrument, play soccer, learn cooking, go fishing and do any number of infinite things in the world, go do it. Don’t restrict yourself with a meaningless number.

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3 Common Lies We All Tell Ourselves

1. I Will Do It Tomorrow

2. I Am Not Good Enough

3. I’m Too Old For That