6 things you must quit doing now to be more successful

6 things you must quit doing now to be more successful6 things you must quit doing now to be more successfulMost of us grew up hearing the mantra Dont be a quitter, and weve internalized it to the point where we feel guilty even if we dont finish a book thats boring us to death. Our parents werent entirely wrong in saying that persistence is necessary for success, but sometimes quitting is the fruchtwein effective course of action. Whether its a failed project, a thankless job, or a doomed relationship, quitting can be a virtue.Quitting is leading too. Nelson MandelaAs it turns out, some of us are really good at knowing when to quit, while others have a hard time getting undeckenfries. Research from the University of Rochester found that people are motivated by either approach goals or avoidance goals.Those who fall into the approach camp are motivated by challenges and dont waste time trying to solve problems that simply dont have a feasible solution. In other words, they know when to quit.People motivated by avoidance goals, however, worry a lot more about failing. They want to avoid failure at all costs, so they keep plugging away at things, long after logic suggests its time to move on. This is typically a much less productive way to work.Knowing when to quit is a skill that can be learned. If you tend to get stuck on things long after its obvious that what youre doing isnt working, you can train yourself to do better. You just need to practice quitting. Thankfully, life provides plenty of opportunities to do this. Here are some things we should all quit doing.Quit doubting yourself.Confidence plays a huge role in success. Hewlett-Packard conducted an interesting study whereby they analyzed the process through which people applied for promotions at the company. Women, it turned out, only applied when they met 100% of the criteria for the job they wanted, while men applied when they met 60% of the criteria. The researchers postulated that one of the (many) reasons men dominated the upper echelons of the company is that they were willing to try for more positions than females. Sometimes confidence is all it takes to reach that next level. The trick is, you have to believe it. If you doubt yourself, it wont work. Faking confidence just doesnt produce the saatkorn results.Quit putting things off.Change is hard. Self-improvement is hard. Scrounging up the guts to go for what you want is hard, and so is the work to make it happen. When things are hard, its always easier to decide to tackle them tomorrow. The problem is that tomorrow never comes. Saying youll do it tomorrow is just an excuse, and it means that either you dont really want to do it or that you want the results without the hard work that comes along with it.Quit thinking you have no choice.Theres always a choice. Sure, sometimes its a choice between two things that seem equally bad, but theres still a choice. Pretending that there isnt one makes you a victim who is voluntarily taking on a mantle of helplessness. To play the victim, you have to give up your power, and you cant put a price on that. To succeed at the highest level, you have to quit giving your power away.Quit doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.Albert Einstein said that insanity is doing the same thing and expecting a different result. Despite his popularity and cutting insight, there are a lot of people who seem determined that two plus two will eventually equal five. The fact is simple if you keep the same approach, youll keep getting the same results, no matter how much you hope for the opposite. If you want different results, you need to change your approach, even when its painful to do so.Quit thinking everything is going to work out on its own.Its tempting to think that its all going to work out in the end, but the truth is that you have to make it work. This has many implications. Dont expect your boss to elendice when youre ready for a promotion , dont expect your colleague to stop sloughing work off on you if youre always willing to do it, and dont think that anyone is going to stop walking all over you as long as you allow it. Everything is not going to magically work out on its own you have to be proactive and take responsibility for yourself.Quit saying yes.Every yes you utter is a tradeoff. By saying yes to one thing, youre saying no to something else. Saying yes to staying late at work, for example, might mean saying no to the gym or to time spent with your family. Research conducted at the University of California, San Francisco, showed that the more difficulty you have saying no, the more likely you are to experience stress, burnout, and even depression. Saying no is indeed a major challenge for many people. No is a powerful word that you should not be afraid to wield. When its time to say no, avoid phrases such as I dont think I can or Im not certain. Saying no to a new commitment honors your existing commitments a nd gives you the opportunity to successfully fulfill them. When you learn to say no, you free yourself from unnecessary constraints and free up your time and energy for the important things in life.Bringing it all togetherThere are dozens of ways we get in the way of achieving our full potential. We doubt ourselves, we decide that something is just too hard, or we tell ourselves that well worry about it tomorrow. If you really want to succeed- and I mean really succeed- stop focusing so much on what you should be doing and, instead, take a really good look at the things you should quit doing.This article first appeared on LinkedIn.6 things you must quit doing now to be more successfulMost of us grew up hearing the mantra Dont be a quitter, and weve internalized it to the point where we feel guilty even if we dont finish a book thats boring us to death. Our parents werent entirely wrong in saying that persistence is necessary for success, but sometimes quitting is the fruchtwein effe ctive course of action. Whether its a failed project, a thankless job, or a doomed relationship, quitting can be a virtue.Quitting is leading too. Nelson MandelaAs it turns out, some of us are really good at knowing when to quit, while others have a hard time getting unstuck. Research from the University of Rochester found that people are motivated by either approach goals or avoidance goals.Those who fall into the approach camp are motivated by challenges and dont waste time trying to solve problems that simply dont have a feasible solution. In other words, they know when to quit.People motivated by avoidance goals, however, worry a lot more about failing. They want to avoid failure at all costs, so they keep plugging away at things, long after logic suggests its time to move on. This is typically a much less productive way to work.Knowing when to quit is a skill that can be learned. If you tend to get stuck on things long after its obvious that what youre doing isnt working, you can train yourself to do better. You just need to practice quitting. Thankfully, life provides plenty of opportunities to do this. Here are some things we should all quit doing.1. Quit doubting yourselfConfidence plays a huge role in success. Hewlett-Packard conducted an interesting study whereby they analyzed the process through which people applied for promotions at the company. Women, it turned out, only applied when they met 100% of the criteria for the job they wanted, while men applied when they met 60% of the criteria. The researchers postulated that one of the (many) reasons men dominated the upper echelons of the company is that they were willing to try for more positions than females.Sometimes confidence is all it takes to reach that next level. The trick is, you have to believe it. If you doubt yourself, it wont work. Faking confidence just doesnt produce the same results.2. Quit putting things offChange is hard. Self-improvement is hard. Scrounging up the guts to go for what you want is hard, and so is the work to make it happen. When things are hard, its always easier to decide to tackle them tomorrow. The problem is that tomorrow never comes.Saying youll do it tomorrow is just an excuse, and it means that either you dont really want to do it or that you want the results without the hard work that comes along with it.3. Quit thinking you have no choiceTheres always a choice. Sure, sometimes its a choice between two things that seem equally bad, but theres still a choice. Pretending that there isnt one makes you a victim who is voluntarily taking on a mantle of helplessness.To play the victim, you have to give up your power, and you cant put a price on that. To succeed at the highest level, you have to quit giving your power away.4. Quit doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different resultAlbert Einstein said that insanity is doing the same thing and expecting a different result. Despite his popularity and cutting insight, ther e are a lot of people who seem determined that two plus two will eventually equal five.The fact is simple if you keep the same approach, youll keep getting the same results, no matter how much you hope for the opposite. If you want different results, you need to change your approach, even when its painful to do so.5. Quit thinking everything is going to work out on its ownIts tempting to think that its all going to work out in the end, but the truth is that you have to make it work. This has many implications. Dont expect your boss to notice when youre ready for a promotion, dont expect your colleague to stop sloughing work off on you if youre always willing to do it, and dont think that anyone is going to stop walking all over you as long as you allow it.Everything isnotgoing to magically work out on its own you have to be proactive and take responsibility for yourself.6. Quit saying yesEvery yes you utter is a tradeoff. By saying yes to one thing, youre saying no to something else . Saying yes to staying late at work, for example, might mean saying no to the gym or to time spent with your family. Research conducted at the University of California, San Francisco, showed that the more difficulty you have saying no, the more likely you are to experience stress, burnout, and even depression.Saying no is indeed a major challenge for many people.Nois a powerful word that you should not be afraid to wield. When its time to say no, avoid phrases such asI dont think I canorIm not certain. Saying no to a new commitment honors your existing commitments and gives you the opportunity to successfully fulfill them.When you learn to say no, you free yourself from unnecessary constraints and free up your time and energy for the important things in life.Bringing it all togetherThere are dozens of ways we get in the way of achieving our full potential. We doubt ourselves, we decide that something is just too hard, or we tell ourselves that well worry about it tomorrow. If you r eally want to succeed - and I meanreally succeed- stop focusing so much on what you should be doing and, instead, take a really good look at the things you should quit doing.Travis Bradberry is the coauthor of Emotional Intelligence 2.0 and the cofounder of TalentSmart.This article originally appeared on LinkedIn.6 things you must quit doing now to be more successfulMost of us grew up hearing the mantra Dont be a quitter, and weve internalized it to the point where we feel guilty even if we dont finish a book thats boring us to death. Our parents werent entirely wrong in saying that persistence is necessary for success, but sometimes quitting is the most effective course of action. Whether its a failed project, a thankless job, or a doomed relationship, quitting can be a virtue.Quitting is leading too. Nelson MandelaAs it turns out, some of us are really good at knowing when to quit, while others have a hard time getting unstuck. Research from the University of Rochester found th at people are motivated by either approach goals or avoidance goals.Those who fall into the approach camp are motivated by challenges and dont waste time trying to solve problems that simply dont have a feasible solution. In other words, they know when to quit.People motivated by avoidance goals, however, worry a lot more about failing. They want to avoid failure at all costs, so they keep plugging away at things, long after logic suggests its time to move on. This is typically a much less productive way to work.Knowing when to quit is a skill that can be learned. If you tend to get stuck on things long after its obvious that what youre doing isnt working, you can train yourself to do better. You just need to practice quitting. Thankfully, life provides plenty of opportunities to do this. Here are some things we should all quit doing.1. Quit doubting yourselfConfidence plays a huge role in success. Hewlett-Packard conducted an interesting study whereby they analyzed the process thro ugh which people applied for promotions at the company. Women, it turned out, only applied when they met 100% of the criteria for the job they wanted, while men applied when they met 60% of the criteria. The researchers postulated that one of the (many) reasons men dominated the upper echelons of the company is that they were willing to try for more positions than females.Sometimes confidence is all it takes to reach that next level. The trick is, you have to believe it. If you doubt yourself, it wont work. Faking confidence just doesnt produce the same results.2. Quit putting things offChange is hard. Self-improvement is hard. Scrounging up the guts to go for what you want is hard, and so is the work to make it happen. When things are hard, its always easier to decide to tackle them tomorrow. The problem is that tomorrow never comes.Saying youll do it tomorrow is just an excuse, and it means that either you dont really want to do it or that you want the results without the hard wor k that comes along with it.3. Quit thinking you have no choiceTheres always a choice. Sure, sometimes its a choice between two things that seem equally bad, but theres still a choice. Pretending that there isnt one makes you a victim who is voluntarily taking on a mantle of helplessness.To play the victim, you have to give up your power, and you cant put a price on that. To succeed at the highest level, you have to quit giving your power away.4. Quit doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different resultAlbert Einstein said that insanity is doing the same thing and expecting a different result. Despite his popularity and cutting insight, there are a lot of people who seem determined that two plus two will eventually equal five.The fact is simple if you keep the same approach, youll keep getting the same results, no matter how much you hope for the opposite. If you want different results, you need to change your approach, even when its painful to do so.5. Quit thin king everything is going to work out on its ownIts tempting to think that its all going to work out in the end, but the truth is that you have to make it work. This has many implications. Dont expect your boss to notice when youre ready for a promotion, dont expect your colleague to stop sloughing work off on you if youre always willing to do it, and dont think that anyone is going to stop walking all over you as long as you allow it.Everything isnotgoing to magically work out on its own you have to be proactive and take responsibility for yourself.6. Quit saying yesEvery yes you utter is a tradeoff. By saying yes to one thing, youre saying no to something else. Saying yes to staying late at work, for example, might mean saying no to the gym or to time spent with your family. Research conducted at the University of California, San Francisco, showed that the more difficulty you have saying no, the more likely you are to experience stress, burnout, and even depression.Saying no is ind eed a major challenge for many people.Nois a powerful word that you should not be afraid to wield. When its time to say no, avoid phrases such asI dont think I canorIm not certain. Saying no to a new commitment honors your existing commitments and gives you the opportunity to successfully fulfill them.When you learn to say no, you free yourself from unnecessary constraints and free up your time and energy for the important things in life.Bringing it all togetherThere are dozens of ways we get in the way of achieving our full potential. We doubt ourselves, we decide that something is just too hard, or we tell ourselves that well worry about it tomorrow. If you really want to succeed - and I meanreally succeed- stop focusing so much on what you should be doing and, instead, take a really good look at the things you should quit doing.Travis Bradberry is the coauthor of Emotional Intelligence 2.0 and the cofounder of TalentSmart.This article originally appeared on LinkedIn.