You can always make excuses but you won’t always have an explanation.

This is terrible! It should be the other way around. It should be easy to explain everything in life and hard to find excuses.

Think about how easy it would be. Wait, I just thought about how easy it would be and realized it would be boring and unmanageable.

This entry is about these premises that we don’t always appreciate but are necessary.

Why We Make Excuses

My dad would always say this when I was growing up

"Excuses are like _____, everyone has one.”

You can fill that blank in with just about any non-gender-specific body part - certain ones provide more emphasis.

Dad taught me a lot of lessons about hard work and treating people right. This was the greatest one though because it showed me that a lot of times, you just have to get something done. You can’t rely on others because they will find a reason to make it impossible.

With this being said, I have written much about the importance of others in our lives. Speaking of Impact episode 100 with Jason Peterson from Fead Off Fear reminded us that “no man is self-made”.

My application of Dad’s saying and Jason’s premise is that there are a lot of excuses to make, it’s up to us to avoid them and find others that do the same.

Not everyone has an excuse for everything. Don’t be one of those people.

We make excuses because it’s popular and easy. It’s nothing more than stating the obvious in most situations. If something is not working or not expected to work there is naturally a reason for that. The excuse is an expression of what is already believed.

Combatting The Urge

The ultimate weapon against excuses is critical thought. We are living in the “creator economy” revolution. It seems most people want to be an influencer. I envy those who don’t in some ways but am also leary of their role.

The people who are completely disconnected from the creator world and are just living their lives are enviable. I hate to use that word but I’d be lying if I didn’t say there is something to be said for that mindset. My disconnection from Facebook over a decade ago was such a freeing experience. My Instagram account is still connected to it (in the Metaverse) and so it might give the illusion that I log in on occasion (or even frequently) but I haven’t in forever.

Sadly, most people are not disconnected from the digital world. Most (billions) are connected all the time and there just to consume. This is why advertisers make so much money. Personal Finance in a Public World will provide you with more details on how, why, and the amount of money that is thrown around in digital advertising.

You must combat the urge to simply consume. My way of doing this is to produce. I know that I would not be able to disconnect completely (cutting out one app is all I can handle). I must use Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram for good. I have to be a creator. Otherwise, I’d be an influenced consumer.

Fight the urge with critical thought - especially if you’re not one who can live “off the digital grid”.

You are contributing to issues by just consuming. It feeds messaging and algorithms. Critical thought will develop your own ideas and give you a “weapon” to fight with. And yes, The Impactmaker Movement is somewhat of a battle.

They say if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em. The good news is we can beat them. You will, however, have to join them on the platforms. There are some risks in consumption and “rabbit-holing” negative content.

I expose myself to content daily just by being involved in that world but it’s worth it. I am sure to think critically about what is being shared and always develop my own opinion. There’s a learning curve but at a certain point you develop the skill and consumption isn’t as much of a risk as it is a source of inspiration.

Turning the Corner

The point at which you can consume as a source of inspiration is amazing. You look forward to opening a social media app but don’t feel at risk of being distracted. It’s you keeping a pulse on the world and using it as a great source for the positive messaging you will send out.

It is that which is risky that actually sources your success. This is related to business and generosity! You have to take risks to be successful.

Risks and confidence aren’t mutually exclusive!

In fact, they work together. Turning the corner is about taking the risk you are confident you’ll overcome.

Coach Dungy

I heard a conversation with former National Football League (NFL) coach (Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Indianapolis Colts) and current broadcaster, Tony Dungy. The coach was known for being a strong man of faith and also a hard-nosed coach. He had (and still has) a great ability to motivate people for great reasons.

I would call Tony an Impactmaker and he’s part of the movement whether he knows it or not. Some impactmakers you just know when you see or hear them.

While Coach Dungy was not known for being strong-willed, he did not express it how you might think a typical football coach would. His faith blessed him with an ability to avoid yelling and using profanity on most occasions. His calm demeanor and thoughtful responses to questions painted a different picture. His players were sure to indicate his leadership was anything but passive.

There is something powerful about delivering a strong message and culture without traditional motivational messages.

Coach’s genius was a result of simple messaging. It was easy for players and other team personnel to understand and the definitions of success and failure were clear.

Urgency

Professional football is one of the fastest-moving human (not motor) sports. Things happen so quickly that most would not have enough time to react. Playing quarterback (the most important position on a team) requires a reaction within just a second or two. Peyton Manning, a no-doubt Hall-of-Famer was coach Dungy’s quarterback for much of his career.

Much of Manning and Dungy’s combined success was a result of urgency. All of Peyton’s preparation for gameday revolved around making quick decisions during a play or even making decisions before the play started (as quick as you possibly could). Tony coached the whole team with the same urgency.

In all situations during a game he applied, “no excuses, no explanations”.

Football is a great sport of study and review. See E-Impact 99 and 119 for more lessons from the gridiron. The amount of hours that professional, college, and even high school players spend now reviewing film of practices and games is incredible. It’s a full time job even if it’s not a job.

“Bob, it can’t be that urgent if it’s all about reviewing the past!”

False. All of that review is an attempt to get every little advatage possible for the moments it matters. Film study and drilling is to make things as habitual and reactionary as much as possible.

There is no time for excuses or explanations during a game.

Peyton can’t pause a play and break down a receiver’s mistake. Tony can’t take time to explain a play to his defense when the next play started in fifteen seconds.

None of It

We can all agree excuses aren’t desirable and that explanations are desirable. I’m here to tell you that neither of them are good in the moment.

The moments of impact last longer than a football play (usually more than a game or even a whole season). This is good and bad. You have more time to accomplish your goal but you also have to put off your reviews. In other words, less pressure in the moment but more time before you can break down what has happened.

You can’t afford to make excuses and generate explanations in the impact space. You have to learn to move on to the next tasks as they come. The worst thing you can do is fall behind and affect the quality of your work.

What good is it to help people if your help isn’t that helpful?

Concentrate on the “in the moment” actions you have to take to be successful.

The way you get to your “film study” (review work) is by scheduling it. Resist the temptation to do it in the moment. Good documenting processes will help you complete good reviews after the fact.

Make sure you have ways to measure success and ways of tracking what has happened in a given event, project, or meeting.

The busier you get the more challenging this becomes. I recommend you start as early as possible.

All of the Rest

Avoiding excuses and explanations allows maximum room for what matters most. All of your effort in the moment can be towards the work. The more work done the more accomplished but also the more you learn.

You can’t expect everything to go well but even if something is not going well, continued effort allows you to learn on the fly. Your scheduled review time will be that much more educational (assuming the proper documentation as mentioned above).

They say, “give it your all”. I subscribe to this on the football field, in the board room, and in your impact projects.

All of the rest of your allocated energy can be towards progress when excuses are eliminated and explanations can wait.