If Your Tools Aren’t Working, It’s Your Fault

Tools: the lessons, courses, classes, books, coaches, teachers, mentors, money and things we use to expand our education, build our self-wealth, and focus on our mindset growth and change.

Yep; all these things are tools!

Anything you use to invest in your mindset education for growing, changing and self-wealth building, including mentors and coaches, is a tool. It may sound a little cold to lump people into that category, but it is what it is. The reason we hire professionals is to help us be better about something in our life so that we can advance. But if they aren’t working, we have to let go and move on.

So, when your tools aren’t working for you:

It’s NO ONE else’s fault when things aren’t working. It’s 100% on YOU.*

Feel a wee bit harsh? It’s not. If things aren’t working in your life, you are the only one with the power to change it. Which means, stepping up, taking responsibility for your life, and stop blaming the tool for not working. Because it’s not the tool’s fault that it’s not working, it’s yours and here’s why.

Quick Start Action Steps:

• Stop making excuses; take responsibility and action in your life.
• Didn’t pick the right tool? Stop using it and find the right one.
• Not putting in the work? Get rid of the excuses and start doing the job.
• You’ve continued using a tool that doesn’t work? Stop using it and find the right one.

1. You Didn’t Pick the Right Tool

Maybe you picked the tool on impulse because the sales spiel sounded good or you jumped right in with the top one listed in your Google search without doing any background work. Whatever the reason you picked it, if it’s not the right tool for the job, it’s NOT going to work. Time to admit it and move on.

2. You Didn’t Put In the Effort

Raise your hand if you’ve signed up for an online course and never even opened the course material or made it through the first module and never came back. Or you didn’t listen to or do the tasks your mentor, coach or teacher assigned you. Me, me! Yep, I’m so freaking guilty of all of these.

The number one reason most tools fail is that you didn’t put in the effort. Nothing works if you aren’t willing to put in the work. Change, growth, goals, and dreams aren’t always easy to accomplish — but will happen when we work for them.

3. You Continue Using the Tool After Realizing It Isn’t a Good Fit

Sometimes, even after doing all your homework, you find out a tool isn’t the right fit. But because you’ve invested time and money or both in the tool, you continue trying to make it work. I get that it’s harder when money or people are involved because you hate to waste money and many of you are people-pleasers, me included. Stop it! It’s all in your mindset. Trying to force it is just making you miserable and wasting your time.

What to Do When Your Tools Aren’t Working

Once you’ve accepted that your tools aren’t working, it’s time to take a hard look as to why. Is it because you aren’t doing the work or is it because the tool doesn’t work for you? Once you’ve determined the reason why — take action.

If it’s the “you aren’t doing the work reason,” explore why. It’s up to you to make your education a priority. Once you know your “why” — it’s usually an excuse like “I don’t have the time” or something like that — block out at least one hour a day on your calendar — whether it’s in 15-minute sessions or the full hour — and DO THE WORK.

Did the “I don’t have the time” excuse pop into your head? Trust me; it’s a lie. You do have the time. You always have the time for what you WANT to do in life. Stop making binge-watching Netflix, reading the latest political train wreck, or gossiping with the girls a priority over improving your life.

If it’s “the tool isn’t working,” it’s time to move on. No blame, no guilt, just time to find a new tool that will help you achieve the goal or dream you set out to do. So MANY tools exist for working on your self-education. The trick is finding the one that resonates — speaks your kool-aid — because not all devices work for everyone, no matter how well put together they are.

And do your homework. Not all tools are created equal, especially those found online. Some are just get-rich-quick schemes for the creator, not the buyer. Others don’t teach the entire method or the “secret.” And still, others don’t explain in a manner that works for you. Some ways to do your homework include:

• Joining a free Facebook group or free training that goes along with many tools
• Taking the offered trial before investing money
• Or see if the tool has a money-back guarantee. The more reputable ones do.

A little advance homework can often save a ton of heartache and wasted time, effort and money.

Taking Control and Responsibility for Your Life

It’s easy to blame our tools or make excuses when things aren’t going the way we picture them going in our lives. But the hard truth of the matter is that YOU are 100% responsible for YOU, what you do and how you react to situations. Your coaches, teachers, mentors, teaching courses, computers, other people, the coffee table, even the dog is not responsible for what you do or what happens to you. Which means, don’t blame the tool when the tool doesn’t work.

If you’re on the search for a new tool in your life, talk to me: Heidi@TalktoHeidi.com

*There are always exemptions to who bears full responsibility for things that happen in their lives, based on what they know or don’t know. In this article, I’m discussing the “average” person who can and is able to make informed decisions for his or her self.