No Excuses

“Excuses are like assholes, we all have one, and they all stink!”

“I’m too weak

Too slow

Too big

I ate too much for breakfast

Got a headache

It’s rainin’

My dog is sick

I can’t right now

I’m not inspired

Makes me smell bad

I’m allergic to stuff

I’m fat

I’m thin

It’s too hot

I’m not right

I’ve got shin splints

Headache

I’m distracted

I’m exerting myself too much

I’d love to really but I can’t

Just can’t

My favorite show is on

I got a case of the Mondays

The Tuesdays

The Wednesdays

I don’t wanna do this

I want to do something else

After new years

Next week

Might make a mistake

I got homework

I feel bloated

I have gas

I got a hot date

My coach hates me

My mom won’t let me

I bruise easily

It’s too dark

It’s too cold

My blisters hurt

This is dangerous

Ughhhh

Sorry, I don’t have a bike

I didn’t get enough sleep

My tummy hurts

It’s not in my genes

I don’t want to look all tired now

I need a better coach

I don’t like getting tackled

I have a stomach ache

I’m not the athletic type

I don’t want to get sweaty

I have better things to do

I don’t wanna slow you down

Do I have to do this?

Soon as I get a promotion

I think I’ll sit this one out

AND MY FEET HURT!”

– Says Mike ‘Warhawk’ Scott as he slams two basketballs on the ground simultaneously revealing his prosthetic legs. Scott is a wheelchair basketball player, a NWBA star, a national champion, a tournament MVP and is currently playing for the 2008 Paralympic Games in Beijing. He was born with spina bifida.

And he doesn’t make excuses.

Now that we’ve stopped procrastinating (right?) and figured out what direction we want to head towards, we need to eliminate one vital element in order for us to reach nirvana – Excuses!

“Ninety-nine percent of the failures come from people who have the habit of making excuses” – George Washington Carver

There are only two things that will happen when you have a task at hand. You either deliver, or you make excuses on why you can’t do it.

“Nothing is impossible; there are ways that lead to everything, and if we had sufficient will, we should always have sufficient means. It is often merely for an excuse that we say things are impossible” – Francois La Rochefoucauld

Kerri Strug did not make excuses when she broke her ankle during her the Olympic Gymnastics competition. The US women were on the verge of an historic win in the team competition in Atlanta. Then the unthinkable happened: Dominique Moceanu, the youngest member of the team, fell on both of her vaults in the last event of the day.

With just a slim lead over the Russian team, it was essential that Kerri Strug, the final American gymnast to perform, nail her vault. But Strug fell too, injuring her ankle in the process. With just one more shot, Strug ignored her injury and ran down for another attempt, sticking her vault before crumpling to the floor in pain.

In doing so, she assured the American team its first Olympic team gold, and instantly became one of the most recognizable faces of the 1996 Games.

“There’s a difference between interest and commitment. When you’re interested in doing something, you do it only when circumstance permit. When you’re committed to something, you accept no excuses, only results” -Art Turock

So what’s your excuse?