We often want to blame the world, our circumstances, our environment, or other people for why we aren't living the life we desire, when in fact we are the ones to blame.

I'm not denying that some of us have been dealt a bad hand with terrible circumstances and awful environments, but despite this we still all have the capability to rise above these and become the person deep down we know we can be.

For the majority of my life, I blamed external forces for why I wasn't living up to my potential and achieving at the level I believed I should be.

But after some close self-examination, I've realized it's always been myself holding me back based on my own mindset, choices, and lack of consistent hard work.

On top of this, I would hold onto past mistakes and failures causing me to develop limiting beliefs about myself and my potential.

But with all the research I've been doing lately on the mind and on human potential, I've come to realize that these limiting beliefs are just false opinions I've developed, that I need to get rid of, so every day I've been working on doing just that.

I am by no means where I want to be and these limiting beliefs can still creep back into my head, but I have come a long way in just a few months, and I'm making progress each day towards being the man I know I can be.

And I know if I'm capable of making this much positive change in just a few months then so can any of you!

It just takes self-examination to identify our limiting beliefs and bad habits holding us back, then developing a plan of action, and implementing small simple steps to steadily improve each and every day.

So before blaming any external factors we must ask ourselves these questions:

"What are my limiting beliefs?"

"What bad habits am I holding onto?"

"Am I really giving my best effort?"

"Am I allowing my past to control my future?"

"Do I have a routine that serves me or hurts me?"

"Am I prioritizing my physical, mental, and emotional health?"

If we answer these questions honestly we'll most likely come to realize that we in fact are the ones holding ourselves back.

Rising above ourselves to become the best versions of ourselves isn't easy but it's the most rewarding thing we can do for ourselves, our loved ones, and our communities because when we're thriving we can help others thrive as well!