It’s human nature to want to be happy and successful. So why do you often end up sabotaging your chances for happiness and success?
There are many reasons why you might engage in self-sabotaging behavior. If you regularly engage in self-destructive behavior, it’s important to find out why and make some changes. Otherwise, you’ll keep getting in your way.
Below are some tips on how to free yourself from self-sabotaging behavior.
1. Be Honest with Yourself
The first step is to be honest with yourself. If you’re engaging in self-sabotaging behavior, chances are good that you’re not being entirely honest with yourself about what you’re doing. Acknowledge your behavior and its consequences. This can be difficult, but it’s necessary to change your behavior.
Being honest with yourself includes being honest about your motives. Why are you engaging in self-destructive behavior? What do you hope to achieve by doing so? Once you’ve identified your motives, you can start to work on changing them.
2. Figure Out Why You’re Sabotaging Yourself
Once you’ve acknowledged your self-destructive behavior, it’s time to figure out why you’re doing it. There might be some underlying reasons for your behavior. It could be that you don’t feel deserving of happiness or success. It could be that you’re afraid of change. Maybe you have low self-esteem. Whatever the reason, it’s important to identify it so you can start working on it.
One way to discover why you sabotage yourself is by taking a free Enneagram test. This way, you can understand how to reduce self-limitations and increase your ability to succeed.
3. Change Your Beliefs
If you find that you’re sabotaging yourself because of negative beliefs about yourself, it’s time to change those beliefs. Start by identifying the negative beliefs you have about yourself. Then, challenge those beliefs. Are they true? Why do you believe them? Once you start questioning your negative beliefs, you can replace them with more positive ones.
4. Improve Your Self-Esteem
If you have low self-esteem, it can be a major contributor to self-sabotaging behavior. After all, if you don’t believe in yourself, why would you try to achieve anything? Start by working on building your self-esteem. You can do this by setting realistic goals and then achieving them. As you accomplish things, you’ll start to feel better about yourself.
You can also try positive self-talk. When you have a negative thought about yourself, counter it with a positive one. For example, if you’re thinking, “I’m not good enough,” tell yourself, “I am good enough.” With time, your self-esteem will improve, and your self-sabotaging behavior will decrease.
5. Take Risks
If you tend to play it safe, self-sabotaging behavior can be a way of avoiding taking risks. After all, if you don’t take chances, you can’t fail, right? Wrong. Not taking risks means not giving yourself a chance to succeed. It also means living in fear and not enjoying life.
Start by challenging your beliefs about taking risks. Are they as scary as you think? Once you see that taking risks isn’t so bad, you’ll be more likely to take them. And as you start to take more risks, you’ll find that your self-sabotaging behavior decreases.
6. Let Go of Perfectionism
If you’re a perfectionist, self-sabotaging behavior can be a way of avoiding failure. After all, if you’re never perfect, you can’t fail. But the truth is that nobody is perfect, and striving for perfectionism sets you up for disappointment.
Instead of striving for perfection, strive for excellence. Set high standards for yourself, but don’t expect to be perfect. And when you do make mistakes, learn from them and move on. As you start to let go of your need to be perfect, you’ll find that your self-sabotaging behavior decreases.
7. Surround Yourself with Positive People
If you have negative people in your life, they can be a major contributor to your self-sabotaging behavior. After all, if the people around you are constantly putting you down, it’s going to be hard to believe in yourself.
So, get rid of the naysayers and fill your life with people who will empower you to be your best self. As you start to feel better about yourself, you’ll find that your self-sabotaging behavior decreases.
Conclusion
Self-sabotaging behavior can be a major obstacle to achieving your goals. But, it doesn’t have to be. By understanding the reasons behind your self-sabotaging behavior and taking steps to change it, you can start to overcome it. So don’t give up on yourself!