I was watching an NFL game the other night where one of the players commented on how they have underperformed on the year and how their season now hangs in the balance. He was doing this in front of his teammates as a means of cutting away from the noise and distraction of the naysayers, unhappy fans, and the media. He said, “No one is coming to save us, no one, but us.” Essentially, the boats have been burned in the harbor, and there is no escape route, so we must forge ahead. This sort of embolden commitment starts with us as individuals, where we buy into a greater idea. It’s an if it’s to be that it’s up to me mentality. Better yet if it’s to be it’s up to us! 

Succeeding at virtually anything is an inside out proposition. I tell people all the time that others will only believe in you to the extent you do. One of my all-time favorite motivational gurus, Jim Rohn summed up the idea of believing in yourself when he said, “You’ve got to believe in possibilities. You’ve got to believe tomorrow can be better than today. And here’s the big one. Believe in yourself.” Rohn’s message isn’t one of wishful thinking or hoping things will get better, his message is about adopting an actionable belief system where you take 100 percent responsibility for your circumstances, and eventual outcomes. Sure, at times, people will jump in to lend a helping hand, but don’t count on it. Start with self-reliance. Be that team member that makes a difference. Be a playmaker or game changer. In fact, I would encourage anyone in business to adopt the discipline of self-reliance, because it’s one of the best defenses against the pressures of the moment. Self-reliant people tend to choose thoughts of optimism and winning over pessimism and defeat. They coined the idea of can do, because they know self-reliance conquers any difficulty.