As humans one thing that we universally excel at is making excuses. Why didn’t I join that club? Well it was because I was busy doing homework (a.k.a I was too scared to go to something where I don’t know anybody). Why didn’t I ask that question in class? Oh I figured it out on my own (a.k.a I was too scared that I would look stupid in front of everybody).
Of course there’s nothing wrong with these fears — as long as we confront them head on. We become complacent the moment we lure ourselves into thinking that we’ve solved the issue by just avoiding it completely. At least if we can acknowledge the real problem we have the chance to solve it.
This is a psychological phenomenon known as “self-handicapping” in which we set up an external reason for an internal failure to ensure the protection of our own egos. This goes hand in hand with another very common human tendency, external attribution, which postulates that we’re all more likely to see our shortcomings as a result of our situation rather than as a problem with ourselves — and that’s the case most of the time.
When we make excuses for ourselves it only allows us to reinforce the idea that our intent was good, which may make us feel better at the moment but won’t actually achieve any goals.
As we can see throughout history there are numerous examples of people who overcame their situations in order to do something amazing. Steve Jobs dropped out of college but then went on to found one of the most innovative companies ever. Athlete and actress Aimee Mullins was forced to amputate both her legs but still continued to compete in track and field in college and in the Paralympics. Darwin got extremely seasick but didn’t let that stop him from exploring the Galapagos and postulating the fundamentals of evolution. The examples are endless. These people didn’t let their situations give them an excuse for not doing what they wanted to do.
Logically the only thing we can ever change in this world is ourselves. We can change what we do, which can then foster change elsewhere. But the world is founded upon action not intent. It doesn’t matter if you wanted to exercise and you ended up just sitting on the couch, because the end result is the same as if you didn’t want to exercise and just sat on the couch. When we make excuses for ourselves it only allows us to reinforce the idea that our intent was good, which may make us feel better at the moment but won’t actually achieve any goals.
Admittedly excuses do come in different forms and can sometimes be valid. If you couldn’t do homework because you were attending a funeral that’s acceptable because that is a direct reason for why something occurred. It’s the micro-excuses which we make for ourselves everyday that really harm us — the excuses that make us appear to be better people on the outside but just cover up the “eh” sort of people that we are on the inside.
I remember getting irritated with my father when he would eat Christmastime chocolates under the guise of “cleaning up.” He was eating chocolate because he wanted chocolate, and that’s normal and fine (in fact he’s kind of a twig from running all the time so it’s probably good for him). He didn’t need to put an excuse on it and make eating the chocolate seem like a duty that he undertook in order to make the world a better place.
Of course I’m not one to talk either. I remember fencing in high school and knowing I was up against someone tough. I would sometimes attempt to get out of the bout in favor of “letting someone else get experience” or some equally ridiculous reason. I wasn’t doing it to let someone else get experience. I was doing it so I wouldn’t have to lose.
The small, itty-bitty difference between indulging your excuses and pushing them aside is what distinguishes someone who can make a change from someone who will ultimately fade into the background.
Great people are not built solely on smarts — there are plenty of college graduates milling around in completely average lives. However, Wilbur and Orville Wright never even graduated high school and still engineered the first airplane. Nor is greatness built upon charisma — German Chancellor Angela Merkel is often cited as uncharismatic but still plays a significant role in politics. Nevertheless there are charismatic people everywhere who lead ordinary lives. Greatness is built upon the ability to look past excuses and see problems unembellished, to see what truly needs to be fixed or accomplished and to act on it promptly.
Anita Louie is a freshman undeclared major from Princeton, N.J.
