The first thing you should understand about self sabotage is that it is a mistake to set impossibly high standards for yourself. The second thing to be aware of is the temptation to discourage yourself before setting goals or trying new things.

We self-sabotage for a variety of reasons, including low self-esteem, lack of trust, high expectations, inadequate relationship skills and plain old fear of failure. It’s one thing to imprison yourself in your own comfortable safe space, where you are always in control, but another to know that you don’t want to be there!

Self sabotage often stems from low self-esteem, negative opinions of yourself, and the related negative emotions. These continually reinforce failure. If you expect failure, then failure you will get.

There are many ways we self sabotage and to instead succeed we have to recognise every hurdle. Here are the main ones:

Discouraging yourself before you even try is common, but you can become aware and conscious of your patterns of behaviour and you can change them by implementing small changes to your lifestyle.  

You can beat self-sabotage by modifying thoughts, feelings, and beliefs about yourself, and challenging them when they stand between you and your goals. 

Saying ‘yes’ when you want to say ‘no’ because you don’t want to upset others, Ignoring the signs that lead to stress, anxiety and burnout when all you really need is a break!

Setting unrealistic goals is waste, so set the bar where you know you can succeed, Above all, you shouldn’t fall into the trap of comparing yourself with others. Set your own goals work towards them… and if at first you don’t succeed, try again!

Stop putting yourself down! You can do anything you want once you set your mind to it!

And remember too, constant procrastination is your number one enemy.