In my leadership seminars and workshops, managers often come to me with the same complaint:  “Every time I set out to reach a goal, something stops me. I think I’m aiming too high.”  When we start to analyze their challenge, we come to a realization that it isn’t their goals that are unattainable, but something in their mindset is holding them back. I find most people stop taking action, not because they don’t know what they’re doing, but because someone or something along the way told them they can’t do it. If you’re going to reach your goals, you must mentally be prepared to fight the mental battle within.

(Watch video first!)

 

3 Mental Barriers That are Stopping Your Success

 

1. Lose the victim mentality. Stop blaming everything around you for your dreams not working out. Such as your spouse, your children, your finances or the economy. Take it upon yourself to find a new path and make it happen. Victims often say, “There are just no opportunities for me to do this right now.” Victor’s see it differently. Victors don’t wait for opportunities. They create possibilities where they don’t even exist.

2. Develop your skills. When you don’t know what you’re doing, it’s easy to feel that you’re not capable. So in order to develop the confidence to reach your goals, you must first develop the skills to reach your goals. If you have to take a course, watch a youtube video, read a blog or listen to a podcast, do whatever you can to develop the skills that will take you to your destination. Developing the skills for the goal you’re after reframes your mind from, “Oh no I can’t”, to “Oh yes I can!”

3. Be prepared for the obstacles. Every leader faces obstacles. The difference between average and great leaders is that great leaders prepare for any obstacles ahead of time. They think ahead to what may possibly set them back and are ready to design another path to get there. Above all, they don’t let obstacles stop them from taking action.

 

(If you’re a serial procrastinator, I have a FREE ebook on the Top 10 Ways to Beat Procrastination & Get Stuff Done!)


About Betsy: Featured on FOX, CBS, NBC, and ABC, Betsy Allen-Manning is a high-energy leadership keynote speaker, high-performance expert, and workplace culture strategist who helps organizations develop world-class leaders, build high-performing teams, and create workplaces where people stay, grow, and thrive. She’s the creator of the DNA of Excellence™ keynote series: data-backed and highly interactive presentations that strengthen leadership behavior, elevate performance, and transform workplace culture. Betsy is also the founder of Destination Workplace™, an award-winning leadership training company in Dallas, known for advancing leadership excellence and transforming workplace culture for some of the world’s most elite brands.

Tweet it!


Great Leaders create possibilities where they don’t even exist..
Click To Tweet


 

Betsy Allen-Manning

Leadership Speaker | Best Selling Author | Human Behavior Expert

www.BetsyAllenManning.com


Learn it & Live it:

Don’t forget to subscribe to the blog and get your FREE copy of, “The Leadership Productivity Formula”-10 Ways to Beat Procrastination and Get Stuff Done

Come join me over on my Facebook page and feel free to ask me questions that you struggle with as a leader , and I’ll answer them in upcoming blogs.

If you or your company want more advanced training or are looking for a keynote speaker for your next event, contact me here to come in and train your leaders or speak at your next function. leaders or speak at your next function.


Share the Quote Love!

Leadership-Success-Speakers
Achieve Your Goals 1
Texas-Leadership-Speakers
Achieve Your Goals 2
Top-Leadership-Speakers
Achieve Your Goals 3
Leadership-Success-Speakers-in-Dallas-TX
Achieve Your Goals 4
By Betsy Allen-Manning January 25, 2026
Discover why leadership capability is now the biggest driver of retention, culture, and performance in the 2026 workplace.
By Betsy Allen-Manning January 20, 2026
Job candidates ghosting you? Learn how to stop fishing for talent and start attracting candidates by improving your employee experience and becoming a Destination Workplace™
By Betsy Allen-Manning January 13, 2026
Promoting high performers without leadership readiness is costing organizations trust, retention, and performance. Learn the leadership shift that changes outcomes.
By Betsy Allen-Manning January 6, 2026
Leadership burnout isn’t about working too hard. It’s about absorbing what isn’t yours. Learn how discernment and boundaries reset leadership effectiveness.
By Betsy Allen-Manning December 30, 2025
Close the Purpose Deficit: connect daily work to mission, boost engagement, reduce burnout, and build a culture where people matter.
By Betsy Allen-Manning December 16, 2025
Discover 5 signs you’re a toxic leader—gossip, nepotism, fear, ego, avoidance—and practical fixes to rebuild trust, retention, and culture fast.
Pulpit or boardroom, this is the most powerful leadership DNA combination:
Trust. Integrity. Purpose
By Betsy Allen-Manning December 2, 2025
Pulpit or Boardroom, This Is the Leadership DNA That Separates the Trusted From the Tolerated
By Betsy Allen-Manning November 25, 2025
Growth Pains: Why Scaling Too Fast Can Hurt The 4 Pillars That Make a Company Successful
By Betsy Allen-Manning November 18, 2025
Your culture’s not dead. It’s just stuck in a govt-style shutdown. Probably waiting for 37 approvals to fix it. 🙂
By Betsy Allen-Manning November 10, 2025
Discover how top leaders build one cohesive culture across multiple locations through clarity, connection, and aligned leadership.
Show More