Success and average don't have anything to do with each other. So you can't say you want to be successful! You can't say there's certain dreams, goals, things you want to have, and things you want to be if you are still average! You gotta get to the point where you get allergic to average! You don't think average! You don't perform average!” -Eric Thomas

The majority of people who have these enormous dreams and goals they want to achieve, will never even get close because of the average mentality that they possess. One of the biggest things I’ve ever realized is that being average is comfortable (which is the problem). When you have an average mentality, you don’t mind not getting up for that workout, you don’t mind putting off your daily tasks, and you don’t mind not doing anything to reach your goals, but rather cry about how you’re not progressing in life and blame the world instead of your self-caused misfortune. Luckily, I have three tips to help you leave your average mentality in the dust.

1.Keeping Your Word

I’ve found that most people love to talk about things that they know they have no intention of either doing or keeping consistent with. This is because it sounds good rolling off their tongue and even makes them feel a little less like shit…for the moment. People fail to realize that keeping their word to their self is very important. If you do what you say you’re going to do 60 percent of the time, then your average. If you follow through 70 percent of the time, then you’ll be good. If you stick to your word 80 percent of the time, you’ll be great. However, if you want to be phenomenal and have a mentality that your peers marvel at, then you need to do what you say you’re going to do at least 90 percent of the time. Remember, there is nothing exciting about another average person walking the earth. We idolize people that achieve greatness, and as shocking as it may sound, we’re all made up of the same stuff.

2.Push Yourself

If your life is perfectly comfortable, there is something wrong. You should always be pushing yourself to learn, achieve, and advance. If you go day-to-day without any new challenges in your life, you’re just existing instead of living. If you try something new and fail at it, there is no shame and you should never give up on it no matter what. If you keep working at something, you’re developing a resilient mentality, which is rare in our society. Additionally, if you’re setting and attaining goals that are so easy that it requires 50 percent of your effort, you won’t get far at all. You need to set goals that will constantly challenge your mental toughness. In other words, it is a good practice to set your goals to where you believe they are slightly out of your reach, so when you do fall short you hit the nail right on the head.

3. No Excuses

Let’s be real, excuses are for bitches and no one cares to hear them. People love to cover up why they didn’t do something or why they couldn’t do something, with excuses. These people fail to realize that results are the only thing that matters. You have to realize that no matter what stands in your way, you have to step up and produce the results that you want. Keep in mind that someone who sits around making up excuses has already thrown in the towel. People make-up excuses to make themselves feel better about quitting; when in reality, they’re just putting their weakness on display.

“Become allergic to average and you will become addicted to success” – Mar’kee Alston