Bring on the bad news

A common problem for people who are unsuccessful is that they slavishly avoid bad news. If such news has to be received, they prefer to put it off as long as possible. Often, they prefer to dodge it altogether.

Successful and competent people aren't afraid of bad news. Indeed, they positively seek it out. Of course, like everyone else, they'd prefer it if no problems existed. But if there are challenges to be dealt with, the successful want to know about them as soon as possible.

That's because a large part of winning is about overcoming such problems. In almost any field you choose to compete in , it's almost certain that a large number of obstacles will be thrown into your path. The way to beat such obstacles is not to ignore them. It's to know as much as you can about them so you can formulate a strategy to defeat them.

Indeed, often, bad news will lead you to stop wasting resources on a futile effort. If you are pursuing a particular goal, and some insurmountable problem stands in your way, wouldn't you prefer to know about it sooner rather than later? That way you can invest your limited time and effort into more worthwhile pursuits.

If you find yourself finding excuses to avoid bad news, force yourself out of this habit. Yes, it's painful, that sinking feeling in your stomach when you find things aren't going as you hoped. And yes, such pain is difficult to invite into your life. But in this situation it's absolutely necessary.

Bring on the bad news. Seek it out. Speculate on its possible sources.

If such news fails to surprise or stop you, you're already a long way down the path towards your ultimate goal.