The Difference Between Facts and Truth

How many times have you been told all the things you “can’t” do? If you are like the rest of us, you probably can’t even keep count. In fact, pun intended, statistics show us that the average young person has been told “No, you can’t” over 150,000 times by the time they reach the age of 17. That is an average of more than 24 times every single day of their life from the time they are born. The same study shows that the average young person has heard “Yes, you can” only about 5000 times during that same period. That is less than once per day.

This barrage of negative feedback has a “cause and effect” that leads so many to accept the facts said or even assumed about them and the circumstances in their life. The problem with always focusing on the facts is that this mentality leads to a self-limiting belief system that keeps you from being able to achieve your full potential. Let’s take a look at both….

A fact is simply a true statement. A true statement is not the same as a statement of truth. A fact is something that points to a specific point in time or a truth under a specific circumstance. One of the most important things to keep in mind is that facts change. Focusing purely on the facts in front of them is what causes so many to begin to develop the self-limiting belief systems that hold them back from achieving the full potential that they have. Many people become stuck mentally by a “fact” that they experienced in their lives and never really got over it. Maybe it is a fact that they did not make good grades in school. Maybe it is a fact that they didn’t perform as well as they should have and didn’t get that promotion they wanted in their job. Or even worse, they got fired. How about that sales rep that has never been able to consistently achieve his or her quota?

When you allow these facts to define you, they begin to establish a belief system that limits you based upon the previous experiences. This creates the effect that limits what your mind is able to accept as achievable and, surely enough, you won’t achieve beyond that level again as long as you perceive that as your potential.

A truth is something that goes far beyond a simply fact. Consider this, a fact may say that someone is not qualified for a desired position, but truth says that the person can simply seek out the necessary training to become qualified. Though the current “fact” is that they are not qualified, the truth states that everything that is needed to become qualified already exists within them and they just need to seek the training needed to become proficient.

I have seen countless salespeople through the years who limited their own potential results because of the “facts” that they had never achieved more than 8% growth in a given year (replace that number for whatever your highest number is). Truth states that the growth they want to achieve is only limited by their goal and the belief in their ability to hit it. If any rep has doubled their number before, then truth is that it is achievable to double it at a minimum. It might require intentional effort to develop your skill sets so you can reach the next level of performance, but it is fully available to you.

What goal would you love to achieve? Write it out plainly, put a plan together, and then take action on it . While you are writing it out, ignore all the “facts” that point to all the reasons you can’t accomplish that big goal you have. Remember that facts only point to a specific period of time and are always subject to change. A fact today may become false tomorrow. Focus on the truth, which is that you have unlimited potential which you haven’t even tapped into yet.

DREAM BIG!!! Then take MASSIVE ACTION!