I used to blame everything for why my business wasn\'t growing. My kids. My location. My health. My finances. My lack of connections. God\'s timing (I really said that). I had an excuse for every season I wasn\'t taking action.
And then I read a book called \'Extreme Ownership\' by Jocko Willink, and one idea hit me like a freight train:
Nothing outside of me was responsible for my business success. Nothing.
Not my circumstances. Not my past. Not my current constraints. 100% of the outcomes in my business were the result of 100% of the choices I made. That meant all the excuses were lies I was telling myself to avoid doing the hard thing.
Once I absorbed that, everything changed. Because if nothing outside of me was responsible, then everything inside of me — my decisions, my actions, my consistency — was the only variable that mattered.
The Excuse Layering Problem
Most people who can\'t launch a business are not short on ideas. They are short on honesty.
Here is the pattern I see constantly:
"I can\'t start because..."
— I don\'t have enough money.
— I don\'t have enough time.
— I don\'t have enough knowledge.
— I need to wait until the timing is right.
Each of these sounds legitimate. Each of them is a choice disguised as a circumstance.
The person who says they don\'t have enough money is choosing not to find funding options, use free tools, or start with a zero-budget strategy.
The person who says they don\'t have enough time is choosing not to restructure their day, wake up earlier, or stop doing things that don\'t matter.
The person who says they need more knowledge is choosing not to take imperfect action and learn from it.
I am not saying these things are easy. I am saying they are choices. And if you\'re not making the choice to build your business, you\'re making the choice to stay where you are. Both are choices. Only one of them moves you forward.
The Ownership Shift That Changes Everything
Here is what happened when I took radical ownership of my business:
I stopped blaming Facebook\'s algorithm when posts didn\'t perform. I asked: what can I do better?
I stopped blaming the market when people didn\'t buy. I asked: what is the message not landing?
I stopped blaming my circumstances when I couldn\'t find clients. I asked: am I actually reaching out to enough people?
Every time I shifted from blame to ownership, I found an action I could take. And every time I took that action, something moved.
Blame is passive. It feels like it protects you — but it keeps you stuck. Ownership is active. It\'s uncomfortable — but it\'s the only path out.
Why People Confuse Comfort With Righteousness
Here is the thing nobody says out loud: it feels good to be the victim of circumstances.
Think about it. If you\'re stuck because the economy is bad, or because you have kids, or because you don\'t have the right tools — you\'re not failing. You\'re just unfortunate. There\'s a kind of comfort in that narrative.
But that comfort is expensive. It costs you your growth, your income, your confidence, and your future.
I coached someone who told me for six months that they couldn\'t build their business because their spouse wasn\'t supportive. After we unpacked it, it turned out their spouse had said "maybe you should focus on your current job for now" one time, three years ago. They had built an entire victim narrative around one offhand comment.
Once they saw it, they were embarrassed. And then they launched. And six months later they were making more from their coaching than from their job.
The One Question That Breaks the Pattern
When you catch yourself making an excuse, stop and ask this question:
"What would I do if I couldn\'t use this excuse?"
If you couldn\'t use "I don\'t have enough time" — what would you do? You\'d probably figure out how to make the time. You\'d stop watching Netflix, stop scrolling for two hours, stop saying yes to things that don\'t matter.
If you couldn\'t use "I don\'t have enough money" — what would you do? You\'d find free tools, build an audience organically, offer a $4.95 front-end product, or trade services with someone who has what you need.
The moment you remove the excuse from the equation, you find the path forward.
The excuse was always a choice. And you can always choose differently.
The Discipline of Starting Today
Here is the practical reality: your business will only be built by actions taken today. Not next month. Not when the kids are older. Not after the next certification. Today.
Every day you wait is a day you\'re choosing to stay where you are.
I know this sounds harsh. I don\'t mean it to be harsh — I mean it to be a wake-up call. Because I was you. I spent years waiting for conditions to be perfect. And once I stopped waiting and started doing, everything became possible.
Not easy. Possible.
The gap between where you are and where you want to be is not a knowledge gap. You already know what to do. It\'s an action gap. Close it.
Ready to Grow Your Business?
Join Wealthy Coach Academy — my $197/month coaching program where I help you build a business that actually works. Or start with a $4.95 starter class and see what happens.
Frequently Asked Questions
But what if I genuinely have real constraints — health issues, a demanding job, family responsibilities?
Constraints are real. The question is whether they\'re absolute blockers or speed bumps. Almost every successful coach I\'ve worked with had significant constraints — two jobs, young kids, health challenges, limited budget. They built anyway, slower, differently. Constraints change the timeline. They don\'t change the destination — if you\'re willing to be creative about the path.
How do I stop blaming external circumstances and start taking ownership?
The shift happens when you ask "what can I control right now?" instead of "who or what is stopping me?" Focus on the one thing you can do today, regardless of what\'s happening around you. That\'s ownership. Blame focuses on what\'s outside you. Ownership focuses on what\'s inside you.
I\'ve taken action but nothing is working. What do I do?
Then change the strategy, not the goal. Most people who "try everything and nothing works" are actually trying the same thing with minor variations. If you\'ve taken 100 actions and nothing moved, you need a fundamentally different approach — not more of the same. Get outside input. Study what\'s working for others in your space.
Is ownership the same as being hard on yourself?
No. Ownership means you acknowledge your role in the outcome so you can change your actions. Being hard on yourself means you beat yourself up for not being perfect. One moves you forward. The other keeps you stuck in shame. Be honest, not brutal.
Where do I start if I\'ve been stuck for years?
One action. Today. One email, one post, one conversation. Not a business plan, not a complete website overhaul — one thing that moves you forward. Then another tomorrow. The compounding of small daily actions is what breaks long-term stuckness. You didn\'t get stuck overnight. You won\'t get unstuck overnight. But you can start today.
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About Jeremiah Krakowski
Jeremiah Krakowski is a coaching business mentor who helps coaches, course creators, and consultants scale from $3k/mo to $40k+/mo using direct response marketing, AI systems, and proven frameworks. He runs Wealthy Coach Academy and has 23+ years of experience in digital marketing. Learn more →