By: Kristina Driskill
Entrepreneurs and business owners don’t typically set out to sabotage their success. However, many may unknowingly engage in behaviors that hinder their progress—often under the illusion of productivity, preparation, or even self-improvement.
If you’ve ever felt like you’re putting in the work but not seeing the results you hope for, it’s worth asking: Am I getting in the way of my own success?
Why Do Entrepreneurs Self-Sabotage?
Self-sabotage often stems from unconscious fears—fear of failure, fear of success, fear of being judged, or even fear of change. Many of these behaviors provide a temporary sense of control or safety. In reality, though, these habits can keep entrepreneurs stuck in a cycle of overthinking, avoidance, and frustration. Here are six surprising ways self-sabotage might show up in business.
1. Working ‘Hard’
There’s a difference between being busy and being effective. Many entrepreneurs fill their days with low-impact tasks that may feel productive but don’t move the business forward. They spend too much time working in their business and very little working on it, keeping them in a state of hustle. This kind of hard work can sometimes mask avoidance behaviors.
Example: You spend hours responding to emails but avoid revenue-generating activities like pitching clients or following up on leads.
2. Innovation
We’ve all seen examples of companies developing and launching new products that aren’t significantly different—while core features of an existing product remain unimproved. While it’s understandable to want to keep a competitive edge, at a certain point, ‘new’ isn’t effective if it’s not aligned with the priorities of the consumers. Excessive innovation for the sake of innovation can potentially put a company at risk.
Example: You pull resources off a product that hasn’t had enough time to become established to start working on a new one.
3. Knowledge
Education is valuable, and being a life-long learner is an important part of staying open-minded. But when learning becomes a substitute for action, it can become a form of self-sabotage. Those seeking success with their business often convince themselves they need one more course or certification before they’re ready, even when they already have enough knowledge to get started. When knowledge becomes knowledge hoarding, it’s often a sign of avoidance or perfectionism.
Example: You keep enrolling in business courses but haven’t implemented what you’ve already learned or haven’t looked at a course you already purchased.
4. Growth
Seeing customer acquisition and increases in revenue are exciting! But, if the business becomes over-leveraged, it can quickly end up in significant challenges or even losses. Growth is only as successful as its ability to be sustained. While a slow and steady approach can be challenging for entrepreneurs, more doesn’t always equal better. Ignoring the signs of unsustainable growth is often the work of a hyper-achiever mentality.
Example: You invest in a major advertising deal without having enough capital to run a sufficient amount of inventory.
5. DIY Leadership
Believing you have to do everything yourself isn’t a sign of dedication—it’s a fast track to burnout. It’s common for entrepreneurs to say, “By the time I explain it to someone else, I could have done it already.” That might be true the first few times, but in the long run, delegating will save you from wasting your most precious resource: time. This behavior typically comes from one of several forms of self-sabotage: scarcity thinking (I can’t afford to pay someone); over-controlling (no one can do this as well as I can); or avoidance (pitching my services makes me nervous, so I’ll do the graphic design work).
Example: You say “yes” to doing low-impact tasks because you do them well instead of using your time on high-value activities like networking and meeting with leads.
6. Avoiding Celebration
Many entrepreneurs save celebrating for big events, like hitting a major sales target or getting a big contract. But studies suggest that celebrating even the smallest of things is an important part of success. This behavior can stem from a belief that small accomplishments don’t ‘deserve’ to be celebrated or that celebrating means being lazy. It can also be a form of hyper-achiever mentality, believing there is no time for such things because there is more to do.
Example: You get news that could bring exciting changes but choose to focus on the problematic issues that it would bring rather than the potential.
How to Break the Cycle of Self-Sabotage
If any of these behaviors sound familiar, you’re not alone. Everyone has their own saboteurs, and self-sabotage is quite common, but—it can be addressed. The first step is recognizing when and how it shows up. Once you are aware of its patterns, you can begin to break the cycle.
Next, keep it light. Don’t give your saboteurs any additional power by being upset about them or being hard on yourself. Just notice them and bring yourself to a grounded place of neutrality.
Ask yourself: What kind of experience do I want to be having right now? Then, consciously redirect your thoughts and energy toward your answer—without overthinking, over-preparing, or waiting for ‘perfect’ conditions.
The key to success isn’t necessarily about knowing more; it’s about doing more of the right things. How you use your mind will play a significant role in how quickly you move toward sustainable success.
Kris Driskill is a transformational coach and certified business consultant specializing in archetypes and self-sabotage for creative entrepreneurs and business owners. Want to know if your saboteurs are holding you back? Get a free success audit at https://www.krisdriskill.com/success-audit.
Published by Mark V.
