You're smart and creative, but for some reason you just never seem to get ahead in life. But whether or not you want to see it, there are very real things standing in your way from becoming successful.

In fact, business writer Jim Kukral came up with a whole list of reasons that most people aren't as successful as they really should be. The 13 things holding you back from your true, successful potential are:

1. Laziness

2. Entitlement

3. Fear

4. Negativity

5. Thinking Too Much

6. Having No Goals

7. Blaming Other People

8. Excuses

9. Wasting Time

10. Social B.S.

11. Thinking Too Small

12. Not Wanting It Enough

13. Not Believing

#1 Reason You're Not As Successful As You Should Be--Laziness

I don't think there's an easy way to put this. I have to assume that you're lazy. Every single successful person works their butts off to get where they are. It's ok to be lazy. Just admit it. But don't whine about not being rich and successful, ok?

#2 Reason You're Not As Successful As You Should Be--Entitlement

Only a few people in the world are part of the lucky sperm club. You and me? We gotta work to get what we want. Quit thinking you are owed something. You're not. Get to work.

#3 Reason You're Not As Successful As You Should Be--Fear

You are afraid, plain and simple. Afraid of looking silly. Afraid of what your friends and family will say. Afraid of everything. Look, you're either going to stop being afraid, or you're not. Nobody can convince you to stop. Imagine though...what awaits you when you stop with the fear excuses?

#4 Reason You're Not As Successful As You Should Be--Negativity

You may not realize it, but the people you associate with might be negative. They could be soul-sucking beings who don’t want anyone to be successful. Get rid of them, now! Surround yourself with successful people. People you want to be like.

#5 Reason You're Not As Successful As You Should Be--Stop Thinking

How much do you want to bet you have paralysis by analysis? You think way too much about what you could or should do. Doers get what they want, and everyone else gets what they get. Stop analyzing and start doing.

#6 Reason You're Not As Successful As You Should Be--No Goals

You plan nothing. You believe that someway, somehow, everything you always wanted will just magically happen. So you "play it by ear" and wait. You need goals to shoot for. Otherwise, you're just treading water.

#7 Reason You're Not As Successful As You Should Be--"They"

There's no "they". There's no secret group of people that controls your success or failure. You've made that up to make you feel better about yourself. The truth is you, and you alone, control your success in life/business/everything. It's easy to blame "them" though, isn't it? Weak.

#8 Reason You're Not As Successful As You Should Be--No "X" Factor

You can't do it because you're not pretty enough. Or don't have a strong personality? You don’t have the "X" factor? Wow, what an unbelievably lame excuse. The truth is even jerks, idiots and boring people can be just as successful as anyone else. Your problem is you don't believe it yet.

#9 Reason You're Not As Successful As You Should Be--Time Waste

You're a classic time-waster. You spend hours and hours every day working on not-working. You do things that aren't productive. How are you ever going to get anything done, or reach any goal if you keep wasting time? You’re not. So you might as well give up now if you're going to keep this path.

#10 Reason You're Not As Successful As You Should Be--Social B.S.

You spend way too much time in social media land.  You waste probably about 50% of your productive hours of the day doing this. The sad part is, you know it, but you can't stop. So you can't get anything done that matters.

#11 Reason You're Not As Successful As You Should Be--Think Small

You think way too small. You are constantly looking only a day or a week ahead instead of years ahead. Because of this, you never get anywhere, and you never lead; you always follow.

#12 Reason You're Not As Successful As You Should Be--Don’t Want It

You don't really want to be successful. Sure, you like to dream about it like everyone else. But in your heart you are afraid of what might happen if you really get it. That's B.S. fear your brain is feeding you. Success is change, and it feels really, really good. Tell your brain to shut the up.

#13 Reason You're Not As Successful As You Should Be--Don’t Believe

You never believed that it's possible. Society taught you that only a few "exceptional" people get what they want. Everyone else should just settle. If you really want to believe that, go ahead. The rest of us will be at the front of the line because we believe.