Take Debbie Ford's self sabotage quiz here...   

Self Sabotage Quiz

Are you a serial self-sabotager?

Hmm, sounds unpleasant doesn't it.

But imagine trying to achieve some important goal in life, only for a good friend of yours to continually try and trip you or put you off or plain undermine your efforts so that, eventually, you just give up. Now imagine that friend to be, er... YOU!

Self-sabotage is everywhere you are, or it can be. And that's why I've included (with permission) Debbie Ford's Self Sabotage quiz - to see just how bad (or good) your self-sabotage tendencies are.

Self sabotage quiz - what I say...

I don't need to take a quiz to know that I self-sabotage - or at least I used to do, anyway. If you read 'my story', you'll see the self-sabotage signs are clear: 'start an intimate relationship' followed by 'find something wrong asap' followed by 'end the relationship'.

Oh yes, I've been there. (I'm sure you have too.) And, phew, self-sabotage is tiring I can tell you! It's like trying to drive your car whilst your hand break is on. Or it's like trying to walk fast down a busy 'sidewalk' with your shoelaces tied together. Or it's like trying to get a good night's sleep whilst listening to your iPod on full volume...

You get the idea. Self-sabotage certainly ain't big or clever!

Yes, it's safe to say that I am not a big fan of self-sabotage; that I believe the world is a worse place because of it; that the Self Help Collective is here to say to each and every site visitor (including me) "love yourself - it's more fun" :-)

Let's see what the damage is then, shall we, by taking Debbie Ford's self sabotage quiz...

The Self Sabotage Scale - Are You Headed in the Wrong Direction...

Self sabotage quiz - what Debbie Ford has to say...

Copyright 2008, Debbie Ford. Do not re-use without permission.
www.debbieford.com

The Self-Sabotage Scale: Are You Headed in the Wrong Direction?

1. How long have you been working on the same issues, be they in the area
of your career, health, intimate relationships or finances?
A. Less than 12 months
B. 1-3 years
C. More than five years
D. More than ten years

2. In the past 12 months, how many times have you misplaced something
important, gotten a traffic ticket, had an accident, or destroyed something of
value?
A. None
B. Once or twice
C. More than five times
D. More than ten times

3. How often do you feel phony, inauthentic, or find that it takes a lot of
effort to get people to perceive you in a certain way?
A. All the time
B. Occasionally
C. Almost never
D. Never

4. If your friends, co-workers and family members were interviewed, would
they say that you complain…
A. Seldom to never
B. Maybe once a day
C. Frequently
D. All the time

5. In the past 12 months, how many times have you said something that you
later regretted, whether immediately or over time?
A. None
B. Once or twice
C. More than five times
D. More than ten times

6. After you've achieved a personal goal – reached your desired weight,
paid off your credit cards, organized your home or office, etc. – which of the
following emotions are you more likely to experience?
A. Relieved that you made it but wary that you may backslide into old behaviors
B. Entitled – you deserve a reward for all your hard work!
C. Motivated by your success and committed to keeping up the good work
D. Resentful that you had to work so hard in the first place

7. How often do you notice yourself feeling inadequate, not good enough,
unloved, or unworthy?
A. All the time
B. Occasionally
C. Almost never
D. Never

8. On a scale of 1-10, how willing are you to speak your truth, even if it
runs contrary to the opinions of others?
A. 8-10; I am very willing to speak my truth.
B. 5-7; Most of the time I am willing to speak my truth.
C. 3-5; I am occasionally willing to speak my truth.
D. 1-2; I am almost never willing to speak my truth.

9. In your life right now, your primary focus is on…
A. Advancing your career, improving your health, building wealth, or
deepening your relationships
B. Managing strained relationships or "putting out fires" at work and at
home.
C. Making measurable progress toward your goals over a reasonable
period of time.
D. Trying to avert or avoid immediate disaster in the area of your
finances, relationships, health or career.

10. What percentage of the time can you count on yourself to keep your
word and uphold your promises – whether to yourself or to another?
A. Less than 10%
B. Less than 25%
C. About half the time
D. Most of the time

11. How much time each day do you spend gossiping – whether talking
about someone you know, reading tabloids or watching gossip TV?
A. None
B. Less than one hour a day
C. More than one hour a day
D. More than three hours a day

12. Which of the following statements would you use to describe your life?
A. Most of the time, things work out fairly easily for me.
B. I have many talents and gifts, but do not use them to their fullest
potential.
C. I am riddled by bad luck and find myself in one bad situation after
another.
D. I have to work hard just to maintain the status quo.

13. How many hours a day do you spend working toward your long-term
goals?
A. None
B. Less than twenty minutes per day
C. An hour or more per day
D. You have no long-term goals

14. How frequently do you feel mistreated, misunderstood, or taken
advantage of – in either your personal or professional life?
A. Every day
B. Frequently
C. Occasionally
D. Seldom to never

15. When asked to do something that you have no interest in doing, you are
most likely to…
A. Say no with a clear conscience
B. Say no but feel guilty about it
C. Say yes but not follow through
D. Say yes but feel resentful about it

16. Imagine that your life is a house with many rooms. How many people
do you allow to see all of your rooms?
A. Nobody
B. One significant person – a spouse, lover, best friend, parent, etc.
C. A small handful of people know me that well
D. There are many people in my life who know me that well

17. When you feel hurt by someone or something, what do you tend to do?
A. Keep it to yourself
B. Reflect, forgive, and move on
C. Confront the situation head-on
D. Talk about it to everyone but the person involved

18. When you get an impulse or an idea about how to improve some aspect
of your life, you usually…
A. Ignore it completely
B. Take a few steps in the right direction but rarely see the project
through to the finish line
C. Tell yourself that you'll "get to it one of these days"
D. Create a support structure around yourself to ensure that you take
action.

19. The last time you found yourself with a block of unexpected free time,
what did you do?
A. Squandered it by catalog shopping, watching TV or surfing the
internet
B. Used the opportunity to move forward on an important project
C. Relaxed and rejuvenated yourself by taking a nap, meditating or
reading
D. Your life is so hectic that you can't recall an occasion when you had
an unexpected block of free time

20. When you make a mistake, are you more likely to…
A. Be gentle with yourself and resolve to do things differently in the
future?
B. Put things in perspective by acknowledging yourself for what you did
right?
C. Fall into a downward spiral of self-criticism?
D. Interpret your misstep as evidence that you are incompetent, and stop
trying?

And now, "the scores on the doors"...

Calculating Your Score: Use the following key to determine how many
points you scored on each question, then add up your total number of points.

And now, what it all means...

Assessment:

If you scored between 3 – 37 points: You are in the neutral zone, which
means that you are free from many of the internal beliefs and wounds that
give rise to self-sabotaging behaviors. You have high self-esteem, your
actions are closely aligned with your values, and you are most likely making
great forward progress toward your long-term goals. Keep on loving and
listening to yourself.

If you scored between 38 – 75 points: You may be keeping self-sabotage at
bay for the moment, but you are also using a lot of effort to repress and hide
parts of yourself and your life that you do not like. The energy you are using
to keep things from spinning out of control – whether at work, at home, or
with your health and well being – would be put to better use if it were
directed toward achieving your goals and desires. Read Why Good People
Do Bad Things to find love and acceptance for the parts of yourself you
dislike. Ultimately, self-love is the most effective antidote to self-sabotage.

If you scored between 76 – 112 points: You either spend a lot of time and
energy trying to manage other people's opinions of you, or you are deeply
resigned about the conditions of your life. This reflects a build up of toxic
shame, which erodes your self-esteem and paralyzes you from taking
corrective actions. If left unchecked, the internal chaos you are experiencing
may lead you on a crash course for disaster. The good news, however, is
that every act of self-sabotage presents an opportunity to awaken you to
what is truly important. Read Why Good People Do Bad Things, and you'll
begin to see how your deepest pain, when digested and understood, is
designed to lead you to your greatest destiny.
END

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Debbie Ford is author of Why Good People Do Bad Things: How to Stop Being Your Own Worst Enemy

Note: download Debbie Ford's Self Sabotage Quiz here! ( Right-click, and save to your desktop. PDF format requires Adobe PDF reader.)

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