We all have goals and dreams that we would love to pursue. Maybe it's getting a promotion, starting your own company, running a half marathon, having financial freedom, finding love, buying a house.... the list is endless! These are thoughts that set our souls on fire but for some reason, we don't pursue them with the intensity that we should.
Why is that? What is stopping you from achieving your dream?
Would you hate me if I told you that the answer you just told yourself was an excuse, not a factual reason? That it is most likely a limiting belief and not something that is backed by fact, but most likely a deeply ingrained story that we picked up when we were small children? It's okay if you get mad. I get mad at myself when I have these debates with myself in my head.
Limiting beliefs are stories that we tell ourselves about who we are. These stories were put into place in our subconscious to protect us, but in all honesty, they just end up holding us back and keep us from unlocking our true potential in life. 9 times out of 10, we don't even realize that these limiting beliefs live within our minds until we begin journaling and doing personal development work to try and improve our lives. It's then, that we discover that these limiting beliefs exist and that is when we can flip the script on them.
As humans, we love our comfort zones and our routines. They exist to keep us safe from failure and heartache. If we accept the stories that we tell ourselves, we stay safe and don't have to use a lot of energy in our daily lives because they keep within the safety of our comfort zones. We end up just kinda coasting along in a bit of rut (but a comfortable rut) where we know what to expect day in and day out. It makes us feel safe and like we are in control. We most likely feel happy, but there is always a little twinge of "something is missing"in my life. It typically isn't until we allow ourselves to investigate and follow this twinge that we discover that we have been holding ourselves back from what it is we want most.
For most of us, if there isn't a guaranteed positive outcome, we will not put effort into pursuing things. If we do not believe that we can get results, we default to our limiting belief stories as to why this won't work and we do not put any effort into trying. We lack a belief in ourself and sabotage our own success, before we even start, so we do not jeopardize our comfort zone. This is the job of a limiting belief. To keep us safe and comfortable.
Do you see why it's so important to face your limiting beliefs if you want to live the life of your dreams?
Limiting beliefs can affect every area of our lives and hold us back in many ways. They are so sneaky that many of them just sound like common thoughts. Do any of these sound familiar?
I don't have the time.
I'm not smart enough.
I don't deserve (love, money, success, etc.)
You need money to make money.
No one in our family has ever done x,y or z.
This is just the way I am.
The first step is rewriting the story of your limiting beliefs is to identify them:
Write down your negative thoughts or reasons why you cannot do something you would like to do. (List them all out - not just one and done)
Think about where each of these came from. (Family, specific life events, etc)
Is there evidence to support that this thought is true?
Is there any evidence that contradicts this thought?
Remember, limiting beliefs are thoughts or stories that we believe to be true so we condition our lives around them. To overcome these beliefs and take that first step outside of your comfort zone, you need to be completely honest with yourself about them. There is no need for judgement or embarrassment about them because we all have them.
The beauty about our thoughts is that we can control them and change the way we look at things. We all have unlimited potential and the key is to understand that success starts with belief. We have to deeply believe in ourselves and that we are capable of creating change in our lives. Each time one of our limiting beliefs pops up to tell us no, or that we won't be successful at something, refer to your list of why it's not true and flip the script on the story. Create an empowering thought and use it to believe that you can change the story and start working toward your dreams, because you are worth it.
