Limiting Beliefs
What stops people from achieving their full potential in life? What is it about people who fall short of the heights you would expect them to scale?
It can’t be lack of education. It can’t be lack of money.
It can’t be coming from a broken home.
It can’t be ___________________ (fill in this space).
- Because millions of successful people have had all of these obstacles and more in their life.
What stops most people from reaching what they are capable of is their own internal limiting beliefs about what is possible for them. Have you ever noticed that top sportspeople, business leaders, political leaders and high achievers have a quiet (and sometimes not so quiet) confidence in themselves? The opposite is true of people who do badly or are down and out. These people lack confidence and often speak negatively about themselves. In short, they have strong limiting beliefs about themselves.
The fact is all of us have limiting beliefs in some areas at some level. The problem with limiting beliefs is they disempowered us and cause negative consequences. Even if you have great success in 90% of your life you might find you have a limiting belief that is holding you back in one or two areas.
You might have a great business and be fit and healthy but if you a hold the limiting belief “I am not good at relationships, I may as well stay single” you are going to experience negative consequences.
Everything might be great for you, but you hold the limiting belief “I will only ever have enough money just to get by”. That is disempowering and is going to hold you back in many ways.
You might recognize some of these:
“No matter what I do I’ll always be overweight.”
“I’ll never make progress in my career because I don’t have the education.” “The best result I can get is a bit above average.”
The good news is we can identify our limiting beliefs and deliberately cut them out of our minds and replace them with empowering beliefs.
The next step is a really powerful way to literally re-program your mind so you reverse your most disempowering limiting beliefs. I know it is easier to just keep reading rather than stopping to do the exercise but I really encourage you to take five minutes out because this can be powerfully effective.
Action Step 11:
Write down the three limiting beliefs that have been holding you back the most. Under each one, write down the negative consequences you have already experienced through holding each belief.
For example:
“No matter what I do I’ll always be overweight.”
Makes me feel hopeless. Makes me give up trying. “The best result I can get is a bit above average.”
Causes me to put up with mediocrity.
“I am no good at relationships; I may as well stay single.”
Keeps me from meeting good people, one of which could be a great partner for me.
Then on a separate piece of paper write each limiting belief with a space under each one. Now write down an opposite empowering belief for each. Then most important, cross out the limiting belief.
For example:
“No matter what I do I’ll always be overweight.”
“I can be slim, fit and in great shape!”
“The best result I can get is a bit above average.”
“I can achieve excellence if I put my mind to it!”
“I am no good at relationships; I may as well stay single.”
“I love people, people love me, and I’m going to be the perfect partner for someone!”
Close your eyes and see yourself actually cutting those limiting beliefs out of your mind and putting them in a blender and blending them. Then pour them into your sink and see them get washed away.
Write your three new empowering beliefs on a new piece of paper and read them aloud to yourself every day with energy and enthusiasm. I have used this technique myself, and it really works.