Have you ever caught yourself saying or thinking something negative towards yourself?
I’m not good at ___.
I’m too old/young for ___.
I never know what to do.
Every time we think or speak such a statement we set limits on ourselves.
We create barriers made of our negative and limiting thoughts.
A limiting belief is a belief that we hold about ourselves, others, or the world that creates a barrier between our desire to change and our ability to act on that change.
If your go-to thought is rooted in negativity, doubt, or fear you will end up stuck. Those thoughts become deep rooted and automatic. They are barriers to progress and success.
This is why we should care. Negative thoughts and limiting thoughts are barriers that keep us from moving forward and doing great things!
Knock down the barriers with positive and empowering thoughts.
The best part about discovering your limiting beliefs is realizing that you can change how your mind views them. They don’t have to stay negative thoughts that hold you back. You can reframe them and use them as motivation.
I’m not good at ___. —-> I am learning ___.
I’m too old/young for ___. —-> I am experienced/I have new insights and I can add value.
I never know what to do. —-> I might sometimes feel uncertain, but I have done ___ in the past, and I can do ___ now.
These are just a few examples of how this process can go. Try it out!
They don’t call it a limiting belief for nothing.
I’m not a master at focusing on the positive thoughts over the limiting beliefs, but I can tell when I am remembering the positive thoughts and when I am focused on a limiting belief.
Just the other day I was talking to a friend and out popped a limiting belief. That limiting belief flew out of my mouth without hesitation. As soon as I heard my friend’s response, I knew I had spoken a limiting belief. I quickly rephrased my statement.
We all give in to our negative thoughts. The first step to overcoming those limiting beliefs is to notice when we are leaning on a limiting belief. When we are letting limiting beliefs keep us from progress.
It can be a real struggle to overcome those ingrained negative beliefs. Maybe it will be easy for some of you. If you’re like me, however, I believed all those negative thoughts for so long that recalling them became a force of habit-a habit that I needed to break.
Breaking bad habits isn’t easy, but there comes a time when it must be done.
Are you with me?
Questions: What makes a thought a limiting belief? Can you identify your top 3 limiting beliefs?
Behavior Challenge: When you catch yourself speaking or thinking a limiting belief, reframe it right then and there. Share your story in the comments by clicking the post title or here.
Please comment with any thoughts or questions related to this post.
One behavior change at a time.
