Limiting beliefs are those beliefs that are holding you back. They serve no other purpose than to limit your behaviour, thoughts and actions. This results in them vastly reducing your ability to achieve and lead a successful and fulfilled life.
The good news is that these can be changed, you don’t have to just put up with them. Whilst this isn’t an easy process, it’s well worth the effort so that you can move forwards with your life.
Some examples of limiting beliefs
I’ve already outlined what limiting beliefs are but here’s the cut-down version.
A limiting belief is a negative thought you have about yourself that limits your actions.
Harbouring these beliefs leads to a loss of activity and missed opportunities due to self-doubt. Furthermore, one belief can lead to others and this can then become a downward spiral.
If you’re at all unsure what these may be, here’s a few examples:
- “I’m not good enough”
- “I’m unlucky”
- “I’m stupid”
- “I’m incapable”
- “I’m don’t deserve to be happy”
- “I’ll never be able to do that”
See where the spiral comes in?
Hopefully you get the idea from the above what could form a limiting belief. That being said, do you know what yours are? Don’t focus on them, just be mindful of them creeping into your thoughts so you can do something about them. Anything that manifests as self-doubt, fear or lack of confidence will generalling be, or be from, a limited belief.
Limiting beliefs are ingrained
Limiting beliefs can be formed at any stage of our lives, usually through a poor experience. However the vast majority of them stem from our earlier life, when we’re experiencing new things. Even those formed later on can often be traced to an earlier event due to how you view the world.
Forming in our earlier years unfortunately means that the older we get, the more ingrained they become! However no matter how deeply ingrained they are, they can be changed. What’s important here is to acknowledge that this is not your fault, circumstances are what cause these. That could be events at home, at school or even just what you’ve read/viewed from the media. This is why the ease of access to information is now both a blessing and a curse. It’s also why it’s even more important to be mindful of what you allow to enter your own headspace.
How to overcome limiting beliefs
Time to do something about those limiting beliefs you have! This is an amazing exercise to pursue as breaking free from these limitations is a very empowering event. No longer will you be held back by a lack of confidence or self-doubt.
As already mentioned, this can be a challenging process and it can take time, so be patient. Luckily the process is fairly simple, it just requires repetition of these 4 steps:
1. Identify the belief you wish to change
This is the mindful exercise I mentioned above. Notice your thoughts and even your actions to assess where they originate from. Be particularly mindful of the way you talk to yourself and note negative patterns in your thought processes.
2. Challenge the belief
Challenging the belief is the hardest step, as you’re questioning something you hold as true. The trick to this step is to base it in reality and focus on evidence. What proof do you have that your belief is true? What events have happened to justify your belief?
3. Replace the limiting belief with a new one
This is the fun part! Create a new belief that replaces the limiting one which can be as easy as just using the opposite. However you can be as liberal as you want with this, the main thing is to make it a powerful belief. You then need to apply it to yourself by visualising yourself in situations where this belief can be enacted. Visualisation as an exercise helps rewire the neural pathways in your brain, this is how you instigate change.
4. Take action
Visualisation is all good and well but nothing can be actual activity. Ensure your actions are in alignment with your new belief and reinforce them as a part of who you are. Avoid scenarios which could accidentally reinforce the old belief and keep focussed on the new. At the same time, be kind to yourself. We all slip up every so often and so will you, do not take the odd mistake as a failure.
You can perform this exercise as many times as you like for as many beliefs as you like! You can even use it to just create new beliefs, even if not replacing something particularly negative. The trick is to repeat it as that repetition is what will reinforce your new beliefs.
If you find this hard or if you’d like to be guided through this process then reach out. Let’s take your challenges like this and turn them into opportunities! It starts with a quick discovery call to understand where you need help and how we get you moving forwards.
Just remember, changing limiting beliefs can be hard and is a gradual process. It requires patience and persistence but you will get there.
Don’t let your limiting beliefs stop you from reaching your full potential and leading a successful and fulfilled life!