4 Actionable Steps To Say "Stop" To Your Limiting Beliefs

If at some point or another you’ve dealt with such running thoughts in your head while trying to do whether to do something: “no, but for me, it’s not worth it…” or “I’ve always had a problem with that” or “I don’t think I’m made for this…” then there are chances are you have a limiting belief (or many!).

We start in life with grandiose ideas and dreams, until all our bad experiences get the better of us. So we tell ourselves stories and excuses so as not to move. Over time we even come to believe our own narrative, thinking it’s true because we have already tried everything but experienced failure at one point. We thus condemn ourselves to failure before even trying.

These limiting beliefs keep you from living the life that’s right for you.

The limiting belief often arises from negative labeling, which often took place during school or at a previous failed experience and challenge. Weirdly, the brain starts wishing to conform to this labeling. It’s the same kind of mechanism that makes certain stereotypes reinforce each other (although they may not be true, to begin with).

Limiting beliefs hold us back both personally and professionally because they convince us of our inability to accomplish what we want.

Examples of common limiting beliefs:

• I could never start my business…
• I am incapable of sticking to a new habit
• I am not sociable
• I don’t have good public speaking skills so so I can’t make this presentation.

Our beliefs help us determine:

• What one is or not
• What can or cannot be done
• What should or should not be done
• What others are or are not;
• How are others perceiving us

Thus, according to our beliefs, we consider ourselves:

• Worthy or not;
• Competent or not;
• Liked or not;
• Confident or not

Other things limiting beliefs impact:

• Our moods
• Self-love
• Social relationships
• Work performance
• Self-esteem
• Self-confidence
• Mental health

To help you silence that little voice inside trying to convince you that you can’t do it, here are 4 steps to challenging and getting rid of limiting beliefs

1. Identify your limiting beliefs

I may be repeating myself when it comes to this point in many of my posts but it is because nothing is truer than this: everything starts with personal assessment and self-awareness!

Our limiting beliefs prevent us from achieving our goals, so to identify and modify them, we must start work on our self-awareness. Indeed, by turning our attention inward rather than outward, we can identify our blockages and the boundaries we have set for ourselves.

To do this :

• Write down your general beliefs;

• Write down your beliefs about everything that matters to you in life and that influences it as well;

• Categorize your notes (e.g. relationships, work, family, or friendship);

• Now the final and most important step: consider which ones help you grow and which ones limit you and stop you from moving;

2. Challenge your limiting beliefs

First of all, when you think about one of your limiting beliefs, ask yourself the following question: “What if I was wrong?”

For instance :

“You can’t take on this job, because you don’t have enough skills, you’re doomed to fail”… What if you were wrong?

Think of it this way, your limiting beliefs lose their importance because you offer yourself the possibility of seeing things differently. Of creating an alternative reality.

3. Flip the coin

Rethink everything and reformulate the negative sentences to give them a positive meaning

So if someone tells you you have a shitty memory, you have to think they’re saying, “You could have a better memory.”

4. Implementing your alternative/positive beliefs

Now, it’s time to test and try to implement your alternative beliefs in your life. The idea is to see if they’ll be relevant to your daily life, if they’ll work out for you or if you need to keep switching your limiting beliefs, creating other alternative beliefs that may work better for you

This is an important step because otherwise, it will all just stay in your head and your situation will remain unchanged, only reinforcing your limiting beliefs.

Hope you took some value from this post and that you’ll start challenging your liminiting beliefs and…YOURSEFL!

Originally published on Simily