Friday, May 26, 2006

Remove Limiting Beliefs


Our beliefs are never neutral. Thy either hold us back or move us forward, but what many of us forget, is that we choose what we believe.
Your attitudes and beliefs determine your thoughts and feelings and logically from that, you make choices and decisions. For example, if your dream is to grow your business and you don't believe it's possible, you may have thoughts such as, "it's going to be too difficult," or you may feel overwhelmed by the idea. If you follow that thinking, chances are high that you will give up before you fully explore the possibilities around this dream.


On the other hand, if you believe in yourself and therefore believe in your dreams, you are more likely to realize how much you want this dream and will be more likely to act on it. A positive belief will support you while a negative belief may destroy you; or at least your dream.
The most detrimental beliefs are what I call the "The Three Human Being Biggies." The first one is scarcity and translates to thoughts or comments such as, "I don't have enough time, money or energy." The second has to do with inadequacy and sounds like, "I'm not (blank) enough." The most common fill-ins include: "I'm not: old enough, young enough, rich enough, or smart enough." Finally, the belief that can be most destructive to your dreams is not trusting. If you don't trust yourself, life or the "grand plan", it can be challenging to even have dreams, much less pursue them.


How do you change from a limiting belief (that holds you back) to an empowering belief (that can catapult you forward or set you free)? I can answer that in one word. Choice. I will repeat; we choose what we believe and if we don't manage our mind and pay attention to what we are thinking, what we often get by default, are old limiting beliefs.
Choosing an empowering belief that will support you over a limiting belief that may sabotage you makes sense, but it can feel like a leap of faith that's just too big to take. If that's the case try this approach. The way to shift is through willingness, courage and practice. Be willing to choose a new positive belief. Demonstrate your courage by acting on that new belief and then practice doing it over and over again until it changes from a negative belief to a positive belief, and ultimately to a transparent belief. This means it no longer exists and is not even on your radar. It's gone!


Can it be this easy? If you believe it can be and are willing to give it a shot, then yes. And why should you believe it? How about because it matters to you. Can you believe in something simply for this reason and then prove that you really do believe in it, that you truly do have faith, by acting on it? This is where miracles and transformation occur.