Our mind is our most powerful tool and the stories we believe about our self can either prevent us from growing or block us completely from learning new skills. Most of us have a fixed mindset that we don’t even question. At some point or another you’ve probably used this phrase or something similar to ‘I’ve never been a math person’ or I’m not a good swimmer’. Maybe you did poorly in school when it came to math and your teacher told you so. If this situation would repeat itself, specially at a young age, then it will become a part of your belief system over time. These beliefs let us off the hook short-term, but hurts us way more in the long-term. When we think we can’t do something or that we’re a certain kind of person, we limit our self tremendously. We stop trying even though we need a particular skill to move forward in our plans and cultivate that potential.

Our beliefs are limited and therefore we are limited. When you don’t believe you’re capable of something, then be sure you won’t be able to do it. It dictates what’s achievable and what’s not.

If you always dreamed of being a great dancer performing in front of a big audience, but you think that you don’t have the body, the balance, the rhythm, god given talent, then you won’t even set out to try. You won’t take any dance classes, try out for auditions or take any other steps in the directing leading you to that stage where the spotlights shine brightly on you. Perhaps someone once told you can’t dance and you believed them. Due to that believe you accumulated other small indications over the years reaffirming that belief. Our mind is actively searching and looking for validation of our beliefs.

We see what we already believe to be true. It can be quite a deep well to climb out of if that believe tells you you’re not good enough. The problem is that we take in these beliefs as facts, which they certainly are not. They’re our insecurities and our arrogance, our fears and our anxiety, our timidity and our doubts.

You’re as big as you challenge yourself.

And if you harbor a lot of negative core beliefs, you can bet you’re not challenging yourself nearly enough. We form our beliefs from a very young age, when we’re the most impressionable, this makes it quite strenuous to unravel them. They become the foundation of our personality, they’re the magic hat where we pull all our decisions from. It happens on such a deep subconscious level that we don’t even take notice how much this old way of thinking is holding us back.

Our beliefs are a self-fulfilling prophecy. We feel and act according to these convictions.

Write down what your limiting beliefs are and how often you didn’t do something because of them. How many opportunities you missed and how they’re holding the reins over your life. Next to it write the empowering beliefs and see what a different that can already make. Try over time to replace the negative ones with the empowering ones.

Here are some examples of limiting beliefs, they can be generic or absolutely specific.

·       I can’t handle it – I’m strong enough to handle anything I set my mind to

·       I don’t have money –  I have enough money to afford the things I need

·       I’m too old to try new things – my age gives me the experience and knowledge to try anything I desire

·       I’m ugly and fat – I’m beautiful regardless of what society’s ideal is

·       I will never find love – Love comes when I’m open to receive

·       I can’t be happy until I get that promotion – I can choose to be happy no matter the circumstances

·       I’m a failure – I accept that I can make mistakes sometimes, however this won’t stop me from trying to be the best person that I can be.

·       I’m not a good swimmer – I can be good at anything if I take a course and train myself

·       I’m not good enough to do this – I’m responsible for the life I create

·       I don’t deserve to be happy – I choose to be happy because I find myself worthy

·       I will never be successful – My success is determined by how hard I work and the effort I put in it

As mentioned before, is not an easy task to change something so embedded in your personality, but definitely possible and that is something worth your effort. Even now that I’m writing this, I feel my own limitations crawling out from down below where they lay dormant. Every now and then I feel the resistance and my mind is racing to find excuses and distractions to prevent me from writing. Thinking that my writing might not be good enough or helpful to anyone, that there are hundreds of articles and books written about this topic, what more could I possibly contribute. Writing it anyway is my empowering belief. It gives me a sense of strength that I’m defying my limitations. Doing that enough times can you a high over time, like you’ve discovered a new superpower. One that beats the shit out of the old convictions that once held you captive.

How often do you feel like you’re not living up to your full potential? Think about the limiting belief that holds you back from doing that, notice it, then replace it. Remember that you’ve had years laying that rocky road and that it takes time to pave a new, much smoother one. One where you can rollerblade over it. Thinking about the reward at the end of that road can pull you in the right direction. Because why would you choose to live in a world where you feel incompetent, unhappy and mediocre. Think about all the potential you can unlock just by replacing negative beliefs that have possibly never worked in your favor for the new incredible you that’s confident, happy and limitless.