De-coding Limiting Beliefs
Do you have goals you want to achieve? Most likely, you seek career advancement, want to start a business, find the love of your life, or lose-weight. Growth is a powerful human need, and we all have desires in life. So what’s stopping you? Any answer you give to that question should be assessed whether it is a fact or an excuse. The only thing that is truly stopping you are your own beliefs.
Beliefs are our worldviews which are formed ever since our childhood. Our childhood is like a sponge and we catch on to the behaviours without having logical reasons. The formation of beliefs results from evidence, facts, or repeated results. A pattern is formed because we have seen things line up with the same end results due to which our beliefs get solidified. Or perhaps you have seen someone you relate to or look up to like a parent or caregiver, believe in or do certain things, and that carries forward with you.
As a child, we believed that the world was your canvas, you believed you could fly or you could run and chase the aeroplane. You believed in your infinite potential. Some beliefs are good, but some beliefs we catch on that can limit our potential.
However, as you age, you are introduced to an unending list of rules about how things ‘should’ function, which can cause the creation of limiting beliefs. It’s okay if you have a particular belief because you have seen it growing up. However, our awareness of it should not be used to blame our past. For instance, if you keep blaming that your attachment issues result from your parents neglecting you; you will stagnate your growth and get stuck in the cycle of victim mentality.
Instead, we need to understand that as we grow up; we are empowered to make our own choices, which can help modify our beliefs and see the world through a wider lens. We need to realise that we have the exposure, knowledge, and everything else to make our own choices. At times, we sabotage ourselves from reaching our full potential, as we use our limiting beliefs as an excuse to find an easy way out.
Every time when we act out our beliefs, it turns into our patterns and then becomes our autopilot method to handle things and plays a part in every decision that we make. These beliefs either take us to success or hold us from having a more successful life.
A limiting belief is a thought or state of mind that you think is the absolute truth and stops you from doing certain things. These beliefs could be about yourself, people, or the world. Limiting beliefs can have several negative effects on you. You may not be able to make wise choices, take advantage of new opportunities, or reach your full potential because of them. Ultimately, limiting beliefs can keep you stuck in a negative state of mind and hinder you from living the life you truly desire.
I would like to tell you about a baby elephant, whose foot was tied to a fence with a rope when he was a baby. The young elephant tried to run away from the fence when he was small, but was unable to do so because he lacked the stamina back then, but as he grew up, he turned 150 kgs and that rope was too tiny for him to break, but he never tried, because as he grew up, he developed the belief that he could not do so. This belief was now holding him back from achieving his full potential.
Similarly, the beliefs we set as we are growing up, restricts us from exploring and discovering our potential. For example, if I scored badly in English as a child, I would never explore the option of becoming a writer, even though you have become better at the language or if I didn’t earn a certain amount, I would be considered a failure for myself.
Limiting beliefs can keep you from doing important things, like asking out your crush or taking that solo backpacking trip or having larger career goals. Based on our beliefs, we determine what is reasonable behaviour. Some limiting beliefs unnecessarily hold us back from who we want to become. Our limiting beliefs hold us back in place without us being aware of it, just like the elephant stuck to the fence post
We need to understand that we should not be stuck to the same beliefs, and look at life only through one lens. We can achieve the same end results through multiple means. A good example would be, if you want to start a business, but have no resources for an MBA, you can still start your business and eventually get an MBA after a few years. Therefore, you shouldn’t give yourself an excuse that I’m not successful because I don’t have money. You restrict your potential by giving yourself excuses when you have blinders to other options and possibilities.
The way out is to understand that: How did that belief come from and what is the root of it? We need to review, catch, and decode that thought.
s it something that can be changed?
Am I doing something because it has worked for everyone else?
Why was this formed ?
Why can’t it change?
What is the surrounding evidence?
If you think in black and white, you are building a limiting belief and believing that one way is the only way. However, life is anything but absolute. There are many ways to do things, and none of them are infallible or definite. Every event falls in between the spectrum. As you get into that challenging phase, you realise that there are other options. It doesn’t have to be black or white, it can be dark grey, light grey, dark white and so many other beautiful pastels.
The faster we work on challenging our limiting beliefs, the more colourful our future life will be. I mean why wait to go skydiving or asking out your crush!!
Another benefit is it will be better for the future generation as we will become accepting of the new things that are happening. For instance, you understand that in the past, idol worship and arranged marriages were prevalent back in the day, but now people are becoming more aware and understanding the why behind the things, which has led them to break through years of limiting beliefs and conditioning to define their own “conventions.”
So are you ready to switch things up and embrace a new narrative? If you can reprogram your thoughts and awareness, you will definitely create a courageous and confident mindset. So why not rewrite your story around new life-enhancing beliefs and know yourself better? What have you got to lose?
