Self-Limiting Beliefs

It is easy for limiting beliefs to creep up on us when we least expect them. Even when believe based beliefs support us, sometimes a limiting belief can stop in its tracks and totally halt or undermine everything in its track, including our own peace of mind and ability to enjoy life fully. What are some of these beliefs? Well, they include the belief that:

-I can’t do that/someone else will do that/I can’t do this/I won’t be successful/life won’t be fun/etc. -I don’t like this/they won’t like this/life isn’t going to be fun/whatever/etc. -That’s me, I’m not good enough/maybe I’ll never be/death won’t happen. -That won’t work/life is too short/I’ll never get rich/etc. -I won’t ever find my true love/that someone I love will ever find me.

Although each of these beliefs may apply to you at one time or another, the problem with each of them is that they are self-limiting beliefs. The beliefs that I just mentioned are self-limiting because they either say that you can’t achieve something, can’t do something, won’t achieve something, won’t be successful, aren’t good enough, or will never find your true love. When you cling so tightly to any belief in these belief systems that you are not free to explore all possibilities, then that’s when you become stuck in a rut and start to feel like you can’t move on, and be happy.

However, by exploring all of the possibilities, including the good guys and bad guys, you can learn how to move on with a greater sense of freedom, and happiness. You have to take a good look at your beliefs, break them down, and see which ones give you a sense of peace and which ones make you feel like you’re banging your head against a brick wall. Once you figure out which of your self-limiting beliefs are holding you back from being successful, then you just need to replace those limiting beliefs with new empowering ones. Here are 4 different ways to replace your self-limiting beliefs with better ones:

Your conscious mind may not even realize what is going on with your subconscious mind. This is where the truth about yourself is suppressed by what you are led to believe is right. Your conscious mind believes that you are “good enough”, “not good enough”, “not nice enough”, “not smart enough” and so on. By forcing yourself to think and act in these ways, you are not opening your mind to new, empowering beliefs. So even if your conscious mind doesn’t know any better, you can easily find out by testing yourself.

Try this simple exercise: close your eyes and just sit, concentrating on feeling your breath and your stomach. See yourself as though you were someone very special, someone who has everything you could ever want – this helps to get rid of self-limiting beliefs. Once you feel like you have accomplished something very significant, notice how your body feels and think about how you would feel if you knew those beliefs were false.

You can also use self-help or expert psychological help in order to overcome these self-limiting beliefs. A great way to do this is through cognitive reorientation or cognitive restructuring. A cognitive reframing or behavioral therapy session will help you determine which of your beliefs are false and which must be replaced with more accurate and empowering ones. Cognitive restructuring involves breaking down the false beliefs into smaller, more manageable pieces. In cognitive reorientation, you need to find an outside source who can provide you with the additional guidance you need to change your behavior.

You must also realize that there are different ways to replace limiting beliefs so that you may start taking ownership over your life. One of the best things you can do for yourself is to replace a bad belief with a good one. Start with a belief that you know is limiting you – then take it apart piece by piece until it is no longer controlling your life. If you feel really brave, you might want to replace all your negative limiting beliefs with positive ones, and then see how easy it is to live a better life.