“We learn our belief systems as very little children, and then we move through life creating experiences to match our beliefs. Look back in your own life and notice how often you have gone through the same experience.” -Louise L. Hay
Have you ever stopped yourself from taking a step forward, because you didn’t believe you could?
“What is meant to be, will be,” says everyone, but did you know that this is a limiting belief?
A limiting belief is the voice in your mind that tells you you can’t be, do or have something.
Where does this come from?
Many of our beliefs of self and the world around us are developed before we hit the age of 10.
By the time a child is 5 years old, the brain is comparable to an adult brain in size and volume. In a healthy child, learning, memory, motor control, and every other brain function is almost completely developed via synapses, which are responsible for the basics of human social behavior: movements, thoughts, memories, and feelings.
Before we even spent a decade on this planet, we learned how to be humans from our surroundings, by watching and observing. Overtime, we collect evidence to verify our beliefs through peer interactions, personal experiences, and knowledge we acquire.
Some of us pick up bad habits; some of reject them. But the one thing that we all have in common are pesky limiting beliefs. Everyone has them.
Let’s say you think you lack motivation. This is the filter that will shape your productivity in all that you do. Your brain will constantly seek evidence to verify this belief. Meanwhile, your “lack of motivation” could simply be a result of your environment making you feel unsupported and drained.
The good news is they can be shifted.
Transforming your limiting beliefs into empowering beliefs starts with awareness. Take some time to identify yours by answering questions like:
How do you talk to yourself? About yourself? To others? About the world?What do you really want but can’t seem to go after?What do you feel you deserve?
On a quest to figure out my own limiting beliefs surrounding self-image, goals, success, values and money, I committed to keeping up with a journal. As often as I can, I’ll spend time reflecting on the things I’ve recently experienced, how they made me feel, and how I reacted. More and more, I’m learning what makes me tick, so I can rewire my brain to align with what I consider my success.
You’re stronger and more capable than you know. Once you pinpoint the beliefs holding you back, practice defying them and watch your reality transform.