Do you ever feel like you’re not quite living up to your full potential?
Or that there’s some kind of mental block standing in your way of truly listening or understanding another perspective? You might be experiencing the phenomenon of limiting beliefs (And yup, we all have them!).
Luckily, you can overcome these self-restricting beliefs, breaking down barriers and opening the doors to worlds of opportunity.
- So, what are limiting beliefs?
- How can you identify your own?
- And, most importantly, how can you overcome them?
What are Limiting Beliefs?
Limiting beliefs are deeply ingrained perceptions or assumptions about ourselves, others, and the world that restrict our potential and hinder personal growth.
These beliefs, often formed in early life, act as invisible barriers, influencing our decisions and actions in ways that prevent us from achieving our full potential.
These beliefs can also cover a broad-range of aspects, such as how you think about how the world works, interacting with people, who you are, and more.
Some examples of limiting beliefs include:
- “If you win, I lose.”
- “You can’t trust anyone.”
- “You have to look out for yourself to get ahead.”
- “Only the super arrogant are sales people.”
- “For a good career, you have to give up other parts of your life.”
- “It’s too hard.”
- “I’m not good enough.”
- “I don’t have time.”
The downside of these limiting beliefs is when they:
- stop you from going after your dreams
- prevent you from developing relationships with people
- prevent you from creating healthy changes in your life
Limiting beliefs can further arise due to various situations in your life. They may come from family values or beliefs, education, and life experiences.
Most often, these limiting beliefs keep us in our comfort zone. They stop us from branching out, from changing who we are, and from plenty of personal growth. While we might set goals, our limiting beliefs can stop us from achieving them.
So, how can you grow past what limits you and achieve more than you ever thought possible?
Well, it starts with identifying what your specific limiting beliefs are.
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How Do I Identify My Limiting Beliefs?
Limiting beliefs are like habits; they become automatic, making them hard to spot.
So, here are a few steps to help you identify what holds you back:
Step 1: Reflect.
- Do you recall a point in time when someone hurt your feelings?
- Or when you were hesitant to move forward with something, even though you really wanted it?
- How did you react?
- How did you feel?
- What happened?
- What thoughts or opinions did you have regarding the situation?
Step 2: Write down your beliefs.
Writing these down can help organize your thoughts and keep these limits top of mind so that you can overcome them.
Step 3: Write down your challenges.
- Can you challenge these beliefs?
- What directly opposes them?
- What if you were wrong about them?
- What does that look like?
This is key to help identify how you can overcome them and navigate through them as you move through life.
Related Article: Stuck in All-or-Nothing Thought Patterns? A Look at Cognitive Distortions
How to Overcome Your Limiting Beliefs
While challenging them goes a long way in overcoming these limiting beliefs, if you’re truly dedicated to being more open-minded and shedding what’s holding you back, you can further this by asking the following questions.
“How is This Belief Serving Me?”
While we may see ourselves as victims of our beliefs, we adapted them in order to help ourselves in some way, such as avoiding putting in the work or effort to achieve our goals or avoiding failure when we do try.
Uncovering why you hold onto this belief is important. Does it help protect you in some way? Is that worth it?
“What Alternative Beliefs Can I Create?”
How can you be wrong about this belief?
Most often, it’s our own mind holding us back from branching out in the dating world or starting a new career later in life.
But here’s the real deal: You choose what you believe.
Accepting this can lead you to realize you actually have far more control over your own life than you ever realized.
And you can start testing this out.
- What ways can you breakthrough this belief in your everyday life?
- How can you prove to yourself that it is merely a limiting belief?
It’s Time to Break Through Barriers and Overcome Limiting Beliefs
Uncovering your limiting beliefs and overcoming them can help you achieve not just your full potential, but also a happier and more satisfying life.
Now, let’s leave you with a good ol’ Tony Robbins quote,
“Many people are passionate, but because of their limiting beliefs about who they are and what they can do, they never take actions that could make their dream a reality.”
So, what action do you need to take? What belief do you need to break through?
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Editor’s note: This article was originally published Nov 29, 2023 and has been updated to improve reader experience.
Photo by Joshua Abner
