Your Limiting Beliefs Are Holding You Back

What if the thing holding you back isn’t your circumstances, but what you believe about yourself? In this track, you’ll explore how limiting beliefs can influence the decisions you make and stop you from taking action towards what you want. You’ll be guided through three practical ways to question the thoughts that are holding you back, look at situations differently, and choose thoughts that support your next step. You’ll finish with a simple reminder that you don’t always need to feel ready before you take action.

Transcript

Your limiting beliefs are holding you back from what you want. What if the reason why you're waiting isn't what you think it is? You might be thinking, I'm waiting for the right time. Or perhaps you're waiting until you have enough money. Or maybe you're waiting until you feel ready. And I get it, Because those can feel like very real reasons for not doing something. You might want to change your career, Start a business, Make money, Improve your relationship, Get healthier, Or finally, Do something you've been thinking about for years. Yet sometimes the thing that is actually stopping you isn't the situation. It's what you think about yourself. You see, Your thoughts are influencing your decisions. So I want you to think about something you want to do. And think about what you say to yourself when you're considering doing it. Perhaps it sounds something like. . . I'm not ready. I don't know enough. What if I get it wrong? I can't afford it. Someone else is already doing this. Maybe I should wait until things are easier. The problem is that we often treat these thoughts as facts and we don't stop and question them. We simply believe them and then make decisions based on them. We are choosing unconsciously to be limited by our beliefs. And that's why limiting beliefs can have such an impact. You see, A limiting belief is a belief you have about yourself, Other people, Or the world that limits what you believe is possible for you. And because you believe it, You don't necessarily recognise it as a belief. You see it as truth. So how do you change what you're doing? It's definitely not telling yourself to just think positively, Because that doesn't help when you feel like there is a genuine problem in front of you. If you don't have the money, You don't have the money. If you don't have the skills yet, You might genuinely need to learn them. If something is going to be difficult, You need time to work out how to make it easier. Instead, We can look at what you are making the situation mean and whether the thoughts you are having are actually helping you. Some questions that you can ask yourself that would be useful are. What evidence do you have that this is true? What would you do if you knew you couldn't get it wrong? What are you assuming? What would you tell a friend in exactly the same situation? And perhaps most importantly, What could you think instead that would help you take the next step? Here are three things you can do when your thoughts are holding you back. Number one. Start questioning the thought rather than automatically believing it. This is useful because a thought can feel true simply because you have repeated it for a long time. When you notice yourself thinking, I'm not ready, I can't afford it, Or I don't know what I'm doing. Just stop and ask yourself whether it is actually a fact or an assumption you have made. Write the thought down and then look for evidence that supports it and evidence that challenges it. You are not trying to convince yourself that everything is fine. You are giving yourself the chance to see the situation more objectively. If you start doing this regularly, You may find that some of the decisions you thought were impossible are actually decisions you can make. Number two, Ask yourself what you would do if you felt more confident. This is useful when self-doubt is influencing your decisions because it separates what you want to do from the fear you have around doing it. Think about the situation you are facing and imagine that, For a moment, You believed you were capable of handling whatever happened next. What would you do? Would you have the conversation? Apply for the job. Put yourself forward. Start the business. Ask for the money. You don't need to suddenly feel confident before taking action. The point is to identify the action that fear is currently stopping you from taking. The more you practice making decisions based on what you want, Rather than what fear is telling you, The more confident you can become in your ability to handle what comes next. Number three, Replace the thought with something that supports the action you want to take. This is useful because your brain is going to give you thoughts whether you ask for them or not, So you might as well. Start choosing which ones you want to give it more attention to. If your usual thought is. . . I don't know what I'm doing. You could ask yourself. What do I need to learn? If you think. It's not the right time. Ask. What could I do now that would move me closer? If you think. I'm going to get this wrong. Try, I can learn from whatever happens. The new thought needs to feel believable to you. The point is to create a positive affirmation that is believable and is a more useful way of looking at the situation. And over time, This can change the decisions you make, The actions you take, And ultimately, What is possible for you. And you don't have to wait until everything feels right. There will always be a reason to wait. There will always be something you don't know, Something you haven't got enough of, Or something that could go wrong. Sometimes waiting is the right decision. Sometimes it's simply fear dressed up as a sensible reason. That's why I think it's worth paying attention to the thoughts behind your decisions. And that is because you might discover that the thing you thought was stopping you was never actually the whole story. You might not need more time. You might not need more money. You might not need to feel completely ready. You might simply need to question the thoughts that are telling you that you can't. And then decide what you want to do next.