We want to make change, yet we feel stuck in the way things are right now. We hold on to the belief that we don’t deserve the change or maybe that we aren’t up to making the change happen. Most of our beliefs are misinterpretations about our past, based on our painful and pleasurable experiences. We want to avoid pain, so if something causes us to feel bad, we tend to avoid it in the future. The biggest problem, as I see it, with these beliefs is that they keep us from living up to our real potential.
During the late Medieval period, around the 15th to 17th centuries, a weird psychiatric disorder swept through Europe. Many people believed that they were made of glass and were likely to shatter into pieces with even the slightest bit of contact. This was later named the “Glass delusion” and was recorded in the research journal History of Psychiatry. This caused people to avoid human contact so as not to get shattered. They wore extra layers of material to protect themselves and went to great lengths to avoid shattering. How difficult must life be if even a hug is considered perilous?
Maybe we have learned since then that we are not made of glass and that we won’t shatter, but I wonder what beliefs about relationships, intelligence, emotions or dreams are holding us back?
If you want to live fully and begin to make changes that matter then it is time to take a look at those thoughts and behaviors that are holding you back. It is only when we begin to honestly question our beliefs that we can experience a break through. We want to stop identifying with our limitations. We have to let go of what others think about us and decide who we really are. When held up to the light, is there any veracity to what we think about ourselves?
It is time to start testing those assumptions we have been living under. Time to push the limits and see just what we are capable of. Even if something is true for a friend, it may not be true for you. If a friend tells me that a box is too heavy to lift, and that friend is half my size, maybe it is too heavy for them, but not me! These days, when someone tells me I can’t do something, I have to test the theory.
Steps For Changing Limiting Beliefs
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Describe what happiness would be like for you.
Write down in as much detail as you can what your happiness might look and feel like.
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List your beliefs by filling in the following statements:
- I believe I am:
- I believe money is:
- I believe people in general are:
- I believe success is:
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Find evidence to disprove any beliefs that are limiting.
For example if you said I believe I am not as smart as my co-workers, list any and all awards, promotions and accolades you have been given.
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Let others off the hook.
To hold onto anger towards another for the past is like drinking poison with hopes they will die. It just doesn’t work. So, make a list of those who have offended you and them imagine them moving out and away from you, becoming less important. Imagine yourself becoming stronger and more powerful as you cross each one off your list.
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Schedule face to face time with happy people.
List 3 people who you believe are happy, positive people. Now set up a time to reach out to them and arrange a meeting to enjoy sharing time.
