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Limiting beliefs can show up in the strangest places. You may not even be aware that you have them — or that they’re affecting the way you see your life and the people around you. But limiting beliefs are usually lurking somewhere in the background, silently sabotaging your hopes and dreams, and holding you back from what you really want out of life. Overcoming limiting beliefs is no easy task. Even if they don’t seem to have a direct impact on your current situations, it can take time and effort to actively start recognizing them, challenge their validity, and create new positive habits that replace them with more empowering outlooks on life. Read on to learn more about how limiting beliefs form, how they show up in your life, and how to identify and start challenging them before they turn into self-sabotaging habits for good.
What are limiting beliefs?
Simply put, limiting beliefs are the things that you tell yourself that cause you to feel like you’re “not enough.”
They’re usually either negative or inaccurate (e.g., you might tell yourself that you’re not good enough at writing, because you don’t feel as though you’re any good at it).
When you have limiting beliefs, you often end up feeling bad about yourself — or you may even let other people’s opinions of you affect your self-esteem. A person who feels bad about themselves is much more likely to give up than a person who feels good about themselves.
Psychologists aren’t exactly sure why we have these types of thoughts, but they can often be traced back to something that happened in our childhood. Most likely, you had a parent who told you that you couldn’t do something, or that you weren’t good enough at something. These negative messages may have stuck with you, causing you to believe that you’re “not enough” in certain areas of your life.
Why do we have limiting beliefs?
Limiting beliefs are usually the result of negative childhood experiences.
They’re like a security blanket for your mind — a way to comfort yourself when you feel insecure and inadequate. So, why spend time and effort trying to bust out of a security blanket if you feel like it’s what you need right now?
For example: If you grew up in a family where your parents told you that you weren’t good enough to play baseball, you might end up believing that you’re not good enough to be whatever you want to be in life. You might subconsciously tell yourself that you don’t deserve to be where you are, because you don’t feel “enough” to deserve it.
How to identify and challenge your own limiting beliefs
If you’re ready to start actively busting out of your limiting beliefs, follow these steps.
- Instead of dwelling on negative thoughts, try to focus more on positive ones.
- Instead of looking for reasons to be unhappy, try to turn your attention towards finding reasons to be happy.
- If a certain belief feels particularly false or untrue to you, try to identify what it is about the belief that seems inaccurate.
- Keep in mind that it’s not a bad thing to question and challenge your own beliefs. It’s only a bad thing to do if you do it out of a sense of “guilt” or “shame.”
- If you notice yourself engaging in self-sabotaging behaviors, such as self-criticism, ruminating, or self-doubt, try to bring those back to your attention and try to question them.
- Also keep in mind that, although it might feel good to bust out of your limiting beliefs, it’s much better in the long run.
4 ways you can start challenging your own limiting beliefs right now
There are a number of ways that you can start challenging your own limiting beliefs.
Some might feel more natural than others, but they all have the same goal: b e more positive and self-affirming in your own life, and less prone to self-sabotaging behaviors and attitudes.
- Try to be more mindful.
- Make a conscious effort to be more positive and self-loving.
- Make it a goal to be more kind and forgiving towards yourself.
- Find someone to talk to who will help you keep your views on life more optimistic.
Conclusion
In summary, limiting beliefs form when we have a subconscious belief that causes us to feel like we’re not good enough. They may come from negative experiences in your childhood, or they may simply be false beliefs that you’ve developed in your own mind. Limiting beliefs are usually subconscious, meaning that they often cause no obvious problems in your life. But they can still hold you back from reaching your goals and enjoying the life you deserve.
Limiting beliefs are usually subconscious, meaning that they often cause no obvious problems in your life. But they can still hold you back from reaching your goals and enjoying the life you deserve. Overcoming them is no easy task. But it doesn’t have to be!
If you’d like to start actively busting out of your limiting beliefs, there are a few things you can do. First, identify which beliefs are holding you back from the life you want to lead. Second, try to challenge their validity and identify more positive ways of thinking. Finally, make a commitment to break out of your limiting beliefs and create a more positive and fulfilling life for yourself.
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