Have you ever wanted to switch things ups by doing something completely new? Only to be confronted with the many reasons why it could never work.
Everyone, at one point or another, has been confronted with the crippling disappointment that comes from feeling boxed in by limiting beliefs that affirm that you can’t do the very things that you feel so led to do. What starts as one seemingly grand idea can quickly shift the trajectory into a downward spiral.
Suddenly thought after thought shifts, taking a nosedive into all the things outside your reach. Only changing course often proves a challenge. If this resonates in the least bit, you are not alone. This post will delve into four steps that support you in letting go of limiting beliefs to better align with your highest intent.
What Are Limiting Beliefs?
Limiting beliefs are the thoughts, feelings, and emotions that prevent us from realizing our full potential. Be it good, bad, or indifferent; our beliefs can enhance or restrict our ability to achieve our intentions.
As a collective, there seems to be this notion that we must remain consistent with how we have previously identified ourselves. In other words, this implies that there is only a tiny liminal space in which we can evolve until we reach any self-imposed limitations.
Limiting beliefs are shaped by external and internal factors that dictate what we accept as possible. Whether parental figures or societal norms, our observations and experiences with “the way things are” can shape our beliefs about what is possible. At its core, our beliefs shape the lens through which we see ourselves interacting with the world around us. Seeing is believing, so seeing others who look like us do the very things which we may have believed were impossible is one way in which we can dismantle any beliefs that no longer serve.
“Whether you think you can or you can’t, either way you’re right.”
Henry Ford
How Limitations Shape Our Reality?
From the moment we were born, the ways of our culture, family, and the world have been impressed upon us every day. It runs the gamut from the good, the not-so-good, toxic, and traumatic to everything else.
For the first seven years of our lives, we each absorb practically everything that flows through our experience, some we effortlessly release, and others we unconsciously adopt as core beliefs that shape our reality. Unbeknownst to us, this subconscious programming becomes hardwired within the very fiber of our being, forming habitual patterns, beliefs, and thought processes, that shape how we interact with ourselves and the world around us.
Likewise, suppose you were raised within a family structure that persistently reaffirmed that all men are disloyal and nontrustworthy. In that case, you will inevitably believe that no matter how much a man shows acts of love, and affection, anticipating and meeting your every need, you will wholeheartedly believe him until you shift your belief. Thankfully, there are mindfulness practices that empower us to shift beliefs that no longer serve.
A 4-Steps to Letting Go of the Limiting Beliefs That Maybe Holding You Back
It’s no secret that we’ve all fallen prey to the downward spiral of lack and limitations. Next thing you know, one limitation turns into another until you are left to forgo going after the things that may potentially set your soul on fire.
Just as easy as it is to force yourself to reside in the bottomless pit of lack and limitation, it’s exponentially harder to shift. Here is a four-step approach to letting go of the limiting beliefs that may be holding you back.
1. Increase Awareness
Increase your awareness around the spaces where you may find yourself leaning into habits that misalign with your intention if you find yourself doing the exact opposite of the very things you desire, pause and take time to observe where you are limiting yourself.
In the case of love, remain attentive when you find yourself resisting the flow of love. Only when you find yourself resisting the flow of love. Only when we make the unconscious conscious can we shift limiting beliefs.
2. Check-In
Whenever you notice yourself falling into limiting patterns, take a moment to pause and check-in. Ask yourself, am I currently blocking myself from achieving my intentions? In the event, the answer is yes, pause and take a few deep breaths and move away from reactivity, and embrace responding with intention.
3. Pause & Breathe
Anytime you find yourself falling into old habits that cause you to fall into the same old reactive patterns, pause, take a few minutes to observe what’s unfolding, and naturally breathe in through your nose, as many times as need be, to bring your attention back onto the present moment, as the breath is the one faculty that can occur in the now. Anytime you find yourself entangled in the web of old patterns, you unconsciously resist what is. Pausing and focusing on the breath redirects your awareness to engrained patterns that have unknowingly ruled the roost.
4. Exercise Compassion
Shifting old patterns that may have been entrenched into your subconscious since early childhood is no easy feat. As simple as it may seem, effecting sustainable change takes consistent, concerted effort. Naturally, there is no easy fix. Just as easy as it was to develop and unconsciously repeat the same actions repeatedly, year after year, it’s just as easy to continue along the same vein. Much like the old saying goes, if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. Releasing limiting beliefs is not a one-off; it’s a journey that calls for you to practice releasing until it becomes second nature. Let yourself release judgment or self-critique, and cover yourself with grace and compassion.
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