For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.
1 John 5:4
Our beliefs can either bind us or empower us. Unfortunately in most cases, our beliefs aren’t things we’ve chosen or thought over carefully, but things we’ve picked up over the years from a variety of sources that serve to limit our opportunities and potential.
Sometimes our limiting beliefs even do a good job of killing our passion and hope!
The good news is that we can alter our beliefs with just a little work and with new beliefs that reinforce our passions and goals the sky is the limit.
How do we change our beliefs? Follow these simple steps.
Step 1: Identify Your Limited Beliefs.
This is where it starts. If you can’t identify something, it’s next to impossible to intentionally change it. Where do we begin with our limiting beliefs? Consider the “I am” statements you catch yourself making or thinking. Many of these have been carried with us from childhood and picked up by less than the perfect situations that come with growing up.
Do you catch yourself saying or thinking “I am stupid”. “I am a failure” or “I am unlucky” or worse? These are deep limiting beliefs that need to be transformed if you want to achieve your dreams.
Here’s a winning strategy: instead of considering beliefs true or false, identify them as useful or not useful. If your beliefs help you move towards your goals they are useful. If they slow you down they are not useful.
Identifying your limiting beliefs is the first step in replacing them!
Step 2: Choose a More Empowering Belief.
This step doesn’t require very much explanation. Once you have identified your limiting belief what is it appropriate to replace it with?
If your old belief was “I am always going to be poor!” Why not replace it with “I have unlimited potential to become wealthy!”
Or if your old belief were “I am stupid!” Why not replace it with “I can learn anything I need to, in order to be happy and successful!”
I think you get the idea.
Step 3: Cut the Emotional Ties to the Limiting Belief.
Quite often we maintain limiting beliefs because we have hidden emotional ties to them that offer a kind of subconscious “comfort” state we habitually fall into.
For example when we think “I am stupid” it could remind us of when our mother called us “dumb” and bring us back in a way to our childhood years.
This is a kind of emotional pay off for accepting the limiting belief. The big question is – is it worth it? In most, if not all cases it isn’t.
Once you are clear about what emotional pay off you are getting from the limiting belief and you are able to acknowledge you are losing out on the exchange you have come a long way towards overcoming it.
Clarity and understanding are your friends when you are building hope towards a better future!
Step 4: Establish Proof for your New Belief.
Now the final step is establishing as much emotionally charged proof to yourself as possible for your new belief. This will allow it to manifest powerfully. Take your time with this – the more proof the better.
Here’s another example: If you’re limiting belief were “I am ugly” going over all the times you have attracted interesting people or have been complimented on your looks to affirm your new belief “I am attractive!” This formula applies no matter in what area the old and new beliefs fall.
You are now ready to start altering your limiting beliefs and building the foundation of the new you! Don’t hesitate – take action!
