Written by SAORI | September 28, 2023
Do you want to reach your full potential and become your best self? It all starts with conquering your limiting beliefs.
Your beliefs shape your thought patterns, which in turn influence your emotions and actions, ultimately defining your reality.
As Marie Forleo says in her book Everything is Figuroutable, “long term, your beliefs determine your destiny”.
Unfortunately, these beliefs often reside in your subconscious mind, making them challenging to eliminate. But fear not! With the right techniques and dedicated inner work, you can break free from these limitations and realize your true potential.
In this post, I’ll share four proven steps that have helped me overcome my own self-limiting beliefs. So, if you’re ready, grab a pen and notebook, and let’s begin ✨
1. identify your limiting beliefs
The first step to overcome your limiting beliefs is to identify them.
While you may already be aware of some of your limiting beliefs, many remain hidden deep within your subconscious mind, silently shaping your life without your conscious knowledge.
But don’t worry!
There’s a simple trick that can help you uncover these hidden barriers.
Start by reflecting on your major life goals—those dreams and ambitions you yearn to pursue – but haven’t made progress toward. Behind each of these unfulfilled dreams lies a limiting belief, often disguised as a justification.
Let’s illustrate this with an example: imagine you dream of becoming a professional dancer, yet you haven’t taken any steps toward this goal. The justification might be, ‘I don’t have the right body type for professional dance,’ which is merely a cover for the underlying limiting belief, ‘I am not good enough to become a professional dancer,’ residing in your subconscious mind.
This example serves as a clear demonstration, but the concept applies to any unexplored dream or goal in your life. For each aspiration left unattended, there’s a limiting belief quietly holding you back.
Now it’s your turn!
Grab a notebook and make a list of your major life goals that you’ve yet to pursue. Take the time to identify the limiting belief concealed behind each one. Then, strike through each of these limiting beliefs and write “BS” next to it.
Once you’ve completed this exercise, you’ll be ready to move on to step 2.
2. formulate new positive beliefs about yourself
Now that you’ve identified your limiting beliefs, the next step is to replace them with new, empowering beliefs that will propel you toward the achievement of your dreams. This step is fundamental because these new beliefs will essentially script the narrative of your life. Therefore, it’s crucial to ensure that they instill a sense of power and confidence in you.
To make this process effective, keep these key principles in mind when crafting your new beliefs:
1. Personal: Your new beliefs should resonate with you on a personal level. They should reflect your values, aspirations, and unique qualities.
2. Positive: Ensure that your new beliefs are positive in nature. Instead of focusing on what you lack or what you can’t do, shift your mindset to what you can achieve and the strengths you possess.
3. Present Tense: Frame your new beliefs in the present tense. This helps your subconscious mind interpret them as current truths rather than future aspirations.
4. Visual: Make sure that your new beliefs evoke a vision in your mind. Painting a vivid mental picture of yourself living your dream and experiencing the benefits of your newfound beliefs will help you make them more powerful.
5. Emotional: Infuse your beliefs with emotion. Feel the excitement, confidence, and joy that these beliefs bring into your life. Emotions can be powerful motivators.
3. take actions that prove your limiting beliefs wrong
Now that you’ve identified your limiting beliefs and formulated new, empowering ones, it’s time to reprogram your mind so it aligns with your new beliefs.
To do this, you can repeat your new beliefs and/or write them down daily.
But the most effective way to solidify your new beliefs is through action. If you’ve written down that you’re a capable, hard-working, and confident individual, it’s time to demonstrate it. Prepare diligently for that important meeting at work, invest in studying, and speak confidently in various situations.
Make a to-do list with daily / weekly / monthly activities to do to prove your new beliefs right and start checking that list off.
If you don’t do this third step, it will be really hard to overcome your limiting beliefs.
Each day, as you prove to yourself that your new beliefs are real, you’ll come to understand that the old limiting beliefs were never an accurate reflection of who you truly are. Stay committed, take action, and watch your life transform.
4. build a system to be consistent with your inner work
Overcoming your limiting beliefs is a journey that requires time, dedication, and effort. Transformation doesn’t happen overnight.
To solidify your new beliefs and ensure they become the guiding script of your life, it’s crucial to maintain consistent action.
With the demands and distractions of daily life, it’s easy to forget the inner work you’re doing and revert to old habits. To safeguard your progress, consider building a structured system that keeps you on track.
What I recommend is to use a bullet journal and / or a productivity and note-taking app such as Notion and:
- write down your intention(s) at the beginning of each month
- write down 2-3 actions that you must take to prove your limiting beliefs wrong at the beginning of each week
- at the end of each month, reflect on how the previous month went (what did you learn? what went well? what didn’t go so well?) and write down how you can do better the following month
If you find it challenging to keep the promises you’ve made to yourself, consider seeking the support of an accountability partner. Last year, I decided to break a really bad habit that I had, so I told a friend of mine that whenever I caught myself doing it I would give her 5$, and – let me tell you – this strategy worked extremely well!
I really hope that you enjoyed this post and that the 4 steps will help you to overcome your limiting beliefs, reach your full potential and achieve your dreams ✨
I wish you a wonderful day and remember, you are, have always been and will always be, enough.
Love Saori