Limiting beliefs SUCK. They will hold you back from all of your wonderful potential and can really suck the life out of you, so let’s uncover them and start working through them!
What is a limiting belief?
A limiting belief is something that you truly believe is the truth and that “truth” limits you in one way or another. The limiting belief could be about yourself, the world, somebody or something else, but usually they about yourself.
Some examples of common limiting beliefs are:
- I’m not good enough
- I don’t deserve that
- I’ll fail so why should I bother
- I don’t have enough experience for that
- People hate me
- Life sucks
One of the biggest issues when dealing with limiting beliefs is that you usually don’t know you have them because you only see them as the truth.
Overcoming a limiting belief
The best thing about a limiting belief is that you can overcome them! You’re not stuck with them forever, so how do you overcome a limiting belief?
♡ Become aware of the limiting belief
For you to overcome your limiting beliefs, you need to be aware of them. I want you to take some time to yourself, in private and write down any beliefs you have.
I want you to write at least 30. It doesn’t matter what they are, just anything that comes to mind about yourself and your life.
I thought I would also give a little warning that this exercise can be quite upsetting. Remember to take your time, this isn’t something that can be rushed and please, remember not to be angry or upset with yourself for whatever you write down.
Some examples of limiting beliefs I used to have were:
- I am so unlucky
- The universe hates me
- I don’t deserve the things I have
- I’m not smart enough or experienced enough to be launching a Mental Health Service
- I’m a crappy mum
I’m sure you can see why those things can be upsetting for me to even write here, let alone truly believe about myself.
♡ Find the “evidence” and break it down
I want you to take some time and find the evidence for your beliefs. Why do you feel they are true? Do you have an actual reason for believing them? Did somebody tell you that?
Let’s look at one of my beliefs – I don’t deserve the things I have
My “evidence” – there are other people who are more deserving, who work harder, who care more, who are better human beings and who are smarter than me.
Now, when looking at my well-calculated evidence (ha), it’s quite clear that my evidence SUCKS. Why do I relate everything back to somebody else? There is no true evidence. Nothing.
So, what does this mean? I have a limiting belief that I don’t deserve the things I have.
Again, this can’t be rushed, take your time, whether that is a few hours or a few days. There is no rush.
PS - this is an actual exercise I did and that was the answer I wrote down.
♡ Switch it up
Now that you’ve found your limiting beliefs and you have also proved to yourself that they aren’t true because of the lack of evidence, I want you to switch it up.
Turn over to a new page and write the opposite of them. By switching them up, you’re choosing to start a new belief which doesn’t limit you and instead empowers you.
Continuing on with the example of my limiting belief – I don’t deserve the things I have
My opposite – I am worthy of everything I have and more
♡ Reset your beliefs
Your brain will tend to hold onto beliefs but they can be reset. By carving a new path in your brain with some retraining, it can reset your belief pattern.
There are a whole bunch of techniques you can do to help reset your beliefs but my favourite is affirmations. You can use affirmations by speaking or writing your new belief each and every day.
You already have a whole list of them from when you switched them up above!
For example, my affirmation would be – I am worthy of everything I have
♡ Professional help
My last point of advice here is to seek professional advice. Some limiting beliefs are VERY hard to overcome, it’s okay to admit that. I personally had to seek professional help to overcome some of my own limiting beliefs and that’s okay. You don’t need to do anything alone and seeking professional help can only ever benefit you.
I won’t lie, overcoming your limiting beliefs takes time, so be patient with yourself, be kind with yourself and always remember that you’re a work in progress. You’ll get there!
With love
Shorina xo
Counsellor + Wellness & Mental Health Coach
Hi, I'm Shorina and I'm an Australian Counsellor + Wellness & Mental Health Coach. I'm here to support you to redefine your relationship to self and life! I incorporate a mind, body and soul wellness approach to my work with a focus on healing and mindfulness ♡