Identifying Limiting Beliefs That Are Hindering You

I had promised you a few tricks to identify the limiting beliefs all by yourself.  So this article is to tell you how you can go about doing just that.  But before you get down to identifying those limiting beliefs (some deep rooted from childhood) there is one thing you need to bear in mind.  Eliminate all biases that you may have had accumulated because of an ingrained belief.  For example, if you believe that you cannot trust anyone, all evidence to the contrary is probably being filtered out by you because this is deeply entrenched in your subconscious mind. 

The only manner to identify the biases you have developed is by being watchful, by being aware of your self-talk.  You have to consciously become aware of your self-talk and monitor them throughout the day.  All of us indulge in self-talk, a few may be so caught up with it that even their lips and hands may move simultaneously.  Indulgence without awareness defeats the purpose.  So become aware of your self-talk and how you often tell yourself that you are not capable of ______________, you cannot __________, you are not good at _________, etc.  Enhancing awareness is one of the things we impart at the Nirmiti Nidra workshop.

Quite obviously, you cannot overcome limiting beliefs unless you identify them.  And whereas quite a few would need professional help to identify them, many of you can easily do so using the following hacks –

Hack 1 : Set a bold goal for yourself.  Not an ordinary one, but a really bold goal.  For example, that you wish to be a millionaire/billionaire in 3 years from now.  Now start identifying all those thoughts that flit across your mind as to why this is difficult.  Isolate all the negative thoughts that surface automatically and you have a list of limiting beliefs – almost certainly more than one.  Even the thought that you will lose your close friends if you become rich is a limiting belief.

Hack 2 : Become aware of all the times that you feel doubtful, trapped, sad, helpless, frustrated, impatient, fearful, nervous, anxious, suppressed.  All those things that you are thinking of which result in these feelings is a limiting belief. 

Hack 3 : Ask yourself questions.  What is a goal I haven’t reached yet?  What stops me?  Is this belief true?  How does this belief make me feel?

Now comes the kicker – the most difficult part.  Acknowledge that these are beliefs, not truths! Evelyn Waugh wrote, “When we argue for our limitations, we get to keep them.” You choose!  What you believe is true for you!!

Adding Muscle to Your Affirmations Whilst Dealing With Limiting Beliefs

This is a continuation of the previous article which gave you an understanding of core beliefs and how one goes about dealing with them.  Do remember that you may need help in identifying the core limiting belief in some cases, which is beyond the scope of this article.  No article can substitute the work of a trained practitioner or therapist. 

Read on if you have identified a limiting belief which you are now choosing to overcome through positive affirmations.  Examples of limiting beliefs are –

”I can’t do X because of Y”

”I am not a good speaker”

“It’s too late to pursue my dreams.”

”I am not lucky”

”I am not good enough” or ”I am not good enough for...”

”It is hopeless”

”I am worthless” or ”I am useless” or ”I am lazy”

At this stage, you probably have that little voice in  your head which goes, ”Now how am I going to identify a limiting belief?”  If you have already identified the limiting belief, brilliant.  If you havent, I am going to share a little trick in my next article which you can use to identify them with relative ease.

Remember that a very deeply entrenched core limiting belief cannot easily be overwritten with an affirmation.  The belief needs to be deleted with professional help.  You cannot hide a dark stain on your dress permanently by wearing a jacket, can you?  The stain has to be removed.  However, you can certainly working on your limiting beliefs RIGHT NOW with positive affirmations by adding muscle to them.  Here is how.

Step 1 – Tell yourself every single day whenever you indulge in self-talk or whenever you remember that going forward, ”all my beliefs are in harmony with my goals”.  ”I am constantly being more aware of my limiting beliefs, ”I am reviewing, editing and transforming my limiting beliefs into empowering ones.”

Step 2 – You want to accept that whatever you believe about yourself is what you become. You want to accept that who you are is a reflection of what you believe. Acceptance is very important for anything to change as I have explained earlier.

Step 3 – Identify the limiting belief.  I have explained this above and will shortly share a little trick that you can use.  At other times, catch yourself every time you have a negative thought or belief about yourself, similar to the examples I laid out above. Now read Step 2 again.

Step 4 – Create an affirmation that negates the old limiting belief and overwrites it.  For example –

“I’m not a good speaker” turns into “I am a great presenter and speaker. Speaking is easy for me”.   “Its too late to chase my dreams” turns into: “I am the manifestation of my dreams. I live my life to achieve every dream imaginable.” You get the gist.  The affirmation you create should ideally be in  your own words.  Read it out loud to yourself and see how it feels.  Does it feel right?  If there is the slightest doubt, revise and edit your affirmation.  Repeat this till it sounds just right to you.  It is immaterial if it sounds right to others, it must sound right to you.

Step 5 – always keep a written copy of your final affirmation. 

To practice affirmations, repeat your statements for at least 5 minutes or 21 times thrice a day.  There are different techniques and ideas that you can use, which again I shall list out in a subsequent article.  Keep in touch with my posts on this blog.

Meanwhile, here is what you do to add muscle to your affirmations.  Ready?

1.      Look at yourself in the mirror when you repeat the affirmation.  Look into your eyes and observe your facial features every day as you recite.  Notice over time what changes in your features and in your eyes.  Be grateful for the change, thank the universe.

2.      Write your affirmations 21 times each day.  Notice over time if your handwriting or style of writing including the pressure applied on paper changes.  Be grateful for the change, thank the universe.

3.      Take a deep breath imagining positive energy being drawn into you and thereby into your affirmation which you are uttering or writing.  Notice how it feels when your breathe into your affirmation.

4.      When you have mastered the basics of awareness exercises (as is taught in the Nirmiti Nidra workshop), you may be in a position to identify that part of the body which resonates with the limiting belief.  At such times, place your hand (palm) over that part of the body that was afflicted with the earlier belief.

By noticing changes you get a vital clue as to how your subconscious mind has perceived, accepted and digested the new concept you are imparting it through affirmation.  Empower yourself, take care and stay blessed!