12 Strongly-Held Limiting Beliefs You CAN and Must Let Go Of

I’m a messy desk person.

And that’s fine, until I begin to bog down, forget things, and lose all my forward momentum. I feel limited and ineffective. I start to dread the start of the work day.

And that’s when I know I need to clean my desk, organize my projects, and re-evaluate my “to do” list. And you know what often happens as a result?

Suddenly other, bigger and better things have room to be seen. Fresh ideas emerge, and new energy begins to well up in my heart. I can think again! I can let go of the things that were holding me back (or getting me off track) and forge a shining new path.

Sometimes you need to clear off your mental desk in order to get some fresh energy to start living a new, better way.

Take a look at the following list of limiting beliefs. Is there something cluttering up your mental space and slowing down your progress toward a better life?

12 Strongly-Held (WRONG) beliefs about you and your life…

1. I’m not worth _______.
2. I have to say yes, or people won’t like me.
3. After I get/do/become/figure out ______, THEN I will be happy.
4. I can’t figure ______ out.
5. Nothing will ever change.
6. There’s not enough time. ( or, I’m too busy.)
7. Men/people can’t be trusted.
8. I will never be happy/loved/understood.
9. I’m not ______ enough.
10. It must be true because it feels so awful.
11. I MUST do/be/say ______ because I promised I would.
12. Starting over is not an option.

When you find one or two limiting beliefs, sometimes a whole group of related ones will emerge. And they can be slippery, so take time to write them down so that you can begin to clear them out of your life.

And of course you already know: it’s NOT just a matter of saying “I’m done with that limiting belief.” — It can be a little bit of work to clean up the tangle and mess a limiting believe makes in your life.

So here’s how you can begin clearing them out…

How to begin letting go of ANY limiting beliefs…

1. Name/write/say it. Take the time to look carefully and directly at it.
2. Remember the time in your life that you began to believe it. What were the factors that let this idea get a foothold in your life?
3. MOST IMPORTANT: Name the ways it is FALSE and holds you back. List the ways it has led you astray, made you unhappy, and kept you from growing into your potential.
   
4. Decide and write down WHY you won’t live under its rule any more.
5. Write yourself a new, improved, and also TRUE belief that will serve you faithfully and lead you toward a better future.

Another way to get out of the rut of a particularly stubborn limiting belief is to ask yourself: “How could my life be BETTER if I didn’t have this old belief holding me back?”

Once you see the possibilities of a better life without these lies, you can start traveling toward your newer, better, and more fulfilling future.

Being consistently intentional about refusing to live by the dictates of your limiting beliefs will begin, a little at a time, to erode their power in your life.

Stick with it. Enlist the help of your closest friends and mentors. And refuse to be limited by these old lies and outdated maps.

Your fresh energy and excitement will come as you make your way forward!