How to Identify Your Limiting Beliefs and How to Stop Them Now

The world is a vast place where we can experience a lot of things. Through these experiences, we can attain individual beliefs that can help us identify what is real or not.

The child’s mindset is developed as they grow up. This is the stage when limiting beliefs start to form. These beliefs can be caused by painful experiences at home or with peers.

Limiting beliefs somewhat hinder us from becoming the best version of ourselves and keeps us away from success. Do you ever felt stuck or feel guilty over something that isn’t really your fault? This post aims to help and enlighten you on how you can identify and stop limiting beliefs.

What Is a Limiting Belief?                              

Belief is a state of mind in which a person has trust and confidence that something exists. Is it as if they have faith in a person or a thing, although determining their reality and validity can be troublesome. Overcoming this difficulty can be a daily struggle, which is why empowering belief is crucial.

Our brain functions on what we perceive and what we have experienced before, which shape our beliefs in numerous ways. There are different factors that can affect one’s beliefs. These can be parents, other authority figures, friends,  and even past relationships.

Some examples of such beliefs are about yourself, expectations of other people, or how you view the world. As you go through life, you may encounter mental breakdowns that can hinder you from succeeding in different areas of your life.

Factors That Shape Limiting Beliefs

Understanding the background of limiting beliefs matters. There are several factors and causes that can affects the truth. Where does a limiting belief come from? Ever wonder what it does to you as a human being?

Bullying, for example, can scar your life and even affect your job applications. Some emotions can stop you from achieving your lifelong dream. Here are some of the factors to reflect on.

1. Your Family

The one thing you’re stuck with until your old age is your family. They are the foundation of your growth. They mold you into the best person that you can be.

Our interactions with our family affect several aspects of our lives. What knowledge and skills did they instill in us? We have learned the values and morals they taught us, how we view the world, and what effects it portrays on our own behavior.

One excellent example of what we pick up from our family is how we communicate with the opposite sex. From there, we can build our own limiting beliefs. These can help you identify what it is you truly believe in as a person. These assumptions can shape the way you think about yourself, your relationships, and your career. 

2. Your Teachers

We can say that teachers are the second parents we have as we spend most of our time in school from preschool days until college. We think about what we could learn from the moment we enter the school. Educators other than parents have a significant impact on us, as their influence can change any area of our life.

The more you learn from your teacher, the more you lean on the truths of the world. They are the ones we look up to, as they are authority figures. We willingly believe in what they teach us without much resistance. As a result, what they teach us can shape what we believe in, including our limiting beliefs.

3. Your Relationships

To overcome tribulations in life, we have to strengthen ourselves. We have to know the effects of our decisions. For example, if you got cheated on, the first thing you’ll feel is heartbreak. These events can affect your mental health and can lead to depression.

This negative event can register in your thoughts as pain. Whenever ideas related to love come to your mind, you associate them with pain. Even the thought of being in another relationship frightens you.

Bear in mind that in each sorrow comes greater happiness. It is important to remember that things in life are only temporary. Moving on is the key. 

Examples of Limiting Beliefs

How do you recognize your limiting beliefs? Here are some beliefs you can refer to. Knowing the facts can help counteract the negative effects of limiting beliefs.

1. About Yourself

Every aspect of ourselves has limits. Many times our view of ourselves can impact our lives in an unconscious manner.

For example, we use age as an excuse not to pursue what we are destined to do. Some people think they are too young to reach their dreams or too old to work out or find a job.

Feelings also serve as a factor within our beliefs. If you are feeling sad and depressed, going out with friends can help resolve this. If you are angry with your co-workers because they talk crap behind your back, talking to them may help your anger subside.

The reality is, if you do not do something about what’s bothering you, it will continue to haunt you. We should act without our emotions taking over us and learn to control them instead. 

2. About the World

The world is full of prejudiced people, which sometimes gives you the feeling that you can’t or won’t get something that you deserve. For instance, you may have a good-paying job, but people in your office don’t respect you. This can cause you to form limiting beliefs about what is possible for you in the world.

Most people overthink. They tend to think about what others might expect from them, and this makes them lose their peace.

Things are not what they seem to be. The people you worry about are also busy with themselves and what others think of them. Just do what you need to do, stay focused, and be calm because at the end of the day, empowering yourself is what truly matters. 

3. About Life

Time and money are major parts of your life. One of the limiting beliefs on time is not having time for something due to busyness. This belief restricts other activities or people from being a part of your life.

Limiting beliefs on money can cause a lot of problems. People may believe that money is the root of all evil. Two common limiting beliefs are the need to have money to make money and having a bad life because one doesn’t have enough money. Such beliefs limit your view of life.

How to Get Rid of Limiting Beliefs

It is easy to overcome limiting beliefs, and you have the right to change them right now. Accepting that you have these beliefs and letting them go are essential to your success in ridding yourself of deep-seated limiting beliefs. Listed here are positive elements that can help replace your erroneous beliefs.

1. Write Down Your Beliefs

Jotting down your thoughts can help ease what’s eating you up. Limiting beliefs can hold us back from experiencing life to the fullest. It is important to be aware of them so that we can do something about them. You can write some limiting beliefs about money and see how you can deal with them.

2. Create Alternative Beliefs

After becoming more conscious of your limiting beliefs, replace them with new ones.

For example, if you think you’re too old to shift to a new career, challenge it and replace it with a positive, empowering belief like “I am never too old to make a career change. If Walt Disney did it, then so can I.”

Think also about how you can achieve your new belief. Create a list of steps you can take to make the career switch you desire. Act on them while you set aside time to deeply feel and internalize your new beliefs.

3. Organize Your Environment

Having a clear and organized life helps those struggling with limiting beliefs. An organized and calm-looking environment will have a positive effect on your outlook. It can improve the way you think and act, even your mental health.

Dabble into interior designing, tidy up your room, and paint the walls white. Doing all these can help create positive energy and a new way of looking at things. The new energy and perspective can make it easier for you to release your limiting beliefs.

4. Practice a Minimalistic Lifestyle

Minimalism is a way of living that anyone can try. It involves decluttering unnecessary things and owning only the essentials.

One possible reason you have low self-esteem is not wearing clothes that are in fashion, so you may have clutters of clothing all over your place. The limiting belief here is that you are afraid of what someone else thinks about the way you dress, so you buy many articles of clothing.

When you declutter, you instantly find yourself being freed from this limiting belief. After all, it’s self-confidence that is the best thing you can put on, not the latest fashionable shirt or blouse.

5. Meditate

Meditation may help you achieve self-love and healing. You just need to make time for it.

The goal of meditation is to empty your mind and help you feel the connection between your body and soul. Meditation has many benefits that may help you focus on your positive beliefs.

In the long run, practicing meditation will create in you a positive feeling, enabling you to attain the best version of yourself.

6. Work on Your Personal Success

Our goal in life is to attain happiness, which often comes from self-contentment. But there are times when hindrances like limiting beliefs can stop you from doing what you like.

If there are opportunities for growth that knock on your door, grab them. There are different ways to develop yourself, such as reading books, internalizing your new beliefs, listening to podcasts, and many more. Work on yourself, and be confident that you will surpass the hurdles.

7. Seek Professional Help

Go for therapy or counseling if you are overwhelmed by your limiting beliefs. Counseling helps bring awareness to the underlying causes of your limiting beliefs, making it easier for you to uproot them.

Your therapist can also help you make realistic goals and find the solutions to your issues. They can offer you the moral and emotional support you need to overcome your limiting beliefs.

Do Not Let Limiting Beliefs Hold You Back

Kentucky Counseling Center can help you dig deeper and uproot your limiting beliefs. Our therapists are trained to help you identify what’s holding you back so you can live the life you deserve. Stop self-sabotage by booking an appointment with us and start living a life free of limitations.