The Secret to Overcoming Limiting Beliefs for Good
I waslistening to the radio in my car the other day and a song came on about being a“nobody” and I honestly had to change stations. The singer was singing it like it was theiridentity and I just couldn’t listen to it.
Here’s thething, there isn’t a single person in this world that’s a “nobody.” We’re ALLsomebody! We’re all someone’s child, aneighbor, perhaps an aunt or uncle, mom or dad, sibling, mentor, friend, etc.There are literally zero “nobody’s.”
And if you feel like you fit into none of those categories for one reason or another, know this: God created you on purpose and for a purpose, so you can’t actually be a “nobody”.
There can be seasons when it’s really hard to see our identity and know who we are. Especially during seasons of transitions! When I became a mom and everything about our life changed, it took me a while to figure out who I was again.
No to mention the limiting beliefs each of us has that can seriously hold us back and hinder us from reaching our God-given potential.
Limiting Beliefs
Limiting beliefs are those subtle lies that we perceive to be true about ourselves and our world that when left unchecked, can actually sabotage our lives. Over the years, mine have included beliefs like "I have to do everything perfectly; I'm not wanted; I'm too much; I'm not enough; I have to fit in; I'll never be enough; I'll never catch up; I'm lazy if someone else has to help me do it; I have to be the best always..." Any of those sound familiar?
On the surface, these might seem harmless, but the reality is that our beliefs shape our decisions and actions and ultimately shape our lives. Thankfully, one of THE coolest things about our bodies is our God-given ability to rewire our brains and thinking and beliefs and thus (re)shape the trajectory of our lives. Knowing where your limiting beliefs came from can be helpful, but what's more helpful is actually rewiring your brain so they don't hold you back anymore!
OurBrains are Changeable
Did you know you can actually change your brain? Like, you can literally rewire your brain because God’s cool like that and designed our brains so that we can take our toxic beliefs and literally rewire our brains with God’s truth about us. ‘Cause here’s the truth, what we believe to be true impacts everything about our life and our future. Everything we do and say to ourselves and others starts with what we believe to be true.
Step-By-Step to Changing Your Brain and Beliefs
The scientific name for this is “neuroplasticity.” Basically, it means our brains are continuously moldable based on the thoughts going through our minds.
In her book Switch on Your Brain, Dr. Caroline Leaf says this about it, “The brain is malleable and adaptable, changing moment by moment of every day…The active mind changes the brain; the brain is the passive part of existence…Each morning when you wake up, you have new baby nerve cells born inside your brain to use wisely as you remove bad thoughts and wire in new ones.”
Isn’t that amazing, every morning we have new baby nerve cells born inside our brains?!
So how do you do rewire your brain? Based on Dr. Leaf's research, here are the 5 steps you can take for the next 21 days. Every day for 21 days, set aside 20 minutes to do the following 5 steps:
- Identify your toxic thought (your core limiting belief)
- Notice your body, emotions, and connected thoughts with the toxic thought
- Draw out your thought map
- Decide the healthy thought you want to have instead
- Actively choose to believe your new healthy thought 7x a day
Start with choosing the toxic thought that comes to your mind first. You can do this as many times as you’d like to, so start with one toxic thought for the first 21 days and then work your way through other ones.
You were created on purpose for a purpose! Don't let your limiting beliefs hold you back from the life you were created for!
**I’d love to hear from you. What’s the biggest insight you’re taking away? Most importantly, what is the first thing you’re going to do to eliminate your limiting beliefs? How can you turn that insight into action today? Let me know in the comments below.