Have you ever played with your thoughts and imagined something almost impossibly great would happen to you? Then you pulled back you thoughts “njaah, not going to happen” and continued to focus on something else. Do you realize what just happened in your thinking process? Your own thoughts (or limiting beliefs) stopped the imagination before it really progressed. What if everything is possible and the only limit is your own thinking of what you think is possible?

Since we are born, and especially when we are small kids under 7 years age, we record loads of learning to our mind. Such recording is like coding macros, we learn to believe how one should talk or behave in a particular situation, what is allowed and what is not. We form thinking and behavioural patterns to ourselves and sometimes such patters are also copied from adults around us. Like macros, those patterns work in our mind without us knowing how they were precisely coded and how they unconsciously impact us. Such patterns may become limiting beliefs that strongly shape our thinking and course of life. Or, such limiting beliefs may be small ones and prevent us to start something one has always wanted. Let me give you an example of such small limiting belief. I have always wanted to do oil painting. I used to love drawing and painting but haven’t been doing anything like that for years. Now I have all materials ready for oil painting and I even took a weekend course to learn the basics. Still, I have not started to paint, so what is stopping me? After some self-reflection I realized that at the same time I’m really keen to start painting I also have a limiting belief regarding my own expectations “what if I don’t fill my own expectations and a painting is not up to what I imagine in my own mind”? So now I will need to set my expectations right.

How do you identify your limiting beliefs? One way is to pay attention on how you talk yourself. When you use lots of words like “always”, “never”, “ever” and react with relatively strong emotions (e.g. fear) compared to a situation there might be a tip for you to reflect and look into your underlying beliefs. Honesty to yourself is required and you can ask also help from your own mind. It may take a few days, weeks or months, but once your mind is ready to share such information you will know what limiting belief is in question. Or, if you find it hard to discover by yourself, there are plenty of professional coaches available who can help you to get started.

By removing your limiting beliefs you can release your imagination and even change your life to achieve what you truly desire. By quoting Walt Disney “If you can dream it, you can do it”.