How to Identify & Rewrite Your Limiting Beliefs
Up to 60 thousand.
That’s how many thoughts shoot through your brain’s synapses per day.
And of those, 95% are repetitive thoughts.
So let me ask you...
Are the thoughts cycling through your brain every day positive encouragements—or stifling limiting beliefs?
Henry Ford wasn’t a psychologist, but he nailed the idea of limiting beliefs when he said:
“WHETHER YOU THINK YOU CAN OR THINK YOU CAN’T, YOU’RE RIGHT.”
A limiting belief is a deeply-ingrained thought you hold about yourself or others, often derived from a negative experience, that constrains your life in some way.
For instance, you may have developed the idea that “I am not artistic” as a child after a grumpy 3rd grade art teacher criticized your work. This thought became a belief that fuels your actions—and thus creates your reality and influences your sense of identity. With this lifelong limiting belief, it’s likely that you’ve avoided picking up a paintbrush.
Consider this on a deeper level. Perhaps you had a romantic partner who constantly criticized your appearance. This negative experience may have led you to internalize a limiting belief along the lines of “I am unattractive”—a thought pattern that can lead to long-term negative health consequences, physically, relationally, and mentally.
Limiting beliefs may give us a false sense of safety (i.e. “Since I’m not artistic, I’ll keep myself safe from embarrassment by avoiding creative activities”), but in reality, they hold us back.
Your limiting beliefs might sound something like...
“I’m not good enough.”
“No one will love me.”
“I’ll never get the promotion.”
Whatever your limiting beliefs sound like, know this: they are holding you back from living a life of true meaning and joy.
How to Identify & Rewrite Your Limiting Beliefs
“The unexamined life is not worth living”—and the unexamined life is likely riddled with limiting beliefs.
Awareness is the first step toward change, and identifying your limiting beliefs is no different.
Follow the process below to bring awareness to your own limiting beliefs, so that you can kick them to the curb and replace them with positive thoughts that encourage you to live your best life.
Bring awareness to how you’re feeling.
Is that fear or resistance rising up in you when you consider participating in a particular activity? Do you find yourself doubting your abilities in a certain area of life? Is there a self-deprecating statement that cycles through your thought patterns each day?
These may be indications that a limiting belief is at work.
Write it down.
Writing down your thoughts gives you the power to separate what is true and what is simply a long-standing limiting belief. When you are able to view your thoughts on paper, separate from your own mind, you can begin to identify any lies you may be repeating to yourself. Not all of our thoughts about ourselves are true, and recognizing this can liberate you from your limiting beliefs.
Journaling is an incredibly powerful mindfulness practice—read more about how to incorporate regular journaling into your life here.
Identify what’s true—and what’s not.
Now that you’ve written down your thoughts, take time to analyze what is fact about the statement—and what’s your own self-imposed (and often skewed) limiting belief.
For instance, your limiting belief may be “I flubbed during my last job interview, therefore I am bad at interviews.”
Sure, you may have made a mistake during a past job interview. That's a fact. However, that one event does not define your ability to interview well in future scenarios. Remember, whether you think you can or think you can’t… you’re right.
Dismantling our limiting beliefs by identifying what’s true—and what’s not—allows us to train ourselves to adopt a new mindset fueled by empowering beliefs.
Find a new empowering belief.
Once you’ve identified a limiting belief, it’s time to replace it with an empowering belief.
Let’s look again at the former example, “I flubbed during my last job interview, therefore I am bad at interviews.”
We can change the second part of that statement from limiting to empowering with a simple mindset shift: “I made a mistake during my last job interview, so now I know what to prepare for during my next interviews.”
Go through your list of limiting beliefs and write down new, empowering beliefs. Refer back to these empowering beliefs anytime you feel tempted to allow your former limiting belief to influence your confidence and decisions.
Take action in line with your empowering beliefs.
Your thoughts lead to your beliefs, which lead to your actions. After claiming your new empowering beliefs, it’s time to take action.
Back to the interview example: “I made a mistake during my last job interview, so now I know what to prepare for during my next interview.”
You can set aside time to prep accordingly for your next job interview—whether that’s researching interview tips, practicing common interview questions with a friend, or enlisting the help of a career coach.
Celebrate even the smallest step.
Progress over perfection, friends. Any step you take—no matter how small—toward living in line with your new empowering belief is worth celebrating. So write it down, allow yourself to feel proud, treat yourself to a small reward, or share your celebration with a safe, encouraging friend or family member.
Find a safe person to help you create new empowering beliefs.
This could be a trusted friend or family member who is a safe person with whom you can be vulnerable. This could also be a professional, like a mindset coach or therapist. Liberating our inner narrative from long-held limiting beliefs takes work, and having a support system in place is invaluable as you take this journey.
The journey toward mental wholeness is always best completed with the help of a community.
