Are Your Personal Beliefs Getting in the Way of Creating a Life You Love?
How to Change Any Belief
For much of my adult life I believed that I was not creative. I believed that Artists, with a capital “A”, were gifted or born that way.
Because of that I had never given myself permission to even explore my abilities to draw or paint.
Then one day I saw an offer for a beginning class on how to draw with pastels. I thought to myself “Why not?! What do I have to lose?”
The answer to that last question of course was my pride if I flopped miserably! But then, no one but me had to know.
I made a deal with myself. I would take the class and if I didn’t like the results I would throw my art away. If I discovered I didn’t like it, I never had to do it again. I would, to the best of my ability, just do it for the fun and exploration of it all.
On the flip side of course was the possibility that I might actually discover I was better than I thought and enjoy myself in the process.
I honestly don’t know where that limiting belief came from. Perhaps I had tried on my own to draw or paint as a child and witnessed others who were better than me and made the conclusion that I wasn’t artistic.
What never even occurred to me was the fact that being artistic or creative was something that could be fostered or learned.
Over the course of five weeks I discovered that there was a process, and techniques, that could be applied to duplicate anything I saw in my world.
We started with a very basic image of an angelfish. My instructor took me through the process of seeing how an angel fish is actually made up of shapes like circles and triangles. Put those shapes together, then apply color and texture and you have art!
That piece of art, as simple and basic as it is, hangs proudly in our home to this day. Every time I look at it, it is a reminder of taking a chance at something that was new and foreign to me and breaking through a belief only to discover that the belief I held was not true. In addition, it is a wonderful reminder that if there’s something you want to try your hand at – most likely there’s a class for that! Skills can be learned.
Your beliefs about yourself and your life have more power over your existence than you can might realize.
Personal ideas and values you’ve held for a long time can block the way to creating a life you love.
If you have limiting beliefs, this process can help you change them to beliefs that better serve you.
Think there’s something that might be getting in your way? Try writing down your answers to these questions:
- Which belief do you want to change? You need to be able to see it to work with it effectively. So write it down. For example, one limiting belief you might have is: “I will never have a lot of money.”
- What has the belief cost you? Make a list of all the ways this belief has negatively impacted your life. Really think about it, because it helps to have as much negative ammunition to get rid of that old belief as you can get. Spend some time; it might even take a couple of days to get a complete list.
- What advantages has the belief provided you? Maybe believing that you could never be wealthy has allowed you to avoid taking risks. Or perhaps it has allowed you to work at a profession that’s easy for you. It might be hard to figure out what the advantages are, but they are there.
- What new belief would you like to have as a replacement? For example, for the belief listed above, a new replacement might be: “I can make any amount of money I set my mind to.” Be thoughtful and develop a new belief that will serve you well in the future.
- How is the new belief better than the old belief? Come up with an emotionally charged list of ways in which the new belief will impact your life for the better. Consider how you would feel. What could you become? How would your lifestyle change? Would it help other people around you?
- How can you start demonstrating the new belief today? Following our wealth-theme, it might not be the right time to plan the interior of your private jet just yet. What could you do right now? Make a plan to make more money? Start looking for a better paying job? Look for ways to invest the money you already have? Even a small change can help the process.
- Start Living Your New Belief. It might not be easy at first, but taking the time to complete the steps above will make it easier. Each day try to behave as if you hold the new belief. What would you wear? How would you speak? How would you view the world? How would you make decisions? How would you react to good news? Bad news?
While our behaviors determine the quality of our lives, our beliefs largely determine our behaviors.
Beliefs are really at the core of everything you do and become.
Beliefs can be challenging to change, as they’re frequently developed at a young age, so you might have lived in accordance with your limiting beliefs for a long time. However, with diligence and attention, they can be altered.
If you have a desire for something, that desire was birthed in you for a reason. It’s calling you to expand and grow.
Changing your beliefs will change your life.
With good energy,
P.S. Not clear what beliefs are getting in your way? Let’s chat and explore it together! Schedule your complimentary call with me now by clicking HERE.
Debra Wilson Guttas, HTP, Best-Selling Author, Coach & Life Transition Sherpa™
“Supporting and inspiring women in life transition, and cancer recovery, to craft lives with more purpose and passion.”
Author of the best-selling book “7 Keys to Coping with Cancer – How You Can Feel Good AND THRIVE (from someone who’s been there)