How many times have you told yourself, “I can’t do that” or “I’m not good enough, smart enough, successful enough,” etc.?
How many times have you NOT done something you wanted to do because you were scared?
How many times have you stopped yourself from visualizing how you’d like your life to be because you think, “what’s the point? That’s NEVER going to happen for little old me!”
Oh yeah, I can relate. There have been so many times in my life where I held myself back. I would create these crazy justifications in my mind on why I shouldn’t do something, even though deep down I knew that doing it would get me closer to where I wanted to be.
Even worse than that, for a long time, I didn’t even allow myself to dream or hope about my “ideal life”, because I figured it was a waste of time and I was just setting myself up for disappointment.
What I’ve come to learn over the past couple years however, is that those self-limiting beliefs are EXACTLY what was holding me back from experiencing the things I desired. It has been a very gradual shift in thinking and mindset, but I have come to the realization that we were ALL meant for Greatness. But so many never realize their true potential because they place limitations on what they can do. We get comfortable, dare I say, lazy, in our thinking and living the status quo. We basically create our lives by default.
We go through life not really living, but merely existing. We live a life of mediocrity, which is totally fine if that is what you really want. But what if it’s not? How do you stop limiting yourself and your thinking?
I’m not going to lie – it takes a lot of mental re-programming. Some get it right away, and others get stuck in “analysis paralysis” mode. But if you are ready for the shift, here are some steps to get you started:
- Take action.
The “how” is probably not going to be clear at this moment. And that is exactly how it should be. The how is none of your business :-). But taking action, no matter how small, sets forces into motion so that the how presents itself as you go. It sounds crazy and woo-woo, but you’d be surprised. People and circumstances will start showing up in your life, and you’ll have no idea how or why it happened. Be grateful and know it was all meant to be. For some people this is going to mean taking the first steps in their journey such as deciding to start something new. For others it’s going to be looking into things like residency open spots to further their education. It all depends on where you’re at, and you’re not in competition with anyone else! - Write it down.
This probably most important. Until it is written (on paper, not on a computer), it is just a fleeting thought. - FEEL it.
Read each thing you wrote down. Focus on it. Focus on how you will feel once you have it. Feel each emotion as if you have it already. Happiness, joy, GRATITUDE, love. REALLY feel and visualize it. - Act as if.
This one is tricky. You want to act as if you already have the things you desire. Does this mean that you spend money you don’t have if money is what you desire? No. But being grateful for the money you do have sets you on a path to receive more. It’s the difference between having an attitude of abundance and giving, as opposed to an attitude of scarcity and lack. The key is to feel as though you have the things you desire. Focus, focus and focus some more. There will be things and people who will challenge you. Stay true to yourself. As my friend Dave Mac Arthur says: “Guard your focus with your life.“ - Set the intention.
This involves knowing without a doubt that you WILL accomplish your goal(s). It takes over until you are almost vibrating with clear, solid intention. You KNOW with all of your being that it WILL happen. - Take action.
The “how” is probably not going to be clear at this moment. And that is exactly how it should be. The how is none of your business :-). But taking action, no matter how small, sets forces into motion so that the how presents itself as you go. It sounds crazy and woo-woo, but you’d be surprised. People and circumstances will start showing up in your life, and you’ll have no idea how or why it happened. Be grateful and know it was all meant to be. - And, for the love of God, get out of your own way!
One of the things Nick and I used to say was, “we’ve got to figure this out!!”…we were so focused on “figuring stuff out” that we paralyzed ourselves. We tried to control everything, and if we couldn’t “figure it out”, we would just do nothing. What we learned though, is that once we relaxed into this way of thinking and stopped trying to control the Universe, things just started to happen. Does it happen overnight? Absolutely not!! Do we have setbacks? Heck yeah! We are in constant learning mode. But we have gotten really good at is catching ourselves and calling each other out when we regress into our old negative thinking patterns. - Consider joining my new newsletter
In the Create Your Life newsletter, I walk through the steps I am taking to create my ideal life. I say “taking” because it’s an evolving process, as well it should be – desires change, and as we attain one goal or thing, the desire for another will present itself. It’s all part of growth. And the joy is in the journey :-).
You may be thinking this all sounds crazy…and I would have agreed with you up until a few years ago. But so much of what happens or doesn’t happen for us is caused by the limitations we place upon ourselves.
You were meant for more. Now go out and get it!
Love,
Tara