Self-limiting beliefs: How to Overcome them.

Do you feel like you can’t do anything right? Or can you hear this voice inside your head saying that you would never make it? Do you believe in these thoughts? If so, I want to tell you to not believe these because they are the ones holding you down. These are what we call self-limiting beliefs. In this blog post, I’ll share some examples of self-limiting beliefs and how to overcome them. 

What are self-limiting beliefs?

First of all, let’s define and get to know more about our enemy. 

Self-limiting beliefs are these ideas we have about ourselves or the world that we believe to be true. These are “self-limiting” because they keep us from reaching our full potential or what we are capable of. 

Whenever we try to do something, like going out of our comfort zones, these thoughts are the ones that keep us from doing it. The dangerous part of this is that we believe and act based on these thoughts. 

These beliefs may be true or not. But, the thing is, we are capable of so much more! And that’s what we have to believe. 

Examples of Self-limiting beliefs.

Identifying self-limiting beliefs is one of the most important steps in fighting it. However, it is sometimes hard to pinpoint them because they are deeply ingrained in our subconscious. 

Right now, let’s take a moment to pause and reflect on this. Do you have goals that you really want to achieve but it feels impossible because something is blocking your path? Do you have something you really want to do but have this “excuse”? 

If so, what are these “things” that stop you from going for it? A really high chance is that these are your self-limiting beliefs. 

Top 10 self-limiting beliefs examples. 

If you are having a hard time recognizing your self-limiting beliefs, here are the top 10 self-limiting beliefs. 

1. “I am not ____ enough.” (good, smart, pretty, thin, rich)

This statement really hurts because, at some point in our life, we feel this small to say “we’re not enough.” This complex statement stems from different factors – insecurity, comparison, etc. But the main thing to remember is that this is our self-critic talking to us. We should not believe in this. Instead, we should choose the more loving option.  

And let’s say these variables are true – you’re not that rich or smart. It doesn’t really matter. No matter what the circumstances are, you are enough and what you currently have is enough for you to chase your dreams. 

2. “I am too old for this.” (or too young)

Well, there’s a saying that “age is just a number.” 

You are not too old or young to work on yourself or try new things! If you don’t do it now, will you not regret it when another year passes by? 

• You may want to read this – The importance of self-love: 5 reasons why you should love yourself.

3. “I’ll always fail.”

It really sucks when we fail at something especially when it is something important and we did our best. What sucks more is when we keep on failing, we lose our confidence and think to ourselves that “I am a failure.”

However, instead of saying that you’ll always fail, why not use this “failure” as feedback? This way, you’ll become even better! This self-limiting belief is not true because you’ll never know what will happen if you won’t try. 

4. “I can’t.”

This is such a strong statement that can come true because it is really up to us if we will do something or not. When we say this, we are the ones holding ourselves because we will try to make ways to not do it. And the more we keep saying this, the more we will believe it.

Before saying you can’t do it, try it first. You always have a choice to do whatever it is that your heart desires.

5. “I will be judged.”

One of the reasons why we stop ourselves from doing something is that we are afraid of what others would think about us. There are some who expressed this judgment on our faces but most of the time, it is just us who think they will judge us. 

Either way, don’t mind them. There will always be someone who will not approve of what you do but who cares! You do you.

6. “I don’t deserve it.”

I don’t know what traumatic experience you have gone through to think you don’t deserve the best. I want to hug you and say that, you do deserve it. You deserve to be the best version of yourself and live better!

7. “I’m too late.”

This happens usually when we want to start a business or develop a new skill. The thing is, it might be true that what we want is not “trendy” anymore but actually, this is a good thing! It means that we are not just riding in with the wave. 

And you know what, it is better to be late than sorry, right? 

8. “I don’t have the time.”

This can be a real problem especially when we have a lot on our plate. But when we use this as an excuse to not execute ideas, it is we who limit ourselves. Not the time. 

If you want it, you’ll make it a priority and you’ll make time for it. 

9. “I am not as good as them.”

“A flower does not think of competing to the flower next to it. It just blooms.” – Zen Shin. If we want to better ourselves, let’s not compare ourselves with others. It does not make any difference at all. 

Just do your best, okay? 

10. “I am not ready.”

It is scary to get out there. Getting out of our comfort zones because we want greater things? Yes, really scary! And no matter how much we prepare for it, we will never be fully ready for the things we will experience.

But remember, you are scared because it is unfamiliar, not because you are incapable. Sometimes, when you are scared, the best thing to do is take that leap of faith, ready or not. 

How to overcome self-limiting beliefs.

Now that we’ve identified the top 10 self-limiting beliefs, can you relate to at least one of them? If so, don’t worry. You will overcome this. Solving any problem starts with awareness. So, congratulations on that! 

Now, it is time to overcome them and be the version we want to be for ourselves.

For you to really exercise and overcome these beliefs, I made a FREE “Overcome your self-limiting beliefs workbook”. Get your copy below!

1. Identify them.

To overcome these beliefs, we have to identify them.

What is your usual “excuse” for not doing things? What are those negative thoughts that keep popping up in your mind? 

Write these all down. 

2. Recognize where these came from.

If we want to really solve something, we have to address the roots. Recognizing where these beliefs came from can make it easier for us to understand why we have them in the first place.

When did you start feeling bad about yourself? What experiences made you assume the worse? Who told you these?

3. Challenge them.

Now that we’ve identified our self-limiting beliefs and we know where they came from, it is time to question and challenge their validity. 

Are these beliefs true? Why or why not? Do you have evidence of your answer? Are your beliefs always true? Does this belief do you any good? Does it protect you or stop you?

Do this for every self-limiting belief and you’ll see most of these are not good enough reasons to pull you down. 

4. Reframe them.

After challenging them and knowing that those beliefs are not true, we have to change them. 

Let’s reframe those beliefs with something positive, which can actually push us to be better.

Remember the list of your self-limiting beliefs, cross out each of them, and then write the opposite of them. “I can’t” to “I can.” “I am not” to “I am.”

Reframing these beliefs can be empowering. You are now starting to believe in thoughts that align with your goals in life! 

5. Laugh at them

Of course, it is not easy to replace these self-limiting beliefs. It will resurface again and again. Instead of fighting it, we can laugh at it. It’s like laughing at a friend who’s saying absurd things!

“Really, I’ve thought that this is real?” “Wow, that can happen? That would be funny tho.”

Fight them with humor so that you won’t take them seriously. 

6. Keep on working on yourself. 

Fighting them can be an everyday struggle but once we get used to our new beliefs, it becomes easier. We just have to be consistent! 

Print out those new beliefs and put them somewhere you can easily say. Affirm them every day! 

• You may want to read this – 5 Tips on How to Start Your Self Improvement Journey.

Don’t let that enemy from within crush you.

We have and will continue to face different forms of the enemy. The worse one is the one from within. 

The nice thing about this is that we are the ones who made these, and we are the ones who can destroy them.

We just have to work on it every day. Once we’ve overcome them, there’s no other way of stopping us! 

We got this! 

Share this with your friends so we can all grow together.

Rooting for you,

Blaise ♡

PS, get you FREE workbook to overcome your self-limiting beliefs below.