How to Overcome Limiting Beliefs and Fears

Today I’m going to talk about a rather controversial subject – the idea of limiting beliefs and fears, as well as how to overcome them.

There are a lot of different philosophies out there on this topic, and I have to confess, oftentimes when other coaches talk about this, it makes me feel a little weird and uncomfortable. So I’m going to do my best to turn this esoteric subject into a logical, tangible process that you can follow to overcome the limiting beliefs/fears that are holding you back from achieving the things you want and using your talents to the greatest of your ability.

Before we start, I just want to say that there are certain things we cannot do. I’ll use myself as an example. If I say that I can’t play professional basketball in the NBA, that’s not a limiting belief. It’s just reality. I’m not that tall, not young or athletic enough, and I definitely can’t shoot that well. No matter how hard I work or how much I change my mindset, I’ll never be able to play in the NBA. So I’m asking you to approach the process we’re going to talk about today with a focus on realistic objectives.

 

What does it feel like to have limiting beliefs:

I’ll be the guinea pig here. When I was 26 (I’m 42 now), I knew I had this passion and a God-given talent for coaching. It was my dream, my vision to be able to lift up those around me, be it friends, family, or the community. As I improved my own life, I also wanted to improve the lives of those around me. I truly believed that I had the raw talent to achieve this dream, even though my skill set wasn’t developed yet.

Sure, I know I can do it now, but imagine back before I did this as a full time business. My limiting belief was that nobody would want a 26 year old business coach. They’d want someone who doesn’t have as much hair on their head; someone who has a lot of experience in business already. And at the time, I didn’t have that kind of experience. All I had was passion.

So the first step to take, then, is to identify the limiting belief or fear. In my case, I also had people around me who said that coaching wasn’t a great idea, and that there were other, safer, more reasonable tracks. They were looking out for me, but not in a supportive way. But the truth was that I possessed the talent and skill set necessary to be a successful business coach. It wasn’t something out of my range of God-given talents. It was in my zone, and it made sense. Anyway, the naysayers and doubters around me didn’t help, but I was still able to identify my limiting belief.

 

Identify your feelings when you face a limiting belief or fear

The second step is to figure out how you feel when faced with that limiting belief or fear. So when I told myself that I was too young to be a successful business coach, I felt limited. I didn’t want to bother taking action toward that dream. I was also a little sad and depressed. So make sure to identify the emotions created by your limiting beliefs or fears. It’s important to write this down on paper or type it up. 

Also, it is for this reason that having a coach would be helpful, because you can verbalize your feelings to him. If you don’t have one, try to tell someone else. Anyone and just get it out there.

 

Track your actions after you identify your limiting belief and fears 

Step three, track what you did to reach your goal after you’ve figured out how you feel about your limiting belief or fear. In my case (and probably yours as well), I didn’t take any action toward my dream. I continued to do exactly what I was doing before, living the same life, and then I got stuck because I wasn’t happy. I wasn’t using my gifts to help and serve others like I’d always wanted.

 

To recap this three-step process:

Step 1: Identify limiting belief/fear

Step 2: Identify how you feel when faced with that limiting belief/fear

Step 3: Track your activities (or lack thereof)

 

Then what to do next? 

What I like to do is to create a trigger statement. Think of a time where you’ve overcome a fear similar to what’s blocking your goal now. For me, after I’ve developed a coaching practice, I might say to myself, “Have I ever gained a new client?” or “Have I ever helped or served someone?” or ”Have I ever helped someone grow?”. 

The answer is obviously “YES!” So, mentally, I’d go back to a moment where I helped or served other people. Even though I was young, I still helped other business owners grow their businesses. 

Of course, this is now, when I’m much farther along in the business. Earlier on, I didn’t have that much to work with, so I had to do something different.

 

How do you actually overcome this limiting belief or fear?

Basically, I stuck to three methods:

1. Get yourself some help

This is a personal method. Since I have a Christian worldview, I prayed about any fear or limiting belief I had.

2. Create trigger statements

I looked around at the others in my field. I’m not judging other coaches, but I’d ask myself, “If they can do it, why can’t I?” and “If I am just as talented as they are, and I’m more passionate, why wouldn’t I be just as successful as they are?”.

So if you have a limiting belief or fear, look at those around you and ask yourself, “If they can, why can’t I?”

Here’s another example. Maybe you remember that, back in high school, you didn’t think you could ever make varsity basketball, but you did. Go back to those past successes and use them as trigger statements. Like, “If I could overcome that hardship back then, why can’t I do it again now?”

After you have your trigger statement, the next part is key: TAKE ACTION TOWARD YOUR GOAL RIGHT AWAY. Some people have the ability to identify their limiting beliefs or fears and then take action immediately, but not many. Most of us need a trigger statement to get mentally and emotionally prepared. So after you do so, just take action.

For me, that first step is to create a process for coaching and then tell everyone I know and everyone in my network. Next, I’ll join business groups. Once you start taking action, there’s momentum and you get into the groove of things. Once you get out of your comfort zone, things start to change. The way you think and feel shifts toward more positivity.

3. Turn it into an empowering belief

Now that you’ve started taking action, maybe even enjoyed a little success, you can turn your limiting belief into an empowering belief. As opposed to saying “I can’t be a successful business coach at 26,” I said to myself, “I will be successful as a young business coach. Not only that, I will be able to serve many people and create a company that’ll have a huge impact on the world.” I believed that to my core.

So, once you have your empowering belief, write it down, say it out loud, tape it to the wall, repeat it to yourself over and over. Continuously take action, and you’ll get the results you want. There will be obstacles along the way, so use the same process to get over them. It’ll become second nature. Next thing you know, your fears and limiting beliefs will get smaller and smaller.

 

We’re not done yet …

As you overcome your limiting beliefs, you’ll start to face higher level challenges. For example, a person may want to become a self-employed professional but doesn’t think they can succeed or make enough money to create a good life for themselves. Then, when they do get to the point where they’re creating a nice income, their new limiting belief becomes that they can’t hire people or have others help them. Next thing they know, they have fifty employees, and now they’re worried that they can’t grow their business to a 1,000-people company. The point is, we’re constantly working toward the next level. So keep that in mind as you embark on your journey to overcome limiting beliefs and fears.

Try this approach, and if you think that this is not enough in your case, open up and share with us your limiting beliefs and fears that are holding you back, or look into our services for expert support. My team will reach out to you shortly to offer assistance.

Be sure to take action, and have a better than amazing day!

Podcast –

http://podcast.entreresults.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/6-Ways-To-Overcome-Your-Fear-Of-Inviting.mp3