You’ve heard the saying, so what does it really mean?
Without some context it’s easy to just roll your eyes when you hear something like this. You may wonder, “Why on earth would I be holding myself back from something I want? That just doesn’t make sense.”
If you’ve have this thought; you might be the one who will benefit most by digging deeper into its meaning.
The YOU, is Mindset.
And the parts holding you back, are the limiting beliefs locked in there. They will keep showing up again and again until you make the conscience effort to recognize them, and shift them.
Consider how you talk to yourself…
We have more conversations with ourselves than we will ever have with anyone else in our lifetime. So the important conversations we have are with ourselves. We’re talking in our heads all day long. What are you telling yourself when you fail? When things are hard? When you can’t figure something out? Maybe you talk yourself out of even starting something in the first place.
If your Mindset is Fixed you may think things like:
- I can’t do this
- I don’t have the time
- I’m not strong enough
- I’m not smart enough
- This is impossible for someone like me
- No one will listen to me
- I’m too old for this
- I don’t have enough money
- I’m not thin enough, pretty enough, tall enough…
Shifting into a Growth Mindset you may reconsider and tell yourself things like:
- I need to learn a few more things
- I’ll have to practice more
- I will get stronger
- I did well at some parts, but I see some things I’ll have to work on
- If it’s possible for someone else, it’s possible for me.
- This is important, so I will make the time
- I am capable
- I can figure out how to afford this (or find a solution I can afford)
- I am good enough just as I am
Oxford dictionary defines Belief as: “The acceptance that a statement is true or that something exists”
The key word here is acceptance. It’s got nothing to do with actually being true or not. A belief is just accepting the thought as true. If we truly believe we are not capable of something, that will have a powerful effect on our outcome. The same way that truly believing we ARE capable has the power to effect our efforts and outcomes in a positive way as well.
Our brain is like a computer, it has no emotional ties to any of the data we put into it. If we tell it we are terrible at something, it will log the information and then continue to show us ways to prove that statement correct. Because of this, every time we mess up, it will recall that we noted being terrible at this. If we noted it before, it must be something of importance to note, so it reminds us. “Hey, there are you again messing this up, let me log that important information for you.”
It will show you more of what you focus on, and because you’re focusing on trying to prove the limiting belief right, thats what you will notice more. We become blinded to the growth opportunities and trapped in this loop. The focus may not be conscious, but it’s still there. Its on autopilot.
The other side of this is Growth Mindset.
When we focus on growth, our brains will note that as important. When we continuously and consciously praise our efforts while looking for the ways to improve we turn off auto pilot. Now our brain will begin to notice more opportunities and solutions. We will start to notice ways to grow.
Eventually this conscious effort we make will become the new autopilot. Our mind is no longer steering us into a wall, we’re flying over the obstacles and around them. When we fail; the default thoughts go right into problem solving mode. The failure wasn’t personal, it was a result of the system or methods used. Really nothing to do with YOU at all.
When our default is growth, our potential is limitless.
So what’s holding you back?
If you want to dive deeper into it, message me. Let’s work together and shift into a Growth Mindset for good.
