Some limitations you place on yourself in your quest for success are self-taught. Or, you may have kept limitations learned in childhood from parents or school as fact and never attempted to break through them.
To overcome these limitations, you have to develop some mind strategies that will help you learn your true potential and break out of the self-imposed box you’ve put yourself in.
Picture yourself bound in shackles from which you can’t escape. It’s the same thing as imposing limitations on yourself of what you are and aren’t capable of. Breaking out of those shackles isn’t easy, but it can be done with some work and mind strategies to help you along.
One strategy is to set your sights on doing better than those around you. For example, if your friends and coworkers are happy with a set paycheck and no hope for advancement, break out of the group and spend your time learning how to advance yourself – either in the job you have or an entirely new direction.
Learn to control your thoughts. It takes practice, but when negative and self-doubting thoughts enter your mind, don’t let them take over. Talk back and don’t let those thoughts take you once again on the path of negativity.
Return to those thrilling days of yesteryear by boosting your optimism once again. Listen to a motivational podcast or read a book to help turn your self-doubts into an optimistic outlook and hope for the future.
Think about past memories when your self-imposed limitations were shattered because you took the initiative to try it anyway – even if you had doubts. You probably had to get on that bicycle when you were a child and fall a few times before you mastered the technique and could do wheelies down the street. But you tried – and it worked.
You can do the same with situations in your life today. Rather than cloud your mind with negatives and try to convince yourself why something you want to do is impossible, believe in yourself and use positive thinking and mindset to get you through those negative thoughts.
Gain clarity about your limitations by making a list of your accomplishments and what you felt and thought along the way. You may find solutions in how you’ve handled situations in the past.
Develop skills to help you overcome those limitations you’ve imposed on yourself. The more you know, the more you’ll be able to alleviate the fears that have kept you back all this time.
No matter what mind strategies work for you to overcome your self-taught limitations, remember that taking action is a huge improvement over sitting back and doing nothing. Ask yourself how you’re holding yourself back because of self-imposed limitations and then begin to develop some mind strategies to combat them and become the best you can be.