Self-Empowering Beliefs

Strengthen your thinking!

Let’s look more deeply at what lies beneath our beliefs, into those things that give us strength.

Self-empowering beliefs often come from confidence, while self-limiting beliefs usually come from doubt. When you lack confidence, you can feel fear. It is well known in the field of neuroscience that fear causes the mind to narrow its focus and can severely limit your ability to think rationally.

We are complex creatures with complex minds. Thinking can be experienced as an internal dialogue. You can think and see different perspectives inside your mind without putting those thoughts into words.

The question is, do you recognize this? Are you awake to it? Do you realize your mind has different parts that often manifest themselves in internal chatter?

For the sake of simplicity, let’s assume you notice that you have these internal voices and observe how they relate to what you consciously and unconsciously believe.

Self-empowering beliefs and self-limiting beliefs can each have several voices that want to be recognized and heard. To control them, you must first see them.

A few internal voices I can easily distinguish are the parts of me that think or speak as a father, husband, brother, son, friend, older man, and so forth. Depending on what’s happening, one or more of these voices will influence my thoughts and what I say or don’t say, both internally and out loud. Each, in part, help define what I believe about myself.

For example, in some business meetings my “executive voice” may come into play, influencing my thoughts and words and actions. At other times, negative voices vie for my attention, saying things like, “What gives you the right?” or “How in the world do you think you can do that?”

I have named this fearful part of me my “critical voice.” Sometimes it pops up and says, “Don’t make a fool of yourself!”

I also have positive voices inside, and I am constantly at work cultivating them to become a larger part of me. When I go out for a run as part of my exercise routine, I say, “This is good for me.” When I enter a race, I’ve developed a part of me that says, “I can do this.”

There are times when I get ready to speak in front of a group and I hear myself saying, “You’re going to be great.” Of course, good preparation helps, so I know my subject well. I welcome what I call my “voice of confidence.”

Now my “voice of confidence” did not come naturally. I developed it over time. There was a time when I would get in front of a group and be so nervous that if I did not have a lectern to lean on, I may have collapsed at the knees. How well I remember those times!

What dominated my thoughts back then was pure fear — the thought that I was going to fail and look foolish. I’ll admit, it was horrifying to me.

Public speaking can be the stuff nightmares are made of to some people.

Eventually, however, with practice and a shift in mindset, the critical voice shrank, and I gained the voice of confidence that has so greatly affected my life. Sure, the old negative voices still linger at times. But now I can see them, call them out, and even thank them for trying to protect me. Then I allow them to fade into the background, while I consciously bring forth the part of me that has greater confidence and positivity.

I know and accept these negative thoughts were parts of my younger self, doing their best in their immature way to serve me by creating doubt and self-limiting beliefs. Their influence and control over me have forever changed dramatically. I now take control away from these limiting beliefs and develop the empowering beliefs that better serve me.

I leave you with a short exercise. Don’t rush through it. Give it some careful thought. As with the sentence completion section in my recent article, “Your Worst Enemy,” look at the following list and identify all the positive things each has spoken into your life. To add even more value to it, ask someone to help you with this exercise.

I guarantee you will absolutely love the result!

What positive things have each of the following said about you?

- Parents

- Siblings

- Fellow Students

- Spouse

- Children

- Family

- Other individuals (acquaintances, teachers, coaches, mentors, etc.)

Now, go, take on the day with the confidence you have just gained from this exercise!

©2020 BillAbbate.com

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