So core beliefs are our identity – who we believe we are.
They normally start with the words ‘I AM…’ e.g. I am loved, I am helpless, I am not good enough, etc.
We have two types of core beliefs:
Limiting/Disempowering: they limit us or disempower us in areas of our lives.
Empowering: they’re helpful and serve us well in our life.
As thoughts create feelings, you can understand how one type can make us feel great, the other one, not so much!
According to Bruce Lipton, and his book The Biology of Belief, by the age of 7, over 70% of our beliefs are limiting beliefs! Staggering, isn’t it??
So what’s the impact?
Take a look at this tree.
What’s it made up of? Roots, trunk, branches, leaves, and often blossom or fruit.
Now imagine those roots being fed and watered, creating a strong trunk, growing into a fine tree with many branches, glossy leaves, and maybe some juicy fruit, or highly scented blossom.
Imagine now those roots not getting the sustenance they needed. No rain, the earth lacking in nutrients, and how that would create a weaker trunk, perhaps peeling bark, branches that with one breath of wind could snap, and some smatterings of blossom and fruit, perhaps not fully ripening before it was blown down.
You see, limiting beliefs have a similar impact on us. Take the roots to be your core beliefs about yourself, who you are.
If they limit you, hold you back, create bad feeling within you, your trunk (core) will be affected by this.
You may feel less secure, weaker, less confident, less able to move forward in life, more fragile or vulnerable, less deserving of a good life.
You may not reach your full potential as the roots (your beliefs) are not nourishing you.
There may be less branches because you haven’t felt able to experience life to its fullest, taken advantage of opportunities or experiences to grow and expand, and parts of your personality, your skills and talents (fruit and blossom) may lay dormant, forever in seed state, waiting for the nourishment they need to break open.
How sad is that?
Now, can you imagine how different it would be if the roots were instead beliefs that empowered you? Think back to the tree that was nurtured and grew strong and flourished.
And the effect those empowering beliefs would have on you growing up, your self-esteem, your finances, how you treat yourself, others, your boundaries, your relationships, your belief in your talents and skills, and so on.
How We Deal with Experiences That Confirm or Negate Our Core Beliefs
With limiting beliefs e.g. I am not good enough, I am bad: when we get an experience that confirms our limiting core belief, most often we will accept it because it doesn’t go against the grain.
When we get an experience that goes against, or would break down, our core limiting belief, we bat it away. For instance, if someone tries to love you, and your limiting belief is ‘I am unloveable’, often without being aware you are doing it, you will bat the person away, you will struggle to cope with their affection, you will sabotage the relationship.
How To Start Tackling Your Limiting Beliefs
One of the biggest ways to start tackling beliefs, in my opinion, is AWARENESS.
Awareness = empowerment. Because if I or you don’t know something is holding us back, how can we know to change it?
Once we’re aware, we can choose to continue doing the same things and getting the same results (Albert Einstein), or choose to begin to change that belief using mindset and energy work.
And what is one of the biggest ways to become aware??
Triggers. New blog coming soon!
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