05/17/2019
The Importance of Belief
If you want to transform your life, this is the one concept you really need to understand in order to manifest the changes you want in order to create the life that you want. This may seem flakey to some, or redundant and obvious to others, but it is worth giving some really mindful thought to because once you “get” this at a gut level, and start to implement it, you can begin to craft your life and your reality. That is not an analogy, it is literally true.
What I hoping to do with this note is to make you think deeply about this concept, and to prove to you and completely convince you that this concept is true and powerful. I want to do this because if I can, you can and will start to change and evolve in ways that you cannot even begin to imagine. And it's contagious. Once others observe the shifts that you are experiencing, they too will start to believe. This is a powerful and transformative experience that reinforces your belief and empowers both you and everyone around you. We all win. Now THAT is some amazing magic. And it’s totally real.
Limiting Beliefs
You may not realize it, but what you believe is already creating your reality. Take a moment to think about that. If you can, be brutally honest with yourself, you will realize that almost all of us have what I call “Naffirmations” we play in our heads ALL the time. The way we talk to ourselves is appalling. We say things to ourselves that we would NEVER say to another human being. These are made even more powerful and destructive because they are often “background” thoughts, that we barely register on a conscious level, so we just passively accept them as true, and use these limiting truths as the base of our belief system, and the basic building blocks of our lives.
How can these intangibles, these mere thoughts do so much damage? Because they are the things that completely control our behaviour, and make our choices. If you really believe that you are a loser or a failure, you are NEVER going to really even TRY to succeed. You are done before you have even begun. If you believe you are ugly, or fat, you will never see the beauty in yourself, and certainly, not many others will either.
We obtain these limiting beliefs from a variety of sources. The first and most powerful of these is in childhood. If we are constantly told we are stupid, or incapable, or fat, we begin to not only believe this, BUT, more horrifically, we also begin to affirm these things in our heads, and reinforce these beliefs.
Other sources for these naffirmations are media, friends, failures, fears… truly they can come from anywhere. And that THAT is literally creating an atmosphere of negativity that programs us to fail.
I ask you to be mindful...really LISTEN to yourself, and try to notice when these nasty naffirmations pop up in your head because just seeing them for what they are is the first and most powerful step in transforming yourself.
Empowering Beliefs
Now, empowering beliefs are the exact opposite of nafirmations. IF we believe we CAN succeed, we will at least try. If we don’t believe success is possible, trying is pointless, and most of us will not even bother. We will sit in stasis in our comfort zone, and no transformation will happen. We may fail, at times but I guarantee we will not always fail, and I also guarantee that even if we do fail, we will learn things that will help us succeed in other attempts and other times. Failure is not the thing which is the killer here, not even attempting anything is the crusher that will always prevent change and growth.
BUT...if you really believe you can succeed, you eventually will. And sometimes that can happen in a way that is almost unbelievable. I have personally experienced and watched others experience dramatic change once these core beliefs start to shift.
It is vital that you recognize these changes and successes as they start to happen. This is the validation that you CAN do it, you ARE doing it, that it IS working. Taking note of these is what is going to make your belief stronger, and fuel your self-empowerment.
So you have to convince yourself you CAN succeed, that you ARE worthwhile and beautiful, and that you CAN create the changes you want. This is not a simple or instant process. It takes work, it takes awareness, it takes brutal self-honesty, and above all it takes discipline.
Shifting Belief
We, as humans, learn by repetition. This is well known. How many times did you have to repeat the times' tables before they were locked into your brain? But now, you do not even have to make an effort to know what 3x4 is, it is automatic. This is a provable, demonstrable fact.
The more something is repeated, the more we accept it as true. This works EVEN if we know, at a conscious, logical level that it is not really true, our subconscious still accepts it as true. That is how everything from advertising to propaganda to brainwashing works.
So think about how long you have been repeating these naffirmations, and allowing them to shape your reality. You can’t overcome all that in a few days, but it can happen faster than you think. Why? Because you have been doing all that on an almost unconscious, automatic passive level. When you begin to shift these beliefs, you will be doing it consciously, regularly, and intentionally. That is MUCH more powerful.
Empowering positive affirmations are the key, and this concept is the main tool for almost every spiritual path or self-help book. But most of us DO NOT take the time and effort to do this, because we really do not believe it will work. That's ok, you don’t have to believe it right away… we are going to create that belief. JUST DO IT ANYWAY. Give me an honest month here, and I promise you will be glad you did. I am not asking you to accept anything by faith, you will see the results manifest in a real, tangible way if you give it an honest go.
The Steps to Transformation
I am going to make this as simple as possible. No esoteric stuff, no religion, no faith. Just simple steps that if you actually practice regularly and consistently will get results. BUT you have to do it. DO IT.
Be Mindful and Aware of Your Self-talk. This gets easier as you go. It is helpful to write down any patterns that you see cropping up all the time. You can try to find out where that originated, but that is not strictly necessary. The important thing is to recognize these naffirmations as soon as the crop up. Once you do that, they lose much of their power.
Replace Negatives with Positives. Every time you find yourself reinforcing a negative belief, replace it with a positive one. “I can’t do this” can be replaced by“I can do this. I am strong, capable….” Do this with as much focus as you can. Visualize yourself succeeding or accomplishing as vividly as you can. Even if you do not completely believe it at first, DO IT ANYWAY. Every time you find yourself nafirming a belief, change to an affirming statement.
Track Changes. This is very important. Write stuff down. Take the time to appreciate your successes. Set small goals, and then follow through. Observe how you are manifesting change. This will empower you, and reinforce your new self-image and self-empowerment.
That’s it. That is the whole process. Keep in mind, however, that it is a continuing process: you are never finished, rather you are always progressing.
You will find as you go through this process that your comfort zone is going to shift, and so are your relationships. Some of the people in your life are NOT going to react well to your transformation, because it is going to upset their comfort level. That can be painful, but its a good thing in the long run.
A few other things that will help…
Surround yourself with people that support you
Eliminate people who are negative, or who try to sabotage you
Do affirmations regularly
Meditate
Clear the clutter out of your life...physical, emotional or mental
Be honest...with yourself and others, always
Be loving, forgiving and compassionate..especially to yourself
