How to Remove Old Labels and Excuses that Block Your Success.

“Never underestimate your power to change yourself. Never overestimate your power to change others.”
~ H Jackson Brown, Junior

I believe that one of the most powerful gifts we have in life is our ability to understand ourselves. That’s why I’m committed to being a life-long student of me! Self-awareness and understanding enables us to move beyond our limited beliefs and old thinking habits.

You can literally grow through your problems.

There are tons of books out there about mindset explaining that you have the power to re-wire your thinking and even change how your brain works! I believe that you are an infinite being and that nothing is fixed. It’s just your thinking that makes it so.

Many of us are brought up to fit in. Conditioning starts at an early age and even though you’re now an adult complete with rational thinking, you still hang on to deeply engrained rules and excuses that prevent you from being truly yourself.

Rules such as: “You can’t get to do what you want to do!” “You’ll never amount to anything…” “You only get ahead if you follow the rules….” are played to us repeatedly even in our working lives. Fitting in, keeping your head down and being like everyone else becomes part of our programming. I see this so often at all levels in the business world. We create labels in our sub-conscious mind so we can easily retrieve these statements when required.

But it’s not who you really are.

We create excuses to protect ourselves from why life isn’t as much fun as it should be. Excuses help us to rationalize our disappointments and to defend our present position of settling and surviving. We become lazy and comfortable with them.

Excuses keep us stuck in a fixed mindset because our thinking habits stick with us sometimes for an entire lifetime! Our senses filter evidence to support and maintain them so they become permanent fixtures. We even develop language to justify them: “It’s just the way things are!” “This is how I am.”

Here’s what I’ve experienced personally and through my clients:

1. You can BE the person you want to be. You really can become anyone or anything you want to be. Start by getting clear on what you want to change about yourself. You can reinvent yourself whenever you choose.

2. Making conscious decisions dissolves labels because you step into your power. This may be a gradual shift but it begins by deciding NOW. You get to decide for yourself where your effort towards change would be most value. In other words, you get to choose.

3. Your senses become alive to positive changes. You start to notice a difference in how you show up each day. Others will see this too. You’ll begin to see, feel and hear things differently, like you’ve sharpened your senses!

4. Energy flows where attentions goes. I know you’ve heard this many times before, but think about it for a moment… If you place your attention on what you want rather than on what you don’t want, something shifts. You’re re-aligning to your intention and forming new positive habits.

5. Use positive affirmations to dissolve your labels. You can stay in alignment with what you want to attract by surrounding yourself with positive affirmations and reminders. Sensory things that positively stimulate you visually, auditory or kinesthetically such as photographs, fresh flowers, written statements such as: “I can accomplish anything,” “I am healthy, happy and successful.” or record an MP3 message to yourself and play it everyday! Affirmations eradicate excuses and act as living testimonials or symbols to whom or what you are becoming.

6. Develop a growth mindset. Don’t let past negative labels or other people define you. Take every setback as a challenge and work through it. Having a fixed mindset sees transition as a threat and limits your achievement. Be curious, look for new challenges and confront any obstacles along the way. Life is about learning and improving, and developing a growth mindset is the starting point for change.

The key word for me in the quotation at the top of this article is power. We all have the power within us to create change.

You are what you think about every day – What are YOU thinking about?

Originally posted on Elaine Bailey International Ltd.

Elaine Bailey is devoted to coaching successful women and men into their best lives. She mentors busy people to move away from the chaos and overwhelm of settling and surviving by offering them a whole new approach to productivity, business and lifestyle. Her weekly eZine WorkBrilliant™ goes out every Thursday and is full of practical tips and techniques to move from misery to mastery EVERY single day! You can sign up for a F.R.E.E. subscription to WorkBrilliant™ at http://www.elainebaileyinternational.com.