“Some while ago, I pulled my back and although I’d sort of made a recovery I was aware that there was still difficulty around sitting or standing for long periods of time.  My back would go into spasm, or it felt like I was locking up in some way. I initially tried various therapies to no avail, then to exercise, sometimes perhaps a little too strenuously, but that seemed to exacerbate the problem – so I’d try the opposite and rest it.  Over time I was gradually doing less and less in a perceived bid to save my back from possible further harm, and it was beginning to impact on my life.

Then I realized that all the stuff we were reading and doing around personal development applied as much to the way I was thinking and reacting about my back as it did to other areas of my life. My reactions were based on my beliefs, which in this instance were negative, about what would happen.  I had started to think that it might be with me indefinitely and to let the notion of my bad back limit my activity in small ways, and it was time to stop.

Recognizing the unhelpful beliefs that were holding me back was the starting point for moving on to do something positive to rectify it.  I then needed to let go of these beliefs and replace them with helpful ones. I did this firstly through using mindfulness techniques as a way of understanding and listening to what my body was actually experiencing rather than what I’d labeled it as.  And secondly by actively seeking the help of a trained professional, I came to realise that there was something I could do about it.   It might take a while but I had gained the belief and confidence in my body’s ability to heal itself.  And that was the start to recovery.” ~ Julian

Change and beliefs

Changing something in our life (or indeed business) is much easier if we become aware of the negative beliefs that limit our business, wealth, love life, indeed our very happiness and hold us back from reaching our ‘total potentiality’.  And once aware of these beliefs we find a way of acting to release them and replace them with new empowering ones.

Through so doing we enable ourselves to look at life in different more positive ways.  We free ourselves from the self-fulfilling versions of ‘truth’ we hold that hinder us.

Why is this important?

You’ve probably heard the phrase:

But we rather like Henry Ford’s less used quote, which asks:

“The man who thinks he can and the man who thinks he can’t are both right.  Which one are you?”

It’s a sort of ‘Is your glass half full or half empty’ question where the underlying message is one of beliefs becoming self-fulfilling; where our attitude and beliefs influence not only how we see the world but the outcomes we experience in line with our expectations.

So what about you?

• Are you more of a whether you think you can or can’t type of person?
• Do you know what beliefs are holding you back from changing something you want to change?
• Do you have any tips on how to go from half empty to half full? How you turn a negative belief into a positive one?

Let us know below.  We’d love to hear your voice.