We can be our own best friend or our worst enemy.  It is the beliefs we have about ourselves, others or situations that moves us forward or holds us back.  Our beliefs create the filter we look through to see the world and the possibilities or barriers within it.   When self-limiting beliefs create the filter, the result can stop you back from living your best life.

Think about some of the conversation you had with yourself today.  Did you tell 'you' that you were talented, fabulous and capable of extraordinary achievements or did you tell 'you' that you were forgetful, unorganized, unworthy or untalented? 

The crazy thing is that sometimes, you do not even know that the negative thoughts are playing their brainwashing tape over and over again in your head.  They found a place in your mind so comfortable that you accept them as true rather than what they really are, an unproven self-limiting thought. 

The interesting thing is that your mind is an incredible tool that will believe what you tell it, so why not challenge the self-limiting beliefs you currently hold as true.  What if they were not true and you had the opportunity to put them to bed and create true direction instead of a misguided story line?  Interested?  I thought you would be.  Read on.    

By banishing self-limiting thoughts, you can make significant changes and begin to live with joy, power and clarity.  That clarity will allow you to see things differently.  It is a wonderful feeling to be free of 'junk' thoughts and make room for hope and renewal. 

Author, Byron Katie has done fantastic work in the area of challenging the self-limiting thoughts we hold as true.  She created key questions found in the book, The Work, which I find incredibly powerful in stopping the dance of creating stories that lead to self-limiting beliefs.  I suggest you read the book to get a full understanding of the methodology.  The excerpt below is from a worksheet from Byron Katie's website.  I am confident they will make a difference in your life: 

• Is it true? The answer is a "yes" or a "no" only.  If your answer is "no", continue to question three.
• Can you absolutely know that it is true? What proof do you have that it is true?  It most cases you will find it is not true.
• How do you react, what happens, when you believe that thought?
• Does the thought bring peace or stress into your life?
• Describe the feelings that happen physically when you believe that thought.
• How do you treat that person and others when you think that thought?
• How do you treat yourself when you think that thought?
• What addictions/obsessions begin to manifest when you think that thought? (Alcohol, credit cards, food, the TV remote?)
• What images do you see (past and/or future) when you believe that thought? Close your eyes, relax, contemplate, witness.
• Where and when did that thought first occur to you (at what age)?
• Who would you be without the thought? Close your eyes and drop your story just for a moment and notice, who would you be without that thought? Who would you be without your story? How about if you were not capable of believing that thought.  Turn the thought around. Reverse the thought as many ways as you can and ask yourself if these reverse versions seem as true as or truer than your original thought.  http://www.thework.com

The important step of the turnaround is to challenge the reality of the thought and to get at what is true.  In most cases, the turnaround will reveal what is really true.  Once the truth is uncovered, you can address it and move on. 

Sometimes it seems easier to go on believing negative or untrue thoughts rather than to deal with a life without those thoughts.  New can be scary because you realize that with possibilities and opportunities comes the decision to act or not.  You got this far in the article; I think you are choosing to act.  Breathe and step into new light.