“I’m not an entrepreneur.”
“I could never run a business.”
“I don’t have time to have a business.”
“I’m not equipped for a business.”
Have you said some of these things, even though you have a pull on your heart to be in business?
Maybe you have a business already, but you’re telling yourself.
“I can’t do more.”
“It’s too risky to grow.”
“What will others say if I fail.”
These excuses are all limiting beliefs! All those negative words create a state of mind, conviction, or belief that you think to be true that limits you in some way (BTW- that’s the definition).
And these limiting beliefs have many negative effects on you. That’s why I want you to learn how to overcome limiting beliefs that are keeping you from:
- Making good choices
- Taking on new opportunities
- Reaching your potential
Ultimately, limiting beliefs keep you stuck in a negative state of mind and hinder you from living out God’s Calling for you.
God wants you to learn how to overcome limiting beliefs because He wants to use you more than you can imagine.
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Limiting beliefs and your witness
I guess the question is this. . . What are limiting beliefs doing to your witness? Yes, I said it. God has called you to serve Him through your business. He wants to transform you through your business. But you are digging in your heels and saying, “I’m not enough.” “I can’t do this.” “I’m afraid.”
A lot of I’s, right? God calls you to be His witness to others. Guess what? You “get to” do that via your business. When you limit yourself, you are really limiting God. Let that sink in for a moment.
What causes limiting beliefs?
I know. We all feel like we can’t measure up in some way and like we really have nothing to offer that makes any difference. So, where do these feelings come from?
You may know. The biggest culprit is your childhood. Those things were either implicitly or explicitly taught to you by parents, teachers, and other authority figures. These things became a part of the story in your head, formed your ingrained biases, and colored the way you saw life and your place in it. Your very identity.
These limiting beliefs also come from our own experiences because we draw conclusions based on the situations we go through in life. This is especially true of those negative experiences we encounter. For example, have you been excluded by the girls on the playground and then seen the same happen to you in some college club to only have it repeated in the workplace? That reinforcement can make the limiting belief even stronger.
BUT GOD. When you became a believer, you became a new creature.
For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. –Ephesians 2:10
This gives you and me hope. Hope that with Christ, we can overcome those limiting beliefs and move forward to do what God calls each of us to do.
Identify your limiting beliefs
Identifying your limiting beliefs is not a one-and-done exercise either. We know the enemy will use those things from our childhood and those past experiences to remind us how inadequate we are. That’s why we need to understand Scripture and use it to combat him, just as Jesus did.
Let’s identify them so we can learn how to overcome limiting beliefs. One way to identify them is to list those things you feel strongly about that influence your daily life. Then, categorize them into family, money, relationships, health, etc.
Now split them into two categories, ones that are helping you grow and ones that are limiting you. Here’s a clue, if you have anxiety or fear around anything you wrote down, that limits you.
Another way to figure out your limiting beliefs is to assess your behavior. For example, think about situations where you acted in negative or toxic ways and think about why.
For example, if you find it challenging to speak your mind when someone has offended you, you may hold the limiting belief that conflict is bad. This leads to not being able to have intimate relationships because healthy confrontation is something you never learned to do.
This is also related to challenges that tend to repeat themselves in your life. Those recurring challenges are indications you have a limiting belief. I know this is a challenge I had around success. My challenges early in my entrepreneurial adventure were a byproduct of my incorrect beliefs that I accepted as truth.
Examine your limiting beliefs
Here are some common limiting beliefs you may or may not have identified in yourself. See if they are holding you back from what God is calling you to do.
“I can’t.”
Do you regularly tell yourself you can’t do something? Is that your first inclination when you have to learn something new? This limiting belief holds you back because you don’t realize you have a choice. If there is something you can’t yet do, you have the option to learn.
It is normal to feel like you don’t have what it takes to complete a task, help others with a project, or live up to even your own expectations. No one knows everything!
How to overcome limiting beliefs – growth mindset
Knowing you can learn more is what we call the growth mindset. Stay curious and open to new learning. Avoid trying to protect yourself by staying in your comfort zone. This only leads to stagnation and growing your limiting belief.
For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength. –Philippians 4:13
“What is impossible for people is possible with God.” –Luke 18:27
Trust that God has given you precisely what you need to learn. What personal development activities is God placing in front of you? Resources like: books, podcasts, videos, coaches? Do something every day to grow.
“I don’t have time.”
This is probably one of the biggest excuses I have seen for not following God’s calling. Let’s face it, we all lead busy lives. We rush from one thing to the next like we are spinning multiple plates and trying to keep from falling.
If you believe you don’t have time for something or someone, you won’t ever have (or make) time for them. And thinking you don’t have time keeps you stuck in one place.
How to overcome limiting beliefs – prune and prioritize
It’s about two things: one, taking things off your plate to make room for what God is saying (prune) and two, prioritizing the time you have each day. Remember, we all have the same time suitcase (so to speak). How you pack it daily is based on how you perceive your time.
Genesis 1:3-5 reminds us that each day is perfect and has the exact right amount of time to do everything God has called you to do.
Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. Then he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light “day” and the darkness “night.” And evening passed and morning came, marking the first day. –Genesis 1:3-5
Take a time audit for a few days. Then, accurately keep track of how you are spending your time. For example, how much time are you wasting on activities that don’t add value or meaning to your business and life?
If God has called you into business, you can let go of some of those other responsibilities you have placed on yourself. Instead, trade out the good things you are doing for the better and the best things God wants you to do.
“I’m not strong enough.”
This limiting belief can be rooted in many things. For example, it might be that you feel you have failed before, so this time it won’t be any different, and you just don’t think you can take it. Or, it could be you feel you will be judged by others when you try one more thing, and you can’t take that type of rejection.
How to overcome limiting beliefs – your identity is in Christ
No matter where this limiting belief comes from, know this, you are not the sum of your successes and failures or what others say about you. What is more important is what God says about you. And, God will use all those failures to teach you the lessons you need to trust Him. That’s all He wants.
You are strong enough to try again. Your identity is in Christ, and you are a daughter of the King. You have the Holy Spirit giving you the strength to keep going.
Jesus tells us to. . . Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. –Matthew 6:33
Overcoming this limiting belief requires action: action one, your journal. Use your journal to express gratitude to God for what He has given you. Just write out one thing you are grateful for a day, and then write out WHY you are thankful for it. Start with everyday things and work into more important things that will begin to happen more and more for you.
Action two, take time each day to learn more about God through Bible study and prayer. Use your journal to keep track of what you are studying and what God is revealing to you about yourself, and how He is growing your strength so you can endure anything this entrepreneurial life throws at you.
Overcoming your limiting beliefs
Overcoming your limiting beliefs isn’t easy. It is a process that will be scary at times but will grow your character the way God wants, to make you more like His Son.
What matters is that you identify what’s holding you back from what God is calling you to do. Then, examine the lie you are telling yourself, and the enemy is reinforcing since a limiting belief isn’t entirely true. Then you’ll understand what you need to work on to grow, learn, and achieve your goals.
Reframe what you believe, test what you supposedly can’t do, and see what happens. All those limiting beliefs that keep you from living the life God designed for you need to go away. By asking Him to help you overcome them, you give yourself a chance to create the business and life He’s waiting to provide you.
It’s exciting. It is all true too. What limiting belief is holding you back from God’s Calling? Let’s have a conversation to talk about what God is whispering to you. Let’s chat to see if He has given you Calling Clarity as a resource to help you break free from your limiting beliefs and start to live into the calling He has for you.
Don’t let that voice tell you that you are not enough, don’t allow it to speak louder than the pull on your heart to do more for God. Let me know in the comments what activities you will do so you can identify, examine, and overcome your limiting beliefs.
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