Self-Imposed Limitations and Success

Self-Imposed Limitations and Success

 

You have worked really hard to maintain a positive and upbeat attitude, even in the tough times. You are doing well and even believe that you are successful. But, despite how hard you try and how optimistic you are, you can’t seem to get over a hurdle to make it to the “next level.” Every time you feel that something big is about to break and you genuinely believe that something great is about to happen, things stay the same.  Why?

Time to pull your mind over to the side of the road as you have hit a SIL checkpoint; or as I like to call it, a Self-Imposed Limitations checkpoint. As you complete this self-reflection, I want you to think about limitations that you have created for yourself. Maybe someone said something to you that is holding you back from moving forward. For example, “Most women just really aren’t that good at the finance side of Business, so don’t worry about it.”  Or, maybe you have a faulty assumption about yourself that is holding you back. For example, “I came from nothing, so there is a good chance I won’t ‘really’ make it.”

 

Well, I am here to tell you that you are under arrest! Whether you think you can’t move forward or you have accepted someone else’s assumption that your can’t move forward, ultimately you are holding you back, and that is a crime.

When you feel that something big is about to break for you, and then it doesn’t, you have held yourself back in some capacity. Just because you think positive doesn’t mean you will keep moving up. In addition to having a great attitude, you have to use critical thinking to get around self-imposed limitations and you have to have the confidence to break through that barrier.

If you ever hear yourself saying, that you should never try something again that you once failed at, you have set a self-imposed limitation. If you ever hear yourself saying, “no one I know has ever been able to do that” you have set a limitation for yourself.

This type of thinking sets a limitation to your mind. Your mind now knows that there is a cap to your potential and it is not going to try to move further. Your mind says, “If it can’t be done, I am not going to exhaust the body’s energy to just ‘try’ something that can’t happen.” Once you rip away the self-imposed limitations, you can go as high as you think you can, but then keep going.

 

This week your challenge is to identify 1 self-imposed limitation and find a way to break through it and make one step toward the next level up.

 

 

 Dr. Jaime Kulaga is the author of Type "Superwoman: Finding the LIFE in Work-Life Balance - A Self-Searching Book for Women". She is the inspirational founder of the nationally known SuperWoman Workshops. Dr. Kulaga has been featured in Forbes, Chicago Tribune, Glamour, Self and Prevention magazines as well as the national show Daytime for her expertise in Work-Life Balance.
http://www.mindfulrehab.com