Two Things You Need to Break Through The Limitations That Hold You Back

No matter who we are, what we’ve done or where we’ve been we have limitations that hold us back and impact our life.

The challenge is which limitations are pretty good, like the ones that keep us safe and those that are not so great –  like the ones that hold us back or cause us misery, or unhappiness and loss of health and wellbeing?

Some common limitations that hold you back

Nobody would be interested in my ideas.

I don’t have the skills.

I’m not going to be successful so there’s no point in trying.

I don’t feel like I could give enough value.

Getting my hopes up always leads to disappointment.

There’s too much competition.

I don’t have enough experience.

I’m not creative.

I could never do it.

It’s not perfect, I need more time.

I’m not good enough.

I have to fix ____ before I can _______

I can’t do it until I have ______  or I am ______

I’m too young or too old.

I’m sure somebody thought of this before.

I’m a procrastinator.

I just have bad luck

If I get too happy or too successful, I’ll jinx myself.

And that’s just a few…but even if you don’t recognize any of these as being a part of you, they may jog your consciousness and help you connect the dots to similar limitations that you might be operating from.

So where to begin?

With beliefs.

The thing about limitations is that they are caused by our beliefs.

Check out the list above. All of them are beliefs that can hold us back.

And there’s a belief out there that I must have heard of or read thousands of times. A belief about how consciousness works.

“You can’t keep focusing on the things you want because you’ll keep yourselves in the state of wanting. Think of something once and then forget about it.”

This doesn’t make any sense. 

And in my own personal experiences of using the powers of consciousness, not to mention my many failures this won’t work. Especially if you not only want to manifest your desires, but also maintain the results you have chosen to experience.

So where to next?

Persistence

This is vital to breaking through the limitations that hold you back.

If something is habitual in your world consider dumping it. Your habits can be the chains that hold you in your current mindset. And no-one makes a breakthrough without letting go of those automatic thoughts, feelings and beliefs that have become your way of being.

Change the record. Stop being who you were and become who you really are.

The thing of it is, however much it seems as though we’re living in a material world, we’re actually living in a world of imagination.

And whatever you become absorbed in – such as your biggest dream or goal, you are at that moment assuming a new state of being.  If you persist in this, you will experience that new state in your world.

Imagine that! Those dreams or goals that have eluded you because of your limitational habits can more easily be attained.

Okay, this is unlikely to be the easiest thing in the world that you’ve done. But in the end, it’s well worth it.

And here’s an idea that might help with that.

Steven Covey with a twist

In his now classic book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People? Steven Covey said “Start with the end in mind.”

So before you let yourself be stopped by being limited by things that haven’t worked for you up until now, try starting with the end in mind.

Because nothing should stop you: you have been given all the gifts and talents you need to live a brilliant life of your choosing. 

And that’s one simple technique that will help you break through any limitations that hold you back.

Here’s the twist

If you feel that you never have enough money, or your relationships always fail, then whatever money or ideal relationships may enter your world, they won’t last. And you’ll be back to the same old experiences.

However,  the Steven Covey method with a twist, means a little more than thinking from the end, you have to work with your consciousness in the way it was created to operate. 

In my last article in this spiritual series on consciousness I talked about the feeling element being the missing link in manifesting your ideal life experience. (The Missing Link)

Here’s where the twist comes in.

You must imagine and feel your desire as though it were true and real.

Imagining something as though it were true means exactly that. In picture form, see the result you’d like and decide how you would feel if the very thing you desire were actually here right now in your physical reality. 

You must imagine it, not as a spectator but as a participant. An actor in the drama of life you are creating. 

You are no longer thinking of the thing you want because that definitely will keep you in the wanting state and never in the receiving state. 

Instead, think from the thing as though it were your true and real in your physical reality.

It’s true that right then this is a mental state. But that’s where creation occurs. Things are first felt and imagined and then experienced. 

Persistence will pay off.

Persistence and thinking from, not of the end are two things that will support you in managing to break through the limitations that hold you back.

Seriously – get lost!

One thing that is handy to remember. These limitations we have placed on ourselves like to hang on like proverbial limpets.

And we tend to reinforce them with stuff we continue to read or hear about online or from friends. Because after all they’re the very things we’ve thought or believed ourselves up until now.

That makes it doubly tough. To keep a mind open enough to discourage anything that keeps old habits of thought going in the same direction.

When nothing changes, nothing changes. You know how that goes.

Be mindful of who you’re hanging out with both physically in the outer world and in your inner world of thoughts and feelings.

Trying to break through limitations that haven’t served you in life is hard enough, without adding the same ideas as before.

Try fresh combinations of ideas

New ideas are great signs that you’re in a new state of consciousness. 

Hang out with those who have creative, new thoughts and ideas or new perspectives that you haven’t had before. And then stick some of those new things together to create new avenues for you to explore.

This way you can be certain those old limitations are at least partly kicked to the curb,

And also you’ll discover can see so much better and farther.

Try fresh combinations of old ideas, these too might lead you somewhere new. 

Begin – whenever 

The only time and place to begin is from where you are right now, today. We’ve all tried the old ‘waiting for the right time technique’ and we know how well that works. Not great.

And it’s also a request to be stuck right where we are.

New ideas tend don’t come from the ether, or out of the blue, they come from our consciousness. Stepping into the consciousness of being the one who has eliminated at least some of the things that have held you back, allows new ideas to flow.

They can come from anywhere. So keep your eyes peeled and be on the look out for them.

Acknowledge yourself when you get a brand new idea. It’s a big step. 

Be grateful and do something with your new idea or opportunity…it may be a while until another one comes along.  

Go and get it!

I’ve had all manner of new and better experiences occur in my life because I was open to new ideas, new beliefs and new perspectives, from healing myself from a condition that I was told was life threatening, to finding the greatest love of my life.

And believe me when I tell you if I can do something, so can you. 

I’m an ordinary person who’s just very curious about how life works.

But if there’s one thing I’ve learned about all this, it’s that there’s no time to waste – if you have a dream, go and get it.

Oh yes, please remember to give yourself a break. You need time for resting and contemplating – another great way to allow new ideas to flow.

Encourage one another.

Love Elle

Xox

5 thoughts on “Two Things You Need to Break Through The Limitations That Hold You Back

  1. Debbie Hampton says:

    I like the suggestion to start with the end in mind. I had not heard that before. I definitely have the persistence part down! I was reading about cognitive biases today, and one called “sunk-cost thinking” is where your brain sticks with an idea because of time, money, or effort already invested. I was wondering if I have that!

    • Elle Sommer says:

      Hi Debbie – I have not heard of the phrase”sunk-cost thinking” but it makes sense to me, especially with our cognitive biases running the show. Thanks for sharing some new information – I’m always open to that.

  2. Sandra Pawula says:

    Elle,

    There are some powerful points in this piece. This one in particular stood out for me: “The thing about limitations is that they are caused by our beliefs.” That’s something we need to embrace fully as a basis for positive changes. Thanks for these brilliant tips.

  3. Joanne Davidson says:

    In your “Get Lost” section, you make a tremendously important statement that I missed the first time I read your article.
    And that is : we tend to reinforce them (our limitations) from stuff we read, hear or from our friends. That is a definite WOW! observation. I totally understand desiring to feel safe and comfortable and seeking the environment that offers that both online and offline. However, to expand and grow, even a little bit, one needs to step out of “the reinforcement zone” aka ” the comfort zone”. I know first hand that it is easier to conceptualize than to materialize. But this little nugget in your wonderful article has provided the impetus for me to examine and then change the reinforcement of my limitations as I strive to remove them all together.
    Thank you !

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses cookies to offer you a better browsing experience. By browsing this website, you agree to our use of cookies.