Never put limits on yourself!

You can go much further than you think you can.

Whatever you think you can do, you can do a lot more!

I learned this the other day as I was out for my running workout.

Before I even got out the door, I told myself I couldn't possibly do the full exercise. I didn't think I was in good enough shape to complete the workout.

That was the exact moment I put a limit on myself.

I had limited myself from gaining the benefits of the full workout because I made myself believe right from the start that there was no way I could complete it.

As I started the workout and reached the "pre-set limit in my mind," I challenged myself to do one more rep. Once I had completed that rep, I challenged myself to do another one, and then another one, until I had completed the full workout. That's the moment I realized that I had artificially put a limit on myself when I started my run as well as all those times before. I actually could do more than I thought I could.

There was nothing holding me back other than my own limiting beliefs.

I had put a limit on myself, and that limit was only in my head. I was physically able to do the workout.

I wondered what my all my past training would look like if I actually completed all my workouts instead of holding back.

This realization helped me understand firsthand the limits we put on ourselves without questioning the limits we believe to be true.

Never put limits on yourself!

- Your Potential

Why do we believe in our limits?

Perhaps it's easier to believe the thoughts than to challenge them. We can stay in the warmth of our comfort zone and not have to make any changes, not get uncomfortable, not change.

Maybe we believe our limits because we know them. They bring certainty, and moving past our limits brings uncertainty, doubt, and perhaps a fear of failing.

Our minds trick us into safety.

This is where our hardwired behavior patterns passed down from millions of years of evolution have kept us locked in, but we don't need that safety anymore.

Yes, there are times when we need to be kept safe from external dangers, but besides those situations, we need to be able to turn off this safety feature of our minds and instead break away.

We need to be set free.

We need to soar.

We need to fly.

Instead of looking at a limiting belief as a negative experience to push away and never think about again, what if we approached a limiting belief as a guidepost and a stepping stone toward our potential?

We can make space to become aware of the limiting belief as we experience it instead of overlooking it or taking it at face value.

We could write these limiting beliefs down to understand them better and explore them to see how and why they appeared in the first place.

Questions to ask yourself as you challenge your limiting beliefs

• Why is the limiting belief showing up?

• Is there something greater to be found if you move past it?

• What is beyond the limit we are placing on ourselves.

• Is there a false safety we are being put into, or is there real danger?

Once we understand the reasons, we can be better equipped to move past them instead of letting the false beliefs keep us locked in.

Action Tip: Keep a list of the limits you come across.

You can usually identify them when you use words such as “Try”, “Can’t”, “Won’t”, or “Should”.

Write down the beliefs to challenge them as you notice them. Write down what would happen if you moved beyond the limit. Is there real danger in it, or is it your mind trying to keep you in your comfort zone?

Moving past our limiting beliefs is the key to real personal and professional growth. What we seek is on the other side of our fears. So, let's shatter the limits and rush towards our full potential.

Rizwan

P.S. Many thanks for reading!

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Note: This isn’t a call to hustle or to grind through pain and ignore any warning signs your mind and body are telling you. We need to be pragmatic and work within our abilities. Please listen to your body when you need rest and recovery.