Belief Blocks: Part 2

So how do you get over belief blocks? The first step is to become aware of them. The second step is to find out what they save you from. Is it the risk of failure? The pain of hard work or discipline? The fear of discomfort or humiliation? Be honest with yourself.

Here are a few ideas on then how to take action. If you have any more, please let me know!

1. Act as if. This technique, borrowed from solution focused therapy is a way of challenging one's intuition and understanding of reality by doing something different. So if you don't think something is possible, act as if it is. If you don't believe that you can find a mate, act as if you could. Or if you are afraid of socializing, act as if you aren't. By acting as if your beliefs aren't true, you can retrain your mind as you begin to do things that you couldn't imagine.

2. Hang out with people who don't have your particular belief blocks. If you want to be wealthy, hang out with people who are. They have already broken their belief blocks! If you want to be a person of faith, hang out with those who live theirs out. If you want to be in shape, hang out with those who weren't in shape but now are. When our doubt and disbelief afflict us, sometimes the only thing needed is to be with someone who has the opposite.

3. Continuously look for and marvel at the things that seem impossible. For instance a little while ago I blogged about a man who survived falling out of a plane (his chute didn't open) and survived the impact by hitting the roof of a building - amazing! Feats of incredibleness open up our minds to expect the unexpected. We become a little less inclined to view things as impossible . . . because maybe they aren't. I take encouragement from stories of spontaneous healings and it reminds me that nothing is impossible.


I like it when someone challenges me to do something that seems impossible. What does it hurt to try? Failure is not the worst thing in the world - not trying is. Attack your belief blocks like you are trying to save your own life. And perhaps you will be . . .

Belief Blocks: Part 1

I was reading in one of my Outside magazines about belief blocks as applied to mountaineering. Apparently many years ago there were some mountain routes that no one in the mountain climbing community thought were possible to climb. Then along came some crazy Eastern Bloc climbers who started climbing those routes. The belief block was broken - they were climbable and soon many people were climbing them. A belief block is an idea in mind that looks something like this:

"I can't do that."
"That's impossible for me."
"No one could do that."

People used to believe that no one could run a 4 minute mile. It seemed impossible. But then one day someone refused to believe it and they did it. The belief block was broken for everyone and very soon the record breaker's record was broken - again and again. When Gandhi told people he thought that non-violence could win the war for independence against the British, no one believed him at first. But his idea did work and the old belief - that it would never work - was broken.

Belief blocks can be insidious destroyers of our lives. We get stuck in unsatisfying relationships, work malaise, depression, addictions, etc. because we fall into the trap of believing that things can't change. Or, more specifically, that we can't change.

"Lose my extra weight? That impossible for me ."
"Get a better job? Who, me? Nah."
"Have a better marriage? In my dreams."
"Invest in real estate? That's for other people - I'm not that kind of person. . ."

So often we get stuck in hopeless, impossible, negative thinking. And we stay there. Afraid to challenge those beliefs, afraid to hope that things can be different, and afraid to risk what we have for something better. Then we sabotage ourselves while our friends and family look on helplessly. I've done it. In fact, if I'm honest, I'm doing it right now.

What belief blocks do you have that are holding you back? Daring to believe that things could be different, that the impossible just might be possible, is the first step to changing your stars. If you don't believe that you are capable of seeing change, at least believe that God is capable of changing things in your life. Then go do something about it. Get rid of those belief blocks. You'll never miss them. Not everything in life is possible, but then again, not everything is impossible! And sometimes we need to be reminded of that. I know I do.

How Much You Weigh Affects Your . . .

Being obese affects many aspects of your health but here is a newly discovered risk factor:

For every excess pound piled on the body, the brain gets a little bit smaller.