As We Believe, part 2

In last month’s article, we explored the origins of our personal belief system and the fact that   we all have the opportunity to change beliefs if life is not working for us as we would like it to. We established that beliefs are instilled in us during early childhood by our caretakers as well as through the emotional impact of circumstances we found ourselves experiencing at this time in our lives. What this basically means is that we all perceive life through our own emotional filtering system which has its origins in our early childhood, and that this system can be revised or changed.

Two questions present themselves: how do we identify our beliefs, and how do we change them?

IDENTIFYING BELIEFS: This requires that we “tune” into our emotions and if these emotions make us feel less than adequate, then that would be our cue that how we feel is not serving us. Most of us believe that how we feel is the ultimate truth, but in actuality our feelings simply reflect what we learned about ourselves from others when we were young and innocent and therefore had no way of  realizing “hey!, this belief is not good for me, so I won’t adopt it”.

1.      In working with our beliefs it is essential that we be willing to look them square in the face. We do this first and foremost by becoming aware of circumstances that keep repeating themselves in our daily lives. For example, if we continue having problems and really struggle to stay in a positive relationship then we have to be willing to admit to ourselves: I believe that I have to experience struggle and difficulty in relationships. Another example would be if we cannot seem to achieve a desired outcome in our jobs no matter how hard we work then the probability exists that: I believe that I am lacking in some quality needed to make life fruitful and abundant.

2.      Another way of identifying our beliefs is based on using our emotions as indicators. If you feel” less than” in any area of your life (and again this requires honesty) then this is a good indication that you are holding onto a negative belief about yourself.

3.      Another clue to how we really feel is that what distresses us about our parents or our

             children is usually what distresses us about ourselves; we tend in others what needs tending in ourselves. An example here would be that if we feel that either our parents or our children never listen, then there is a good chance that we believe that we are not able to put our point across in such a way that we deserve to be heard.               .

This may seem like a simplistic way of looking at things, but our beliefs always outpicture themselves in our lives, and what we draw to ourselves is always an indicator of what we believe.

CHANGING BELIEFS: Positive solutions rely on our state of mind. We must look at what we believe and then allow ourselves to release the negative belief.

1.      This process begins with our refusal to blame others for where we are in life while simultaneously taking responsibility for our choices and feelings. Every time we blame someone or something external to ourselves for our lot in life, we give away some of our power which then strengthens our belief in our own powerlessness.

2.      Quite often, we find ourselves thinking in certain ways while knowing that our thoughts could be creating trouble for us. For example, there are quite a few people who end up getting sick at the same time every year. These individuals may even be aware of the fact that what they believe has an effect on their experience and yet feel powerless to alter the situation. The issue here is that we must become aware of the tapes we keep running through our heads and therefore make a new recording.

3.      We are so very capable of harnessing the power of our minds to choose supportive and self-loving thoughts. One way of doing this is to create affirmations that we repeat to ourselves several times a day. We can also write these affirmations and display them somewhere at home where we will see them often (like on the refrigerator, or in the bathroom). If for example someone is overweight and is having trouble losing weight, one positive affirmation would be to repeat to oneself:” I AM AT PEACE WITH MY OWN FEELINGS. I AM SAFE WHERE I AM. I LOVE AND APPROVE OF MYSELF.” ( Louise Hay from the book: You can heal your life)

4.      Lastly, I cannot recommend this book enough: You Can Heal Your Life by Louise Hay. Louise’s key message is:’ If we are willing to do the mental work, almost anything can be healed”.         

5.      So many of us hold the belief that in order to be successful we must struggle and suffer; it is time to give ourselves the well-deserved break we all need and simply become willing to hold a different kind of thought in our minds: A POSITIVE ONE!!!!!