While browsing my news feed I came across an article that talked about limiting beliefs and surpassing your limiting beliefs. Beliefs are an interesting topic. And I talk about them often and consistently. One reoccurring theme, in particular, is the pop psychology idea that ,”If you can conceive something, and believe something… that you can achieve it.” 

It’s simply not true.

Most people who have followed me for a while know that I’m “Successes Bad Boy,” the contrarian to normal pop psychology, I can’t stand pop psychology ideas about “how things work,” when the ideas are just dysfunctional, non-functional… often the exact opposite of deeper success. The pop psychology sounds good, and it feels like it makes sense… and it’s not usable, it’s not functional. And one of those non functional ideas is that if you can conceive something and believe something that you can achieve it.   

Know this:  Belief is absolutely NOT a requirement for achievement.

Look, if you want to save $10,000, and you were able to save $1,000 each month out of your paycheck, even if you believe yourself unable to accomplish saving $10,000 – if you simply set up the mechanics of the goal; of the action – in 10 months – in less than a year – you’d have $10,000 whether you believe yourself capable of achieving it or not.

This mechanical principle works across the board for nearly any goal that I can think of: If you think that you are incapable of obtaining your bachelor’s degree and you merely go through the mechanics of enrolling in school and attending class and reading the book to the best of your ability, and working through the problems… eventually – it might take you more than four years, you might not be able to attend five classes a semester, you might fail out of a couple of classes – but eventually, whether you believe yourself capable of attaining a bachelor’s degree or not, you will eventually achieve a bachelor’s degree simply by mechanics.

You think that you can’t lose 10 pounds? Again, mechanical: you losing weight is merely expending more calories than you take in. And certainly there are more efficient ways to do that. There are absolutely more healthier ways to do that. But when my coaching clients get stuck on whether they have the ability to do something at all… I encourage them to reduce it to its basic mechanics:  You don’t think that you can lose 10 pounds? Let’s come up with the amount of energy you tend to burn every day. factor in how much exercise you do. Talk about how much food you’re eating, and compare these three things. And if we come up with a diet that is taking in less than you are expending, you will lose weight whether you think you’re able to do it or not.

Almost ALL success… is mechanical.~ Mark Farmer, founder LifeSuccessEngine.com

And the fact that so many people believe that, you have to believe that you can do something before you do it, is criminal.  This is part of pop psy life success and the “Feel Good,” Inspirational, “Rah, rah!” part of self-help that has people standing in front of mirrors doing affirmations for hours and that I detest.

Understand, there is a purpose for affirmations. There are reasons to work on your beliefs: in particular, checking to ensure that your beliefs are functional.  But one of the dysfunctional beliefs is that you have to believe something in order to achieve it. You don’t, you don’t, you know, you don’t.

BUT this is one of those areas where the counterfactual doesn’t necessarily follow:

While you don’t have to believe something to achieve it… if you have limiting beliefs, that WILL get in the way of you achieving something.

Here’s where it gets tricky. And this is where most people confuse the idea that you have to believe in something to achieve it – but there are two separate ideas, and we have to take them separately.

The above clearly refutes the idea that you have to believe that you are capable of a success in order to achieve it. Again, it simply is not true. Much – nearly all – of success is mechanical.

However, the completely different idea that if you have limiting beliefs, they very well can limit your ability to achieve something. The challenge with not believing that you can achieve a particular success… is that it gets in the way of taking actions towards that success:  If you don’t believe yourself capable of losing 10 pounds, if you don’t believe yourself capable of saving $10,000, if you don’t believe yourself capable of meeting the match of your dreams… it’s hard to take action in the face of those limiting beliefs. So that limiting beliefs absolutely get in the way of taking action.

The important distinction to make between the two is action.  What’s important is taking action. Whether you think you can or can’t… action will decide your success.

Whether you think you can or can’t… action will decide your success.~ Mark Farmer, Founder LifeSuccessEngine.com

Whether you believe or don’t believe isn’t important.  Only action is.

And that can be the trick: when you have limiting beliefs, how do you take action, even in the face of your unbelief? This is often one of the primary things that I work with a lot of coaching clients on. And, off the cuff, here would be the top three ways that you can continue to take action even in the face of of your disbelief:

1. Suspend Your Disbelief
   I get it, YOU think it’s not possible; you think YOU can’t do it or you think you just can’t do it from where you are now… Cool.  Hold on to that belief… it’s important we honor what we think.  But that doesn’t mean that we have to take action on them.  Take positive action forward in the direction of your goal, even in the face of your doubt.
   
   Remember: it doesn’t matter if you think you can or think you can’t.  All that matters is what you DO. Take your belief, and set it aside for now while you just focus on action.  Have the courage to take action even in the face of your disbelief.
   
2. Test Your Belief 
   Be willing to go test your beliefs. So you don’t think that you’re able to save $10,000 in 10 months!?  Let’s just see if you can save $100 in the next month. Because here’s the deal, if you receive any positive result at all:  if you save $10 over the next month, all of a sudden, this limiting belief that I cannot save $10,000 in a year begins to crumble. Your positive result PROVES that you DO have some control over your financial situation.
   
   You don’t think you can find the woman of your dreams?  Cool: Date anyway.  If you go dating and don’t find the woman of your dreams, but you do find a nice person who you’re just not attracted to for whatever reason, then the proof is you do to have some control. Don’t get married to her or even go on date number two… but your incremental success show you’re your actions do matter.
   
   And this one’s a little bit tricky because you don’t want it to become a self-fulfilling prophecy. Somebody who thinks that they can’t lose 10 pounds and then takes dysfunctional action to basically prove themselves right – say, restricts their diet to 300 calories a day for the next week. And sure enough, that second day, they are famished and end up scarfing down ice cream and cake, so that becomes proof in their mind that they couldn’t do this.
   
   The distinction of the second point is to be careful of what evidence you’re looking. If there is any evidence at all that your actions have any control over the outcome and can move them forward towards their goal, no matter how slightly… then you can too achieve this dream.
   
3. Get Coaching
   Find a coach to help you to set up the mechanics of taking action. For new success that are beyond anything you’ve ever accomplished, coaching can be immeasurable.  I’ve seen people struggle for years, some people struggle for four decades, and then with some effective coaching, really breakthrough limiting beliefs, really break through lack of action, and achieve large they never felt possible.  I mean losing 50 pounds, writing the book they’ve wanted to write their entire life, or starting up businesses that actually, not only make money but make their passion their “job.” I’ve successfully worked with people to achieve each of those things. Effective coaching can be huge for taking action, even in the face of your belief.
   
   A quick word about one of the self-limiting beliefs we referenced above: As a life coach I often run across people who have achieved a modicum of success or who are flat out broke.  And they want coaching… they just don’t have the time or money.  “I’m so busy right now,” they’ll say.  Or “Money is too tight.” 
   
   And let’s face it: we’re all busy.  There are very few of us that money isn’t tight for.  Life coaching HELPS you make time for what’s important.  Life coaching helps you to MAKE money… not just take it.  One of the things that I’ll say often is that if your coaching costs you more money than your coaching helps you to bring in, if your money is only eating up time and not helping you to make space in your life… it’s probably the wrong kind of coaching for you.  Remember this: life coaching is an investment in you, for people who want to be and do more than they have been. 

But whether you obtain coaching or slog it out yourself in the trenches trying to break through self-limiting beliefs don’t think that you have to “believe it, to achieve it.” The belief is not only false… it is damaging.  It simply isn’t true.

The biggest thing that can suggest to get the concept is just pitch in, in the comments. Explore the concept below by posting to the comments or starting a topic in the forum.  It’s far more compelling and illustrative to have a conversation where everyone’s invited to the table. So post below to the comments and start up a conversation about your limiting beliefs or even your disagreement, Your willingness to go ahead and discuss this out loud will make the biggest change in your life. You can sit there and be a voyeur and watch other people struggle and work on their life and achieve their life, but then you will never change anything about your life… until you take action.

Once you truly grasp and embody the concept that it doesn’t matter if you think you can or can’t, all that matters is that you take action in the direction of your dreams, you’ll find yourself accomplishing a great many things that you once believed were impossible and achieving a success far beyond your wildest dreams.

Your Partner in Success,
~ Mark

Whatever you want in life – to start a business, obtain a graduate degree, or find the love of your life – I’ve led thousands of people in reaching dreams just like yours. And I KNOW you’re capable of reaching success with the help of my coaching. Reach out now and I’ll even offer you the first session for free!

Start here, start now!

Mark is a master goal setter. He has done what he teaches… He wants you to succeed…
~ Dick McLean

Copyright © 2021, Mark Farmer. Permission to reprint automatically granted as long as accompanied by this notice and live Web link to http://LifeSuccessEngine.com