Isn't It Time For You To Change Your Belief Systems?
Beliefs shape how you experience yourself, your world, and what you deserve. Beliefs are often so powerful that they create the reality they represent. This article explores why it’s important to make conscious changes in your beliefs systems and offers ways to do so.
If you believe that you’ll never land a new job again, then that is what will happen: unemployment. If you believe that relationships are hard, maddening things then all of your relationships will be taxing on both parties. On the other hand, if you believe that jobs are endless and relationships are joyous then you will find jobs and happiness in all of your relationships.
Beliefs are everything and so it’s important that you choose yours wisely. To change your beliefs means to change the way you feel about things. It is not enough to simply state a new belief—you must also create a new feeling about your old way of thinking. And in order to change how you feel about something, you must first become aware of how you feel now and ask yourself why this is so…
Ask yourself, “Am I okay with my current belief?” If the answer is NO then ask yourself why.
You have to have the courage to review and re-evaluate your beliefs so that you can begin changing them. The most successful changes are those that are made consciously, with a clear purpose, and with a desire to create lasting change.
If you find yourself stuck in a negative cycle of belief systems, here is an outline of steps to take in order to change:
1. Know Yourself and Your Beliefs
All beliefs are an expression of our core self—the feelings, thoughts, and behaviors that we embody on a regular basis. We attract those whose belief systems mirror our own through living in accordance with our beliefs and the consequences that result from such actions. The belief you choose to live by will have a profound effect on the quality of your life.
2. Identify Your Beliefs
Start by creating a list of beliefs that you have: what you “need” to believe to feel good in your life, and what beliefs you “want” to believe, so long as they align with what you really want in your life. The list should be kept simple—just one or two beliefs at a time—so that the changes don’t overwhelm you, and so that it takes some effort on your part.
3. Examine Your Beliefs
Once you’ve detailed your beliefs, closely examine them to see if they are true and rational, or if they are false, irrational and self-defeating. Ideally your beliefs will all be in alignment with who you really want to be and what you want to achieve.
4. Change Your “Need” Beliefs When Necessary
It is both possible and necessary to change these “need” beliefs so that they support you in an active way instead of holding you back or keeping you stuck. There are a number of steps you can take to help you do this:
Dream: Think about what it is that you want, and why. Write it down and feel how good it feels to have what it is that you want. For example, if you want a loving relationship, then think about how good it feels to be with someone who loves you unconditionally. Write this down and feel how happy you would be if you could have a loving relationship. Start to combine the two lists that you created previously: 1) beliefs that are needed for you to feel good and 2) beliefs that are a source of fear or doubt. For example, on one list, list your true desires, and on the other list list beliefs that keep you back from achieving those desires. At some point in time, make a decision to focus on all of these “need” beliefs until they no longer serve a purpose or cause fear or doubt in your life.
5. Change Your “Want” Beliefs When Necessary
Identify the beliefs that you don’t really need to believe, but that are just a source of fear or doubt. At some point in time during your life, make a decision to lift these beliefs off your list and practice not focusing on them. This is much easier said than done, but it must be done if you wish to live an abundant life.
6. Create Your New Beliefs and Feel the Goodness of Them!
Now that you understand what causes you to feel good about yourself and your life, it is important to choose new beliefs from the ones you wrote down previously. Write down your new beliefs, and create a feeling of confidence and happiness around it. For example, if you’re finding yourself unemployed, then write down a belief that you could land an awesome job. Write down the joy and excitement you would feel when this happens, the vision of what life would be like when you get that job, etc. (It may take some practice to be able to do this! If this is your first time trying to do this, then think about a situation where you were successful in landing a great job or relationship.)
7. Repeat Examining Your Beliefs
8. Use Valuable “I Can” Statements
You can now develop a new belief system that is more conducive to your current lifestyle. Remember, each time you change your beliefs, you are changing what you allow yourself to think and feel. If the changes are significant and lasting, it will take some time for the new belief system to become internalized. However, once this happens then you will be able to use these new beliefs in order to create an energetic shift in your life.
Remember: The important thing is not what we have or don’t have; it is our feelings about what we do have. Things are not nearly as important as our feelings about what they mean.
Make your list of negative beliefs as complete and accurate as possible. If you feel that something is missing, add it right away. Once you are done with this, you’re going to be ready for the next step.
Change Your Behavior—Change Your Mind
The mind is not a believing machine; it is a behaving machine and behaves only in response to the beliefs which are held in it, or by default at least allows the beliefs it finds there to hold sway over its actions.
—Dale Carnegie, How To Win Friends & Influence People
For many people, writing down their negative beliefs is enough for them to change their lives permanently.
Conclusion
Chapter 12
Let's Take Action
“In the beginning of a change, the Patriot is a scarce man, fighting against the established order; but in the course of times, he becomes a majority, and then he changes the established order.”
—Marcelene Craig
In previous chapters we have discussed important aspects of our human history that can help us understand human nature and ourselves. Much like a prism breaks down light into its component parts by passing it through water and then carefully arranging its molecules into clear geometric patterns that refract it into different hues. The process of understanding how our mind works is similar to this.