What do you believe and where do your beliefs come from? How many of your beliefs are on the conscious level and how many are you walking around with at the subconscious level?
Most people spend years building a set of beliefs that they will defend against all logic. As children we are fully indoctrinated into whatever set of beliefs our parents deem appropriate for us including religious doctrine. Our schools teach us about following rules, citizenship and and patriotism. Even our work places have a "company culture"; another set of beliefs to adopt if you wish to succeed.
So what do YOU believe? As we go through our teens and early adult years, we make decisions around what we have been taught and what we choose for ourselves. We are also walking around making decisions based on what we subconsciously believe about ourselves. If our learning style didn't adapt well to school, we may walk around thinking we aren't smart enough to go to college or apply for that challenging job. If our parents were poor, we often subconsciously believe that it is our destiny or lot in life to also be poor. If we were constantly scolded or belittled by our parents, we most certainly came to believe at the conscious and subconscious levels that we are in fact flawed and "not good enough."
Personally, I have spent the majority of my adult life attempting to shed all of the limiting beliefs that I picked up in my early years. I grew up in a family of five children. I was the second child, the first daughter. My mother, a polio survivor, believed that girls are "hard" and boys are "easy"(something her mother believed). Being the first daughter, it was my job to prove her right ;) I constantly overheard my mother telling anyone who would listen about how "whatever you tell her not to do, that's exactly what she has to do". I truly believed that I was a pretty terrible kid! Despite my deficiencies... I managed to do well in school and contrary to my home life, I had the reputation of being a very straight-laced good kid.
I remember when I was about 8 or 9, I received a "career game" for little girls. Of course the choices were: teacher, nurse, flight attendant, fashion model, actress or ballerina. I took this decision to heart, what would I be? After much soul searching, I proudly announced to my mom that I was going to be nurse when I grew up. She quickly dismissed the idea stating that nurses work terrible hours. There's no way I could have a family and work that kind of job!
Fast forward, at eleven I wanted to be a gemologist (by the time you grow up, people won't have enough money to buy jewelry), at fourteen, an interior designer (the wrong kind of people work in that field).......seventeen, sigh... I guess I'm just going to get married and have kids.
Fast forward again, yes, I got married and had kids... like I believed I should. For several years I tried to persuade myself that being a stay home mom (like my mom) was the way to go... but it just wasn't enough for me. I went back to school and began my first career as a teacher (it was on the list, right?). I am now on my fifth career, definitely won't be my last as I am learning more and more about who I am as I let go of all of those beliefs about who I am supposed to be.
Beliefs, how they limit us! I have come to the point in my life that I am hesitant to claim a belief about anything. Why? Because for every belief we choose to align ourselves with, other possibilities die. Every day I learn new things because I am open to all that there is to know. I have new experiences... things I never in my wildest dreams could have imagined just a few years ago. More to come? I hope so! I hope that I never come to the place in life where I believe that I have it all figured out. What fun would that be?
