Your Limits Aren’t Real

Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go. – T.S. Eliot

What we can do and what we think we can do are so often far apart.

The problem is 1) we are (generally/overwhelmingly) so wrong about what we’re truly capable of and 2) we take our repeated thoughts about our limits as truth.

The antidote isn’t attempting to do something grand and bold; no, that would be scary and invoke your survival response and you wouldn’t follow through (or likely even start).

Instead, take small steps and be careful to notice the fearful and limiting thoughts that crop up.

As they do, and they will, carefully dispute them with calm, cool truth.

For example, say to yourself: “I could do that if I learned how to do X and Y and practiced the key skills of that thing. It would be tough to learn new skills, and maybe even annoying at times to be a “beginner,” but it might be worth it. I am going to consider this idea in the context of possibility and my ability to learn.”

As you carefully – and resourcefully – do this practice you will 1) get better at understanding yourself and your desires, but 2) you gain confidence and clarity about what you want to do.

Similar Posts

  • Bit by Bit

    Always do your best. What you plant now, you will harvest later. – Og Mandino Everybody notices the big successes and the epic failures, but few recognize that both are made of myriad choices and non-choices, things you do and don’t do. Though it might seem it, life is not a smattering of resolutions, it…

  • Why Expectations Are Toxic

    High expectations are the key to everything. – Sam Walton What I’m about write may be semantics, but with humans, semantics are everything. Many people have expectations, especially of others. They are often hidden, or veiled and rarely if ever discussed. I want you to consider replacing the word “expectations” with either Agreements or Standards….

  • The True Measure

    The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. – Martin Luther King, Jr. It’s when things are tough that one’s true character is revealed. I heard someone say people are like oranges: they reveal their true…

  • The Pain of Not Knowing

    The worst thing one can do is not to try, to be aware of what one wants and not give in to it, to spend years in silent hurt wondering if something could have materialized – never knowing. – Jim Rohn The things your heart yearns for, the things you know you were made for, must…

  • The First Step

    Above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you, because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it. – Roald Dahl You must believe, first. And, to the extent you believe, you will have energy, purpose and staying power. But…

2 Comments

  1. Wise words, Matt! Change starts with the noticing…

    Also, you and I are on the same page – big growth does not always require big leaps.

    ~ Alli

Comments are closed.