Important lessons I learned from my mom about setting and honoring my intentions, and the 2 strategies I still use.  

Happy April Fool's Day! As kids, my friends and I used to get pretty creative in our efforts to trick others just for fun on this silly holiday. This April Fool's day, I am thinking about the ways in which we "fool" ourselves...in the form of limiting beliefs. So often in my 0wn life, and in my coaching practice, I observe that what we believe to be true about ourselves either limits or expands what's possible for us whether actually true or not. These limiting beliefs sometimes stem from past experiences, from something others have told us, or from a place of fear deep within us.

Asking 3 key questions can shine the light of awareness on limiting beliefs.  I invite you to join me in moving past "fooling" yourself based on outdated or false information and into believing in yourself based on what is real and true for you today.

First, think about one thing you believe to be true about yourself that is getting in your way...then ask: 

1. Was it ever true? 
2. Is it true now? 
3. What would be possible in my life if I stopped believing this? 

A limiting belief I held for a long time is that I just don't have very much energy.  

Was this ever true? Yes. I am an empath and an introvert, and my body and mind are very sensitive to the energy around me.  As a child and young adult, I did not know how to manage my energy and often felt exhausted by situations and experiences that did not seem to bother others. The messages I received from those experiences, and from others around me were about how I should rest, not try to do so much, conserve my energy, etc. So, for many years I made choices based on this limiting belief and was making choices in the interest of "protecting" my energy. Though my heart and mind yearned for expansion, my options were fairly limited by this limiting belief around not having enough energy to {{insert dream or opportunity here}}.

Is it true now? No. It is absolutely not true. Through the tools of Ayurveda, and Yoga, I have learned how to manage my physical, emotional, and mental inputs and outputs so that I now have more energy than I ever had before! I eat the foods that fuel my body, set healthy boundaries, and rest when I need to. Even though I know this limiting belief is no longer true for me, and experience myself as a person with a whole lot of energy every day, I still find myself slipping into that self-protective pattern from time to time.  

What would be possible in my life if I stopped believing this? A whole lot more! Letting go of this limiting belief was a conscious choice that I needed to make to follow my dreams. In my career, I was playing small and doing technical work that helped me to "protect" my energy. I was reluctant to step into the work of teaching and coaching because working with people is messy and unpredictable and, I assumed, would be exhausting. The reality is that this work actually gives me energy, and the work I was doing to protect myself was draining me. Had I not been open to asking these questions, and answering them honestly, I would never have taken that leap to build the career of my dreams.  

What limiting beliefs have you "fooling" yourself out of following your dreams, and what more is possible for you without them?