Get rid of self-limiting habits
“We have to think differently to change our paradigm.”
Reaching a new, deeper level of “inside out”; Stephen Covey
Stephen Covey, in The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, describes habits as “consistent, often unconscious patterns that continue to express our personality and produce our effectiveness or inefficiency every day.”
Who we are and what we become are a direct result of our habits. Our character is born, cultivated and outwardly expressed in habits. What we see on the outside is a direct reflection of those deeply ingrained habits that have gradually, steadily, and continuously been ingrained into our psyche. Our behavior is therefore determined by these habits, which over time become so ingrained in our consciousness that changing them is like trying to break a mountain with your bare hands.
Breaking away from these ingrained habits can be a huge challenge, especially if they have been developed over a long period. The longer it takes to form certain habits, the harder it is to break them. This isn't necessarily a bad thing. Especially if the habit formed is a positive one. Positive habits should be encouraged and even developed where they are lacking.
Mike Bressica believes that success comes from actions that start with thoughts. To change your habits or behaviors, you need to think differently. What's bothering you? Her thoughts; make you act a certain way. If you don't like the results of your actions, all you have to do is change your mind. The Bible says that the renewing of our minds is a way to transform ourselves into good, acceptable, perfect people who always seek to do God’s will (Romans 12:2).
Renewal or transformation from our current thoughts to our desired thoughts results in transformation or change in our lives. This is called a paradigm shift. Adopt new ways of thinking, acting, and behaving.
The great thing about habits is that they are learned over time through learning, nuance, brainwashing, and experience. Because they are acquired, they can be replaced by changing the thought patterns that originally fostered them.
To replace negative, self-limiting thought patterns, what Mike Bresica calls “failure mental patterns,” our first goal must be to reduce the impact of these patterns. This won't happen overnight. Just as it takes time to acquire these failed mental models, it also takes time to let go of them and replace them with "successful mental models."
In a speech to the church in Rome, Paul expressed his frustration at his failure to curb a pattern of failure. He seems to be fighting a losing battle with his mind when he finds himself doing evil things he does not want to do; he does not do the good he desires (Romans 7:19).
Like many of us, Paul was at a crossroads. On the one hand, are old self-limiting patterns of failure; on the other hand, is his desire to abandon the negative patterns that always lead him to evil and replace them with those that propel him into a life of good.
Highly successful people are those who break out of their wrong patterns by eliminating distractions. When no failure modes are limiting your progress, you can overcome temporary setbacks on a mental level. Since the battle for success is won or lost at the ideological level, your success or failure in this aspect determines your success or failure. When you learn to control your thought patterns, success will come naturally. As Bresica says: When you master the art of mind control, you won't want to do the opposite of what you know best. You can minimize anxiety. No doubt is nowhere to be found.
But how do you break free from the limiting thinking patterns you learned growing up? How do you release the blockage of incomprehensible negative habits that have been ingrained in your psyche since childhood? Simply telling you to change your paradigm is as futile as telling a hungry person to feed without giving them anything. What we hear, see, experience, or feel directly affects the formation of our habits; shaped by thoughts and then implemented in the form of behavior.
Thoughts are the basis on which our habits are formed. These habits, depending on their nature, in turn, shape our actions or behavior; their success or failure depends entirely on the actions we take. To take the crucial first step in starting your own business, you must first unlearn the employee mentality and start seeing yourself as a successful entrepreneur.
But achieving this paradigm shift will not be easy. What if you've been told for years to study hard so you can get a good job when you grow up? Get out of this mindset and start seeing yourself as a successful businessman. People need more than positive affirmations like “I can do this.” If "I can do it" doesn't fit your mindset, then try your best, you can't.
I believe wholeheartedly that if you can think about it, you can do it. The author of Proverbs (23:7) knew this very well when he said: “As a man thinks in his heart, so is he.” Your thoughts determine who you become. Countless times we blame external circumstances when in fact the root cause of our failure lies in our mindset.
