Working with Unidentified Limiting Beliefs

As you may already know, I have created and actively use a Belief Breakthrough Method™. Learning to work at the level of beliefs is paramount in your coaching profession. Beliefs and values, even unconscious beliefs, trump behaviors. Our behaviors are organized by what we believe.

All too often you’ve heard that if you challenge people on their limiting beliefs and suggest an empowered belief, encouraging them to embrace that new belief, it will work. I have found that it often doesn’t. It only works if people were already in the process of changing or challenging their beliefs anyway.

The reason is that if somebody already knows what their limiting belief is, they are already in the process of changing. The most powerful limiting beliefs are the ones that we are unconscious of or unaware of. Those do not easily present themselves, and they are the ones you need to learn how to uncover.

Here’s where it starts to get confusing…

The best way to uncover these beliefs is when you have determined what goals your clients want to achieve. If they are unable to succeed, you will need to help them understand why they haven’t been successful in achieving their goals. In order to do that, you have to understand and uncover their particular understanding of how this happened, which I refer to as their map of the world. Keep in mind that beliefs do not stand alone; they are part of a person’s larger belief system, so changing one belief will have an effect on other parts of the system. Keep in mind the larger context.

It’s important to understand that limiting beliefs present themselves in a number of ways. Sometimes they show up as “part of me wants this, but another part of me wants that.” In that case, it’s important to work with those competing wants.

“I can’t do something” is another indicator. Once you hear that, you must ask additional questions, like “what would happen if you did do it?” The answer will help you determine and discover the underlying limiting belief that supports why the person can’t do it.

When you are working with a client to change a limiting belief, make sure that the new belief comes from your client and that you explore carefully the definite and possible consequences and effects of making that change. There are sometimes very good reasons that someone might not have made a change.

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I like to collect stories about belief change experiences. If you have any interesting ones, please share them below so I can comment on them in subsequent articles or posts.

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About Terry: Terry Hickey, M.S., is a Certified NLP Professional Coach, Business Trainer and Consultant, a Certified Master Practitioner of Neuro-Linguistic Programming and the co-owner of NLP Advantage Group. Originator of the Belief Breakthrough Method™, Terry specializes in teaching coaches and entrepreneurs how to rapidly resolve limiting beliefs about wealth and success. His tips and strategies can help you launch yourself into the future you want… NOW. http://terryhickey.com/