Empowering Your Mind

by Linda-Ann Stewart

Do you find yourself putting on the brakes when you’re pursuing a dream, vision or goal? You could find yourself procrastinating, allowing yourself to be distracted or just feeling uncomfortable about moving forward. This is your subconscious mind causing you to resist taking the actions you need to bring your vision to life.

Your subconscious isn’t a bad guy; it’s just following previous instructions from you. If you’re feeling at all anxious or uncertain about your goal, your subconscious will interpret that as you feeling threatened about change. Since the role of your subconscious is to keep you safe, it will throw up roadblocks to maintain the status quo.

Reasons You Resist

There are three major reasons why you resist taking action:

1. You have the wrong vision. Although you have an idea of what you want, it may not be the right direction for you.
• You’re following a goal someone else laid out for you. For example, someone told you what worked for them, and expects it will work for you, too. What part of your dream excites you the most?
• You’re violating your values. Family time is important to you, but your goal requires you to sacrifice that time to be able to accomplish your goal. How can you adjust your vision to support your values?
• You’re out of alignment with who you are. For instance, you could be an introvert trying to become the best cold calling salesperson in the office. What best aligns with your skills and personality?

2. Fear is getting in your way. You’re afraid of the unknown or changes that might happen.
• You feel intimidated to leave your comfort zone. When you try new things, you feel uncertain and uncomfortable. But if you don’t spread your wings, your world will contract.
• You’re afraid of criticism. When you start making changes, it draws attention to you, and others may object to how you’ve changed. You don’t exist to live according to other people’s expectations.
• You’re afraid of the extra responsibility. By taking on more, you aren’t sure of your ability to handle new things. The only way to grow in confidence is to take risks and learn.

3. Old beliefs are undermining you. You were programmed with these ideas long ago and they’re still controlling you.
• You don’t feel worthy to achieve your vision. Either you don’t take any action or you sabotage yourself whenever you get close to accomplishing your dream. Adopt a new self-image that reflects the possibility that you deserve the best.
• You identify too much with your old attitudes. How you describe yourself determines the actions you take. Change the way you view yourself to be more in agreement with someone who undertakes your goal.
• You don’t feel capable. Just because you don’t know everything right now doesn’t mean you can’t learn. Each step will bring you new knowledge and confidence.

Dissolve Your Resistance

Identifying what’s sabotaging you is the first step to success. Ask, “What is my resistance trying to tell me?” Or, “What part of my vision am I resisting?” Once you know what your reason is, you can begin to overcome the resistance.

Instead of reviling your subconscious and its resistance, appreciate that it’s been so helpful. Realize that your subconscious has been trying to keep you safe. Communicate to it that this thinking is outdated and now change is needed. Adjust your attitude or actions to ease your subconscious mind’s concerns.

There is a reason behind the resistance to your dream, vision or goal. Once you discover what that is and what it’s trying to do for you, you’ll be able to work with and through the block. Ultimately, you’ll be much more successful by listening to what your resistance is trying to tell you.

Affirmation:
My subconscious mind is trying to help me at all times. But sometimes it does it in outdated ways. It’s now safe for me to move forward with my dreams. I take responsibility for my actions and the results. I’m worthy of all the best Life has to offer and am capable of far more than I know.