A few weeks ago I was in an office and saw this picture in one of the cubicles: “I don’t have a 9 to 5, I have a when I open my eyes to when I close my eyes.”

That’s what I’d call a limiting belief. Why is it helpful to believe that all of our waking hours should be dedicated to work? I don't care what the job is, surely there is something you can do to NOT work every one of your waking hours? And why would this person want to believe this thought, and hang it in his/her office to constantly remind themselves about it?

I've got my own limiting thoughts, and so do you. Do you ever find yourself believing thoughts like:

I can't do (insert your "can't" here, my most recent one was that I miss having steak because I can’t grill!)
I don't have enough time to take care of myself.
I'm overwhelmed but I have no choice.
I can’t make more than X amount of money.
I’ve never been good at Y.

There's some security in our limiting thoughts. We know them. We sorta love them in a twisted way. If I believe that I have to work 24/7, then when I do it I'm just doing what I "have to" do. It justifies a crazy schedule. It justifies us staying where we are. Safe in our comfort zone, even if our comfort zone is miserable.

Here are some quick tips to bust out of the box you've put yourself in with limiting thoughts.

1. Check your own thoughts often. Ask yourself: Is this really true? Do I want it to be true?

Let’s take my “I can’t grill” example.

Is it really true? Yes

Do I want it to be true? No

So now I just need to learn to grill. There is no reason in the world that I can't learn. I used to not know how to be a life coach, or run my own business, or own a house, or be a mom . . . all far more difficult things than grilling. If I had answered “Do I want it to be true” as a yes, then I can instead say "I don't know how to grill and I plan to keep it that way."

2. Rely on your truth telling friends or family or life coach - I try to check my thoughts often and call BS on them where necessary. If I start believing my own limiting thoughts, I've got a handful of inner circle people who keep it real for me and let me know, ever so gently (I'm kidding! Not gently at all in most cases!) that my thinking has gone awry.

3. Shift to the mindset that life is happening FOR you instead of TO you. Life is happening for you to give you the experience you need. You always have the option to choose to make a change. In fact, maybe you were meant to read this email to shift your life by getting out of the box of your own limiting beliefs ;)

PS: Two days after I shifted my thinking on grilling, a grill showed up on my front porch. Thanks, Dad!

Are you boxing yourself in?