Episode 49: Lies I Used to Tell Myself

My life has changed significantly over the last couple of years.  And what’s amazing to realize is that, fundamentally, the only difference between me today and me a few years ago is the thoughts that I think.  I never used to think the things I choose on purpose to think on a daily basis now.

Instead, I used to believe almost everything my brain offered me on default.  I used to believe all the negative thoughts it told me about me and my potential and my worth and my abilities. 

In today's episode I want to share some of the lies I used to tell myself in the hopes that you will be able to recognize similar lies that your own brain might be telling you.  Because the reality is that our brains never stop selling us on negative thoughts about ourselves, but the monumental difference is whether or not we decide to believe those thoughts and what we choose to think instead. 

All of our problems, no matter what they are, can be categorized into one of three categories.  We either have money problems, we have relationship problems, or we have physical problems. 

There was a time in my life when I had problems in every single category.  I had money problems, I had relationship problems.  I had physical problems.  All I had were problems.  And that is because when we boil all these down, all of these problems were created by only one problem:  A thought problem. 

And what’s amazing to realize as I look back at my life is that, fundamentally, the only difference between me today and me then is the thoughts that I think. 

I used to believe almost everything my brain offered me on default.  I used to believe everything it told me about me and my potential and my worth and my abilities.  And so today I want to tell you some of the lies I used to tell myself in the hopes that you will be able to recognize similar lies that your brain is telling you and decide to no longer believe them.

1.  You are failing—and failing is bad.

What I choose to think now:  Just because my brain thinks I have failed doesn’t mean that I have.  I know that my brain is wrong about this.  

If you don't stop, you cant fail. There isn’t going to be a place where the final verdict Is in.  I just keep growing.  I just keep learning.  I just keep becoming.  There isn’t a finish line.  My capacity as will increase forever.

And even if it's true that I failed, it isn’t bad.  It isn’t negative.  If I failed, I failed in the exact ways I needed to in order to learn.  I do not see my mistakes as negative but necessary.  

2.  You can't change.

What I choose to think now:  What I didn’t know when I tried to change previously is that I wasn’t broken or incapable of change.  I was simply going about it in the wrong way.  I didn’t know that my work to change was changing my thoughts instead of my actions. 

Change is possible if you can change your mind about yourself first.  Change is not only possible, it’s easy if you find the right thought to think and practice it until you believe it.

3.  You can't achieve what you want and it's too late to try.

What I choose to believe now:  The truth is that I can do anything I am willing to try.  I tell myself there are no time limits, there is just the life I have and that the time will pass either way.  Either I can have the life I want or I can choose not to, and the time will pass either way.

And what’s even more powerful to think about is that when we decide to pursue our goals and dreams, it’s not even about achieving what we want.  It’s about who we become along the way.  .  You are becoming a person who can do anything they want.  

4.  I'm not worth it.

What I choose to think now:  I always think I’m worth the effort.  I think I’m worth investing in.  I invest over and over again in my mind and that makes a difference in all of my results. 

I started small, but I continue to invest big in terms of time and money and effort in my own personal development.  This signals to the universe and to my own brain that I believe in myself and I am worth any effort.  

5.  This is just the way things are.

What I choose to believe now: 

I create all my results.  Every result that exists in my life right now is because of a current thought that exists in my mind right now.  Every single one.  My current life, is a direct representation of my current thoughts.

And I never use that thought that against myself.  I love knowing that I created all of it because it means at any time I want I different result, I only have to look at my thoughts and decide to think something else.

This is the most empowering thing I can ever tell you.  You only have the life you currently have because of the thoughts you currently think.  It’s not accident.  It’s not magic.  It’s not fate.  It’s not random.  It’s creation.  It is the way it works.

I want you to think about your own life.  I want you to think about yourself in a year.  What would your life be like in a year if you no longer believed these lies your brain tells you?  What could you change and do and create and experience if you not longer believed that you were failing, or that you can’t change, or that it's too late, or that you can’t, or that you’re not worth it, or that you don’t have a choice?

This is what I want each of you to know:  You are not the problem.  You are not broken.  You are not a hopeless mess.  You think it’s you.  You think you are the problem.  You think your life is the problem. 

But the only problem is the way you are thinking.  The way things are is not the way things have to stay and the only thing you have to change to make that happen is your thoughts. 

Your brain will tell you that that’s impossible.  But I know for sure it is not.  Every area of my life is better.  After years of trying to change with no success, the only thing I changed was the way I thought about myself and my life.  The only thing I changed were my thoughts. 

I can help you change yours.  Sign up for a free coaching consultation and I'll show you what's possible.

Mentioned on the podcast:

• Ross Edgley
• Frontiers in Human Neuroscience article on cyclists
• Simon Sinek, The Infinite Game
• Jody Moore

• Sign up for a free coaching call

To read or download a written transcript of the entire episode, simply click the link below.