A fundamental part of our business model is to help business owners identify a self-limiting or business-limiting belief. The biggest problem in doing this is that they don’t look like self limiting beliefs to the business owner. To them and all of us, these beliefs show up as reality.
As you can imagine in performing this part of the job, the direct approach at identifying a belief usually backfires.
For example, a client may say, “I can’t find any university graduates with the skills I need and the work ethic to get the job done.”
If my reply is: “I think that might be a self-limiting belief,” the business owner will typically explain why their statement is absolutely true and then wonder if I have lost my mind.
Since I am aware of this dynamic, we look for ways to create experiential learning in an environment where it is safe to at least be open to consider other possibilities.
I participated in a program that did exactly that and it was a huge success. A group of 23 business owners spent two full days exploring reality and beliefs. We discovered new possibilities we didn’t know existed. We discovered there could be multiple version of being ‘right’. We experienced the power of intention. It probably sounds unusual for a business advisory meeting. It was a highly innovative experiment that is now a proven success. I am re-energized to explore the possibilities it has created.
Over a hundred years ago, James Allen wrote:
“As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he”
I am starting to understand a little more of what he meant by it.
