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Anthony V. Lombardo
The Mind

A 5-Step Framework To Uncover How Your Subconscious Is Holding You Back

written by

Anthony V. Lombardo


woman sitting on the floor, uncovering her subconscious limiting beliefs

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    And how you can start to shift your identity!

    The job of your subconscious mind is to keep you safe and protect you. It sees anything unfamiliar as a potential threat, and it will work to steer you away from such situations even when it’s something your conscious self desires. Once you understand this, you can begin to identify the programming that is holding us back.

    Use this 5-step framework to uncover the limiting beliefs your subconscious mind keeps you bonded to—and start the process of moving beyond them.

    Step 1: What have you been avoiding?

    Uncovering your subconscious limiting beliefs starts by identifying what you’ve been avoiding or resisting in your life. Create a list of everything you’re putting off, big or small. What open loops linger in your life? Where are you hesitating to take action or refuse to confront?

    What you avoid reveals what’s unfamiliar or uncomfortable for you, and thus what your subconscious is blocking you from engaging in.

    Step 2: Why is it blocking me?

    We know the subconscious wants to keep us safe and free from pain, but from what, exactly? Identify the specific threat your subconscious perceives in the situations you’re avoiding. Is it shielding you from failure? Rejection? Embarrassment? Anxiety?

    Get specific to pinpoint your exact fears. You may need to go several layers deep to get to the heart of the issue.

    Step 3: What do your fears say about you?

    Now that you’ve identified the fears, it’s time to see what they reveal about your self-concept. Examine each fear closely and get to the bottom as to why you believe this outcome would occur. For each fear, ask yourself:

    • What does this fear say about what I believe (or don’t believe) about myself?
    • Since I am scared of _________, what am I saying about myself?
    • Given the situation I am avoiding in step 1 that this fear is tied to, what would I need to believe about myself to take action?

    Your answers to these questions will expose the limiting beliefs your subconscious is holding onto. Create a master list of these beliefs—this is the programming you need to change.

    Step 4: Turn your limiting beliefs into empowering affirmations.

    With your list of limiting beliefs in hand, it’s time to reframe them into empowering affirmations. These affirmations will tell your subconscious mind that you’re safe, capable, and worthy of experiencing the outcomes and possessing the traits it’s currently blocking you from.

    For each limiting belief, create three affirmations that counter the belief and signal to your subconscious that it’s safe to move forward. For example:

    • I am safe to {be/have/do}…
    • I deserve to {be/have/do}…
    • I am capable of {be/have/do}…

    Depending on the limiting belief, you can also create affirmations that speak specifically to your personal goals, such as:

    • I am excited to {be/have/do}…
    • I am love to {be/have/do}…
    • It brings me great joy to {be/have/do}…

    Step 5: Feed your subconscious this new narrative.

    Take your list of affirmations and repeat them to yourself daily. Ideally, you want to repeat them when you are in a meditative state or in an altered state of consciousness. In fact, you can choose any of these 7 stress-relieving exercises and repeat your affirmations while practicing them.

    Remember, the formula for reprogramming your subconscious and bending your reality is simple: Create an altered state of consciousness, and when you are in that state, impress upon your subconscious mind what you want it to believe about yourself. Then, repeat this process as often as possible. Repetition is the key to success.

    Example: Applying These Steps

    Here’s how the 5-step framework might look when applied to a real-life scenario:

    Step 1

    Let’s say you identified that you’ve been avoiding applying for a leadership position at your job, despite having an urge to go for it. You’re indecisive and can’t seem to push yourself to take the necessary steps.

    Step 2

    When you reflect on what’s blocking you, you acknowledge it’s a fear of public speaking. The role requires leading meetings, presenting to large groups, and reporting to executives. Behind this fear of public speaking is a deeper fear of embarrassment, of being exposed as an imposter, of not being good enough—and ultimately failing.

    Step 3

    You simply ask yourself, “What would I need to believe about myself to take action and go for this role?”

    It’s easy to see that you would need to see yourself as capable, competent, and deserving of being a leader. You’d need to believe that you possess the necessary skills to command a room, present your ideas, and guide your department.

    Step 4

    With this clarity, you can now tell your subconscious a new story—one that says you are safe, worthy, capable, and excited to step into this leadership role by affirming:

    • I am safe to lead others.
    • I deserve to be in a leadership role.
    • I am capable of public speaking and presenting my ideas confidently.
    • I am excited to lead and inspire others.

    Step 5

    Finally, you can put this insight into action by impressing these new beliefs onto your subconscious mind and begin shifting your identity. Here’s a simple daily practice:

    • Upon waking in the morning, set a timer for 10-15 minutes. Put on headphones and listen to brainwave entertainment music to help you relax.
    • Use a deepening exercise like the Countdown Deepening Technique to help you enter a deeper state of mind.
    • Once you feel grounded and calm, softly repeat your affirmations from step 4 to yourself. Continue this loop until the timer sounds.

    You can also use an app like Insight Timer which has a built-in timer feature with tons of music presets for deep relaxation.

    Recap

    Your subconscious mind holds you back by avoiding anything unfamiliar. Use this 5-step framework to break through:

    1. Identify what you’re avoiding – Make a list of everything you resist or put off.
    2. Understand why it’s blocking you – Pinpoint the fears behind your avoidance.
    3. Uncover what your fears say about you – Pinpoint the limiting beliefs tied to these fears.
    4. Create new empowering beliefs – Tell your subconscious you’re safe, worthy, and capable.
    5. Begin rewiring your subconscious – Reinforce new beliefs through consistent practice.

    By consistently practicing this framework, you’ll rewire your mind and remove subconscious barriers so you can shift your identity and become the person you know you’re destined to be.

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