Sometimes ago, I watched a very funny, yet insightful clip about a particular horse. The horse was tied to a very small plastic chair with a loose rope. For almost the whole day, the horse remained in that confinement and could not move out from the place. Now, the funny part of it was that the chair was so light that even a toddle could push it, and the rope was so loose that it can actually withdraw itself from it. However, what kept the horse at that spot was neither the rope nor the chair, but the self-imposed limitation; that is the limitation of the mind. In life, a lot of people have limited themselves by what they have allowed their mind to convince for them.
A lot of the limits that people experience in their life are not actually real barriers, they are also the ones impose by themselves. That is, they are created in the mind, live in the thoughts, shaped by their own fears, doubts, negative experiences, or even by their own beliefs. It is true that external limitations exists, but in more cases than not, it is the limitation from within that actually holds someone back the most. If you have not limited yourself from within, then it will be almost impossible to be limited from outside. What you experience in life is majorly a function of what happens inside you.
Self-imposed imitation actually starts from the thought. It may begin with the little voice within your head telling you that you are not good enough, or that you cannot do it, or that it will be hard for you to do it. Over time, these thoughts will influence what you believe in, which will also influence your actions. If you believe that you are limited, you will act in like manner. You will see yourself avoiding challenges, giving excuses, drawing yourself from trying, and settling for less than you actually deserve. The truth is that if you want to go forward in life, then your mind will have to first think forward. You cannot be stagnated in your mind and expect to have progress.
One of the biggest sources of self-imposed limitation is fear. Fear can come in a variety of ways, and in manners that may even be subtle that the person will not know that they are afraid. This can include fear of unknown, fear of what people will say if you take the step and did not succeed at it, fear of disappointment, fear of failure, etc. This will make the person not to take actions, and without actions, the person is already limited. Instead of the person trying and learning, they will choose to remain in their comfort zone, convincing themself that it is safer there. But what they fail to understand is that the growth they wish for will not meet them in their comfort zone, rather it will come when they challenge themself to go beyond their present boundaries.
Another source that causes self-imposed limitation is past experience. Someone who has failed in the past may begin to think that they will fail again. This mindset can create within them the mental barrier that will stop them from trying again. But what you have to understand is that past failure is not a prediction of future failure. Some people failed in the past but have achieved greatness in the present, why not you? Your past experience should only teach you the lessons that will make you to be better in the present and in the future, not to trap you in the past. No matter what happened in the past, there is still a possibility of turning things around positively in the future.
It is also worthy to note that environment plays a very big role in all these too. For example, if you stay with the people who are negative, or people who doubt your abilities, it will also negatively influence how you see yourself. It may make you to begin to accept their own limitations as your own. This is why it is very important to be careful of the environment you stay in, what you listen to, what you watch, and the kind of people you interact with, so as not to trap yourself in self-imposed limitation.
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Thanks friend @riyat