In everything that we do in life, we are only limited by our own beliefs as to what our limits are. If we limit ourselves in our thinking as to what we can or can not do, then we are confining ourselves to those limits no matter how hard we work to accomplish other goals.

We can rationalize all day long as to why we should not or could not do something and pretty soon we have convinced ourselves that it is true. For example, a friend offers you a business partnership in which the potential is obviously good but there are certain financial risks involved as is with most business ventures. You name off all of the excuses you can think of to get out of it. You don't have time, you don't have the money, you don't know enough about running a business, you have ill family members, etc. etc.

You repeat these rational excuses over and over to yourself and pretty soon you have come to believe that they are legitimate reasons for not partnering with your friend. You have set limitations for your own confinement to the same life you have had all these years and denied yourself the opportunity for growth and prosperity. In a sense, you have trapped yourself into a vicious circle of excuses to stay inside your "comfort zone" where you are "safe" from risks and responsibilities of your own business.

So, How do you break this cycle? First , you have to be willing to change your way of thinking. In order to get a different result from what you have right now, you have to be willing to take different actions. Be honest with yourself as to your reasons for NOT taking that chance. Chances are that if you are completely honest with yourself as to your reasons, you would see that it is mostly due to "fear of the unknown", fear of failure and fear of what other people will think of you.

Let's evaluate these three factors. First, the unknown... Do you think that Thomas Edison knew all there was to know about electricity when he invented the light bulb? Of course not! That's why he experimented with so many things during the invention process. Do you think that Bill Gates knew all about computer programs when he invented Microsoft? Nope! That's why we have Beta testing to learn what works and what doesn't. It is simply about the willingness to "learn" to master your talents, not about it being implanted in your brain at birth.

Now, we have fear of failure. This is probably the biggest set-back in most people. They are so afraid of failure that they had rather not even try. In honesty, the worst way to fail is the total unwillingness to even try! It is better to try and not be successful than to sit back and always wonder what the results would have been. At least if you have tried your best, you can feel good about yourself and your willingness to try.

Then there is the fear of others' opinions. This is where you really have to stay focused on your goal and block out all of the negativity that is thrown your way. Remember that the people who are talking negative about you and to you are usually limiting themselves to a life of not being willing to try at all. Just tell yourself that you don't have to look at these people in the mirror each day. The only person that has to live with your reflection is you and you have to be willing to do what is right for you and not worry about others' opinions.

Now that you have honestly gotten to the bottom of your excuses and dealt with the real reasons you were limiting yourself, you can take the next step and decide what actions you are going to take to change. You MUST be willing to change your way of thinking in order to break down those limitaions you have placed on yourself all these years.

Take out a pen and paper and write down all the reasons you can think of that you COULD and SHOULD start a business. Identify the main reason "why" you want to start a business. Focus on your "why". If you already know what business you'd like to start, write out a list of goals, both short term and long term. Then make a list of actions that you will need to take to accomplish each goal.

Now, the most important part. Do some research and find someone who has accomplished the goals that you want to reach. Then, find out how they reached them and follow their example! And most importantly, be willing to learn and to share that knowledge with others! The greatest gift that you can give a person is knowledge and it is in giving that you truly receive! When you share your knowledge with others, not only are you helping them to learn the lessons you have learned but you are also learning as you go!

Honesty, decision, action, dedication, willingness to learn and teaching others will lead to more success than you have ever imagined! We are all unlimited and we are limited only by the concepts of the limitations we hold in our minds. Napolean Hill said, "The one thing that human beings have total and complete control over is how they focus their mind. Fortunately, that is what controls everything else". Don't put limitations on your life. Visualize it, believe it, act on it and you will achieve it!

© 2007 Bonnie Ramsey