Neuro Linguistic Programming

Beliefs and values are not fixed. We often act as if they are facts when in reality they are only our perceptions. They may guide our thinking and our behavior, and we may hold on to some of them for long periods, but they can and do change naturally over time. When you were five, for example, you probably thought Father Christmas and the Easter Bunny were real.

Exercise: Think of three things you used to believe and don't now. What happened to change your mind?

Limiting beliefs

Beliefs can be positive driving forces in people's lives but they can also be disempowering and limiting. When Emma started to learn to play the piano she found she couldn't play a tune fluently straight away and became disheartened. She began to think of it as difficult and told other people she would never be able to play well. Not long after she gave up.

Many of us had the experience at school of being told by a teacher that we couldn't draw, sing, dance or whatever. We believed them, and stopped trying. Yet a moment's reflection will reveal those beliefs to be untrue. We can all draw, sing and dance to a degree, though admittedly