One of the most important inventions of the Industrial Revolution was the steam engine, which paved the way for the steam locomotive. An interesting belief back in that era was that women’s bodies were not designed to go above 50 miles per hour, or their uterus would fly out of their bodies. It was thought that human bodies would explode or melt at that speed. For this reason, it was suggested that trains not reach that speed. In other words, in both cases, its potential needed to be capped.

Think for a moment – what would happen if that belief were still held today? Airplanes could not exist, space exploration would be just fiction, and commerce would be very different. If those beliefs had not been challenged, civilization, the way we know it, would not exist.

As I travel around the world, I meet people that are in jobs where they are unfulfilled because they have accepted that they don’t have what it takes to get a better one or to open their own business. They cling to a reason, to a story, or to a belief that tells them why they can’t do it – in essence, capping their success and what is possible for them.

I have seen that plenty of times in my own life. When people see me on TV or in front of hundreds or thousands of people in my seminars, they cannot believe it when I tell them that I used to be an extremely shy person growing up and with low self “steam” – I mean, self-esteem, LOL.

I had to understand that, if I wanted a breakthrough, I needed to break with what was holding me back. I had to understand that if I wanted to move to the next level in my life, I had to be willing to challenge the beliefs that were holding my potential hostage.

Believe me, it has been a long and challenging journey, but a worthy one. The price of change and transformation is far less than the cost of remaining stuck and unfulfilled … the way I used to be.

This reminds me of a phrase that is attributed to Benjamin Franklin: “Many people die at twenty-five and aren’t buried until they are seventy-five.” It’s not that they died physically at twenty-five, but that their dreams die inside of them while they remain alive. Later they die with their book unwritten, their song unsung, and their tree unplanted.

Your beliefs determine what is true and real in your life. What you believe to be true in what is possible for you – and this becomes your reality.

Human history is full of examples where beliefs are challenged, boundaries are broken, and new frontiers are discovered:

• Today, there is a train in France, the “LGV Est,” that could take you 437 miles per hour to your destination – and no, you won’t melt.
• Men don’t have wings, but look how far we have gone into space.
• We don’t have gills but have conquered the depths of the ocean.

Please take a moment to consider the full extent of the following five questions:

1. What belief are you holding about your life, career or business that may be holding you back?
2. Is it true?
3. What would be different in your life if this belief were not true?
4. What new “in-powering” belief could you adopt to make it easier for you to succeed?
5. What can you do and learn or who do you need to become to make this new belief true for you?

The purpose of these questions is not to turn dirt into gold or help you dunk a basketball if you are only 4’5″ tall. Rather, they are meant to bring to the scrutiny of your reasoning what you have accepted to be true for you and what is not. Your responses will determine what is possible for you in 2019, and, as you have heard, you will never know how far you can go until you decide to go far.

Choose wisely and Get In-Powered!

Do you have a question or a topic suggestion you would like for me to cover in this column about personal development or productivity? I would love to hear from you. Send an email to me at Edward@EdwardRodriguez.com.

Edward A. Rodriguez is a coach, co-author and transformational trainer. He is founder and CEO of Better Graphics (a promotional products company) and In-Powerment! Center (an international training company for productivity and personal development). He is an NLP, HNLP, and neuro-strategy certified trainer. He has many certifications as a life and executive coach, serving clients in different countries. Edward has developed internationally known transformational programs and has co-authored books like La Biblia de la Motivación (The Bible About Motivation) and Empowered, which was co-written with other authors such as Wayne W. Dyer, John Assaraf (from the movie The Secret), Brian Tracy, etc. For more information, call 1-888-2-IN-POWER or write to info@EdwardRodriguez.com.