Upper Limits

Are you willing to take the Big Leap? 


Has this ever happened to you? You are reaching a level of happiness and success in your life and then you start self-sabotaging behaviors?

Recently, I re-listened to Gay Hendricks’ audiobook, “The Big Leap.”

I really enjoyed his concept of the “thermostat,” it was perfect timing for me. Gay describes The Upper Limit Problem and how it not only prevents happiness but actually stops us from achieving our goals. In other words, it is the ultimate life roadblock. 
 
Are You Willing to Take the Big Leap?

One of the thought-provoking questions Gay Hendricks asks at the beginning of his book is:  “Am I willing to feel good and have my life go well all the time?”

Gay says: “In my view, saying yes to that question is one of the most courageous actions a human being can take. In the face of so much evidence that life hurts and is fraught with adversity on all fronts, having a willingness to feel good and have life go well all the time is a genuinely radical act.” 

He encourages us to take “The Big Leap” beyond what he calls our “Upper Limits” and learn to live in our “Zone of Genius”a place where time flows and we expand in success, abundance and love every day, as we inspire those around us to do the same. 

It’s interesting that we actually limit ourselves from “feeling good.” We seem to have set limits that we allow ourselves to live by. As well, many transformational leaders and experts remind us of our built-in limits when it comes to how much success and happiness we can experience. 

Our Inner Setting, Our Thermostat

We have an inner setting, like a thermostat, that determines how much happiness, success, and abundance we allow ourselves to enjoy. When we deviate from our inner thermostat setting, we will often do something to sabotage ourselves, causing us to drop back into the old, familiar zone – our comfort zone. 

Unfortunately, our thermostat setting, which is the result of our beliefs about our abilities and the image we have of ourselves, gets programmed in early childhood and reinforced over time.  Once programmed, as the leading personal development leaders agree, our thermostat setting holds us back from enjoying all the love, financial abundance, and creativity that’s rightfully ours. 

The way to change this is to learn how to recognize our own perceived limits and take “the big leap.” 

Think about how often you limit yourself and how many things you believe are not possible when, in fact, they are. Today, we can smile about the fact that scientists believed we would “explode” if we travel at a speed greater than 30 miles per hour.  Gay shares in his book: “We humans have a long and wonderful history of transcending our beliefs about what’s possible. In the early days of the steam-powered train, learned scientists urged capping the speed at thirty miles per hour because they believed that the human body exploded at speeds greater than that. Finally, some brave people risked going beyond that limiting belief and found that they did not explode.”

So, we have a thermostat, an Upper Limit, or a set-point that limits us when we expand and come closer to our goal.  The good news is we can learn to become more and more aware of the behaviors we’ve adopted that sabotage us when we are deviating from our set point.  

You can break through your limits, start here:

  1. Awareness: The first step to your breakthrough is becoming aware of your perceived limits.
  2. Beliefs:  The second step to success is identifying your goal and believing in the possibility that you can reach your goal(s). Start by challenging some of your common beliefs.  
  3. Action:  The third step is taking goal-achieving actions beyond your comfort zone consistently and persistently. This will allow you to break through your limits and reach the ultimate success you are dreaming of. 

 
“Are you willing to take the Big Leap to your ultimate level of success in love, money, and creative contribution?” ~ Gay Hendricks 
 
If you are ready to break through your perceived limits, book your free Strategy Session here. 

3 Steps to More Joy & Success