I’ve been reading a little of the Stoics recently (Letters from a Stoic, by Seneca) and words from that other famous Stoic, Marcus Aurelius, came to mind.

“The universe is change; our life is what our thoughts make it.”

Unfortunately, in life, most people focus on their most powerful beliefs – which tend to be negative. They focus on their faults and continually review and remember them. They find fault in others too, and in the process they reinforce their prejudices.

 But those beliefs are unexamined.

 According to research, by the time we have reached the age of two, 50% of our belief system has been determined. By the age of eight years, about 80% is in place and by 15, between 85-90% of the beliefs you hold to be true will, if they remain unchallenged, stay with you for the rest of your life!

And yet most of our learning during this time was unconscious, we simply copied the behaviour of othes we admired or feared; we sought the approval of our parents and we did the things that would get us love and praise.

 Others were shaping our self-image to begin with, then we took over. It might help to think of your belief system as software that has been coded into your mind, allowing you to operate without any awareness; it shapes your self image. I am saddened to hear of teenagers who go through a terrible time of believing that they are unattractive and that no one understands or cares about them. Lacking confidence, they develop a negative self-image and construct their world around imagined truths rather than REAL facts. They have come to accept those false beliefs as true.

Imagine the difference you could make to the lives of teenagers if you could just reinforce positive belief in them!

The fact that 90% of your beliefs are in place by the age of 15 does not mean that you cannot challenge them and completely change them.

You can change your beliefs in a moment, and change your life. But only YOU can do it. You begin by changing them to positive thoughts and expectations about yourself and your ability to succeed.

What habitual thoughts will you challenge today?

Exerpted from You Can Change Your Life Any Time You Want by Robin Sieger