The Elephant, the Flea and the Piranha can tell us three stories about limiting beliefs. Unfortunately for them, they are unable to change their limiting beliefs, whereas we humans have the power to do so. As long as we can identify what our limiting beliefs are, we can reprogram our minds to change our limiting beliefs and get the things that we want in life.
The Elephant
Visualise the fully grown adult elephant in the circus. When he is not performing he is chained to a stake in the ground. A stake that would be hard for you to pull out but for this giant animal it should be easily pulled out and the elephant would be free. So why does he not break free?
Well, that elephant has been in captivity his whole life. As a baby elephant the shackle around his ankle would have been much smaller but the chain and the stake would have been the same size as they are now. As a baby elephant he would have tried to break free but the stake was too big then and too hard to pull out. He would have tried and tried, almost to the point where he would hurt himself.
Eventually, after many failed attempts, he would give up and never try again…
The Flea
Fleas can jump between 8 and 10 inches high, easily. They are the best jumpers in the insect kingdom, but did you know they can be trained to be the worst?
If a flea is placed in a jar of say only 6 inches high, the flea will continue jumping as high as it always did. Unfortunately every time it does so it will bang it’s head. You see, the flea gives his all because it can. Soon (many sore heads later) the flea will reduce how high it jumps so at to stop hurting it’s head.
At this stage the jar can be removed and the flea will never ever jump above the height it was jumping in the jar…
The Piranha
Just like the flea the piranha can be trained. The piranha can be placed in a large tank and separated from their food by a glass divider. The piranha will bang their head repeatedly off the glass divider while trying to get to its food. It will eventually realise that it can’t get to it’s food and will stop trying.
Even when the glass divider has been removed, the piranha will not try
Lesson learned
Beliefs are pre-conceived ideas that we allow to filter through our body. We allow our beliefs to determine our reality. The brain’s belief system is called Reticular Activating System (RAS). It is formed by our religions, teachers, families and peers. By the time we are 5 years of age it is so well developed that who and what we will become has already been determined.
Unlike the elephant, the flea and the piranha we as humans have the ability to change our limiting beliefs. It’s not as easy as it sounds, afterall, we are trying to change things that we have learned when we were young children. It is possible though…
For years it was thought the earth was flat….
The 4 minute mile was thought impossible…
Man can’t fly…
Space travel is impossible…