Dear Vywamus,
How do we over come doubt?
Wendy
Dear Wendy,
The best way is to change your relationship to doubt. So here I will focus on how you may do that.
The first thing to know and remember is: Doubt is a learning tool. So are fear, anger, pain, confusion, and many other states that you might consider “negative.”
If you could always be in the higher state of consciousness that you reach in meditation (or in other ways, including creative work and healing, and doing an activity that you love), then you would not experience doubt or any of these other “negative” states. There you are in a state of oneness with all the energies of Being. There doubt and these other states simply do not exist, since they are based not on oneness, but on your perception of separateness and limitation. So to begin with, I suggest that you meditate or engage in these other activities so as to spend as much time as possible in those higher states where doubt is not even an issue.
As a human in your current phase of evolution, however, it is not likely, at least at first, that you will be able to maintain your presence at these higher consciousness evels 24 hours a day. So at times when you are not able to do so, and your consciousness is at your personal “everyday” level, that is when doubt, and fear, pain, anger and other negative experiences become learning tools for you.
It is helpful to look at doubt, or any other negative mental/emotional states as offering lessons and opportunities for your growth and self understanding. They are not detours on your path, to be got rid of, or gotten over with. Rather they are part of your path. So do embrace them, or at least be open to what they have to bring you, whether or not you are enjoying the lesson. Be sure that if there is a lesson for you to learn at this time on your path, certain issues will keep coming up, in one form or another, until you have completed the learning. So you might as well go on with the process and see what happens.
Let’s take doubt, for instance. Here are some steps I suggest for your learning process regarding doubt. First, express your doubt in a sentence. (Example: “I doubt I can be successful in my work.”) Now dig deeper. What are the beliefs you have that underlie this doubt? It’s very individual, but 2 common underlying general beliefs people have are “I don’t feel worthy to be successful,” and/or “The world is not a place that will support my success.”
Make a list of all your own underlying beliefs that you find coming up. These are thought forms that may play and replay in many situations of your life, and as you think them, you will also notice that they are accompanied by feelings. If for example, you see yourself as unworthy, you may be feeling inadequate, and be angry with yourself for your inadequacy. If you see the world as not supporting you, you are clearly feeling mistrustful of the world and of the people around you. When having these feelings, notice also any changes in your body– possibly a drooping of your shoulders, a feeling of tiredness, and so on.
You have begun by identifying your underlying limiting beliefs, and the emotions and bodily feelings that go with them. Now, it is possible for you to transform a limiting belief into a belief that you would rather have. Take each belief on your list, and write down next to it what belief you would like to have instead. For example, next to “I am not worthy of success’” you might write, “I deserve to be rewarded for my efforts.” Say that positive belief out loud and notice the emotions and bodily feelings that go with it. You may feel encouraged or empowered, and your body may respond by straightening your back, or in other ways. Or, maybe you find it hard to entertain the new belief. That is very common at first.
At this point, I always recommend an inner conversation with the limiting belief you have held for so long. Ask it why it came to be and what it has been doing for you all this time. You can be sure it would not have persisted if you did not get some benefit from it. Maybe a number of benefits. So listen inwardly for its answer. Your limiting belief might answer, for example, “Believing you are unworthy has often kept you from taking the risk of trying for something. And if you don’t try, you can’t fail. So, I have kept you from failing.” (Or, it may be some other benefit it’s brought you.) Now, even though you find this limiting belief is no longer helpful, it is important to accept that in its own limited/limiting way, it has been working for your welfare. So acknowledge the benefit(s) it has brought you, and thank it.
The next step in this inner conversation is to ask the old limiting belief the key question, “What would have to happen for you to transform into the belief that I would rather have?” From here on, you can continue the dialog, and work out together how this change can be achieved and brought into reality in your everyday life. Throughout this inner conversation, it is important to pay attention to your emotions and your body. It may be your mind that suggests a good plan and says, “This is how it should be,” but you need to sense it in your heart or in your gut to feel convinced that “Yes, this is right.”
If you are not used to focusing inward in this way, it may take some time and patience before you get the conversation going and get clear answers to the questions you ask inwardly. With practice, however, anyone can develop this skill, and it is well worth putting in the time and effort. Learning this kind of inner dialog brings many rewards, the first of which is that you learn a great deal about yourself. And in dealing with life challenges, having an inner dialog with various aspects of yourself can be a major help in making decisions, solving practical problems, and coming into a state of inner peace and harmony. Finally, this kind of inner conversation is extremely helpful in removing blocks in your energy flow that may be holding you back from actually creating the physical reality around you that you desire.
The suggestions I have offered here are enough to help you get started in working with and transforming your limiting beliefs, and as a result, transforming both your internal and your external realities. If you would like to know more, I have given detailed guidance on transforming limiting beliefs to create new realities in Chapters 22 through 24 of my book The Next Big Bang.
Now, as you take my suggestions in this letter, you will be moving along on your path and will be having many inner adventures. As you go along, you will find a balance between spending time in that aspect of yourself that is most in touch with the higher energies of consciousness, and working at the everyday level on your limiting beliefs. Time spent in one mode will help you evolve in the other as well, removing blocks, strengthening the energy flow, and so on. And we guides will be with you always to lend our energy and our support when you need it , and to celebrate with you as you go through the important passages of your life.
Love,
Vywamus