If you haven’t noticed yet, Im a huge advocate for personal growth. I believe anyone can learn a skill set, but personal growth is a choice and a journey to self discovery and tapping into your full potential and purpose in this world. Your business and your life will only grow as big as you.

Now I didn’t grow up with this belief. I was taught to be book smart. I grew up in a very loving, but fear driven family. My parents and grandparents had a very rigid way of thinking, and although my mom always encouraged me to dream big and pursue my dreams, she didn’t necessarily lead by example. I grew up with an idea of how I wanted my life to be, but no real proof that anything was possible. Everything was in God’s hands, and not to say that God (The universe, or whatever you choose to call him/her/it) doesn’t provide, but I often felt a little bit gypped in the prayer department…maybe you can relate.

So here I was this little girl with big dreams, always knowing there was more waiting for me in this world, but no idea and no compass on how to achieve my wildest dreams. Just faith, pure faith. I was told that whatever would be would be if it was God’s will. Now I can appreciate that parents tell their children what they are taught, and belief systems get passed on from one generation to the next, but lets face it. there are some key success principles missing here. I do believe my folks set me on the right path and gave me some great guidance to become a good person and servant heart, but they only knew what they knew and that is all they could pass on.

Fortunately for me, I chose to seek wisdom, to observe other people and to begin living my life on my own terms. There were many ‘failures’ along the way, but what i learned was that failure is a way to learn not a negative thing that happens to us. I also learned to seek answers to work on myself and that perfection is a myth, and in the eye of the beholder…and it holds many of us back from going after our dreams. Fear and doubt kill our dreams. They limit us from seeing or tapping into our unique gifts.

Something I’ve also learned is that personal growth is a journey that does not have an end destination, except for when we die. So if you’re reading and seeking wisdom in hopes of arriving, then you will be very disappointed. I had that misconception. I have spent much of my life working on the future, forgetting to enjoy the moment and making it as enjoyable as I possibly can, with this silly notion that things will only get better.

And the more you push yourself out of your comfort zone, the more your own personal life myths will come up and try to tell you that you’re not worthy, you’re not enough, its not possible. So what do you do to break through limiting beliefs and barriers? First realize that the barriers have been created by you. Take ownership. They are your thoughts, but thoughts are not real. However they do attract real things to you, and if you think positive thoughts, you will attract abundance and happiness and joy into your life. If you think negative thoughts, you will find yourself blaming others, becoming a victim in your own life, and self sabotaging your dreams and a life that is waiting for you.

I share this with you, because like all of us, we have a belief system, and most of us have one that does not serve us. Now its taken me a long time to even realize my own childhood myths about my life, let alone find a way to remove them from my life so I can soar. Because here’s the thing, you may have pushed them deep down and out of your mind, but the truth is, they don’t go away unless they’re clearly identified, you work on them, you correct them and you take action to implement new ones for the life you want to create. Now I don’t have the magic formula for each and every one of you, but I can show you some resources that have helped me in this process. But here is the key piece that I think most people are missing when it comes to actualizing change. Its important to read, to seek wisdom, to learn, to pray, to practice gratitude and daily affirmations, but if you are not taking action when God or the Universe opens the doors you’ve asked for, then your prayers will not be answered. I love the book The Seven Decisions, particularly the part about becoming a person of action where he writes ” God feeds the birds, but he doesn’t throw the worm in their nest”.

So maybe, like me, you grew up in a family who prayed, and you didn’t always feel like your prayers, wishes, goals came true. Maybe like me you spent a lot of your life believing that things don’t come true for you, and somewhere along the way you lost your faith and belief, in yourself, God and the Universe. Well Im here to tell you, you can get faith back. Just make a choice to believe in miracles, identify your limiting beliefs and crush those childhood myths. Start creating new stories for yourself and take daily action steps to actualize your dreams and begin to live the life you deserve.