Overcoming Limiting Beliefs Through Identity Shifts and Emotional Clarity
- Tricia Parido
- May 7
- 3 min read
Insight & Impact Focus Group Series | Week 1: Overcoming Limiting Beliefs
What if the voice in your head isn’t yours at all?
What if that persistent whisper — “I’m not smart enough”… “I’m not as good as them”… “I’m just not that social” — was never actually yours to begin with?
This week in the Insight & Impact Focus Group, we cracked open one of the most powerful truths in performance psychology and emotional agility:
You are not your old beliefs.
And once you see that, everything begins to shift.
Overcoming the Quietest Limiting Beliefs: What Makes Them So Hard to Spot
As Stephanie beautifully shared:
“The big obvious ones are easy to identify. But it’s the subtle ones — woven so deeply into us — that are hardest to see. It’s like they’re camouflaged.”
These subtle beliefs are the ones that keep high-achievers stuck in invisible loops. They're not loud. They’re familiar. And because we’ve internalized them for years — sometimes decades — we mistake them for identity.
But they’re not identity. They’re programming.
Often, they come from:
Childhood roles (“I’m the baby of the family, so I don’t have to…”)
Cultural or familial expectations (“Don’t outshine your sibling.”)
Single, painful moments that shaped how we saw ourselves forever after.
The Turning Point: Tracing Beliefs to Their Source
The ah-ha moment for the group came when we explored this question:
“Where did this belief come from?”
That one question opened floodgates of clarity.
Heidi shared how her belief that she wasn’t very social traced back to a 6th-grade trauma — when her best friend turned on her. That one moment taught her it wasn’t safe to belong. It wasn’t safe to trust.
And she’s carried that armor ever since.
“I’ve said for years, I’m just not that social. But the truth is... I’m better than I used to be. And sometimes I use that line as an excuse — to avoid the discomfort.”
Rebecca reflected on the identity she took on as the “baby” in her family. That belief once protected her. Now? It was keeping her small.
“I used to lean on being the youngest. Like I didn’t have to step up or make the big decisions. But that doesn’t serve me anymore.”
Helen summed it up with a phrase that struck the whole room silent:
“I’m just not as good as everyone else.”
How many of us have whispered that exact thought in our own heads?
The Belief Is Not the Truth. It's Just the Old Script.
Here’s the liberating truth:
If you learned the belief, you can unlearn it.
And if you’re not your old beliefs, you get to choose who you become.
That’s what we call an Identity Shift.
Tricia Parido shared how reframing her past traumas changed everything:
“I had to learn that those weren’t my failures — they were the bad acts of another. Once I stopped making them about me, I could finally let them go.”
This is the foundation of emotional agility. It’s not about denying your pain. It’s about understanding the pattern, then rewriting the program.
So What Happens When You Let Go of Who You’re Not?
As the group began releasing those limiting identities, a new possibility emerged:
“I think I’d be more energetic… more vulnerable.” — Heidi “I’d feel freer, more present. More alive.” — Stephanie “I’d walk into situations open, curious… not braced for disappointment.”
That’s the shift we’re here for.
Not to “cope better” with old stories… but to outgrow them entirely.
Your Turn: What Are You Still Carrying That Isn’t Yours?
Think of a belief you’ve lived with for years.
Now ask yourself:
Who taught me this?
What moment first imprinted it?
Is it actually mine — or just something I picked up?
If it’s not yours, you can put it down.
If it’s outdated, you can outgrow it.
And if you’re ready to lead your life from clarity instead of old conditioning — you’re not alone. That’s what this work is for.
✨ This isn’t about becoming someone new. It’s about remembering who you were before the belief took root.
Want to explore the next step in your identity shift?
Drop a comment or reach out.
Let’s walk through it — together.
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