You’re only limited by your own beliefs

To be successful, you need to be smarter than a baboon

Under the watchful eye of his quarry, he began to set the trap. Knowing that which he was hunting was insatiably curious, he created the scenario in which the hunted watched the creation of the very thing that would lead to its entrapment.

Carefully the African tribesman bore a narrow channel into the side of the termite mound. He then dug out a larger cavity at the end of the channel. Into this cavity he placed a handful of delicious seeds.

He then retreated to a preselected hiding place to watch the baboon take the bait.

The baboon had watched the entire procedure from a safe distance. However, its curiosity drove it onward to discover what the man had deposited into the cavity in the termite mound. Slowly but surely, the baboon crept closer and closer to the mound until it stood directly in front of the channel. Sniffing at the opening it could smell the aroma of the fresh seeds in the cavity, a baboon’s arm’s length down the channel.

The baboon inserted its arm into the channel which was just wide enough to allow its thin arm and flat paw to get to the cavity containing the seeds.

Once its paw was in the wider cavity it grabbed the seeds and held them tightly in its clenched fist.

Much to its disappointment, its fist was now too wide to fit back up the channel. The baboon was trapped. In desperation, and to no avail, it pulled and pulled to try to get its fist free. It was no use, its fist could not fit through the channel.

And now there was an important decision facing the baboon: Would it hold onto the seeds and remain imprisoned? Or, would it simply let go of the seeds and experience immediate freedom?

Sadly, it chose to stay imprisoned and was easily captured by the African tribesman.

Its unwillingness to let go of that which imprisoned it ultimately led to its demise.

We are no different than this baboon.

We all have issues, attitudes, perspectives, expectations, and the like — limiting beliefs — that we choose to hold onto, and that ultimately imprison us. Like the baboon, if we choose to let them go we can go free.

Wise leaders take stock of what they believe. What they believe about themselves and what they believe about others. They also take stock of what they think — it’s called metacognition. Thinking about what you are thinking.

Belief informs thought, thought informs behaviour. We are and do what we believe.

So what limiting beliefs do you choose to hold onto that keep you from living in the freedom of all that you can be?

“I don’t have what it takes to lead well. I’m just a bad communicator. My best years are behind me. I don’t belong here. I have nothing of real value to offer others.

“People will one day discover I have no idea what I’m doing. I don’t need anyone. I can’t trust anyone. The only way to get it done right is to do it myself.” Etc., etc., etc.

How about resentment, bitterness, unforgiveness and anger you’re holding onto toward someone? That imprisons you, it doesn’t imprison them.

What about the belief that something is “impossible”? Every significant advancement known to man was at one time considered “impossible”.

We need to take stock of the limiting beliefs we choose to hold onto that actually imprison us. We need to realistically assess what holding onto that will cost us, and what we can gain by letting go of it.

We then need to create an action plan of what moving forward will look like.

A key component of that action plan is identifying what empowering belief you’re going to choose to pick up.

A limiting belief needs to be replaced by an empowering belief. You get to choose what you believe.

Assess the cost of holding onto that which limits you. Determine what you can gain by letting go of that and picking up an empowering belief.

What action do you need to take to make this a reality? What are you holding onto? Kelowna-based David MacLean helps leaders through The Executive Committee Canada and his business Wholehearted Leaders.