Your Beliefs Can Uplift Or Debilitate

Differing Beliefs

I had a man approach me recently and start apologising profusely. He was the brother of a friend having a birthday who had recently arrived from England. He thought he had upset me the evening before as he had had a few drinks and remembered a heated discussion about differing beliefs.

I was quick to let him know that he hadn’t offended or upset me at all. In fact, I had been happy for the diverse discussion and in my opinion, it wasn’t heated but interesting.

Have you ever found yourself in a similar situation? You have a discussion with someone (and I call it a discussion because you may not agree), that you offer different views and the other person wants to agree so as not to offend. It happens way too often these days.

Do You Get Offended Easily?

We are so worried about offending somebody that we back down from what we believe in. It’s not that you need to have a standing argument, but it would be beneficial if both parties could respect one another’s opinion. When that happens, people expand as they gain new insights and understanding. It’s never about being right or wrong, it’s about expansion.

When you are open to other people’s views and ways of thinking, the world becomes lighter. You don’t see things that others say or believe as right or wrong or a threat to your well-being, rather as interesting points of view. We will never all think the same. That’s what makes us diverse and interesting. So when we stop trying to make others happy by trying to say the ‘right’ thing, we feel lighter. When we can respect another’s opinion without feeling threatened, our energy is bolstered, our mood uplifted.

But there are also health benefits to taking yourself lightly. When you aren’t trying to push your opinion down someone’s throat (I mean persuade them), then you will find you are much more relaxed.

Be Ready To Welcome New Beliefs

I watched a television interview some years ago with a 90’s self-help guru, Stuart Wilde. He had seemingly strong beliefs on a particular topic. In fact, he had written a book on the subject. There was also another person at the lounge chair interview, who strongly did not believe Stuart Wilde’s theory. He was first to speak and he said so. He explained his reasoning and everybody listened. When the interviewer turned to Stuart Wilde and asked him what he thought about that (hoping for some good television conflict), Stuart just nodded and said, I agree.

The interviewer didn’t know what to say. It took the wind out of his sails for a bit. When he recovered he prodded Stuart Wilde and said that he had written something different in his book, so didn’t he want to argue the point? Stuart shrugged and said that was what he knew at the time. He felt the guy made sense and so he took that on as his new belief.

You see beliefs are just thoughts we think over and over. They aren’t set in concrete. They aren’t the opinion of the whole world. When you come to understand how your beliefs are formed you will realize there is more than one belief for any subject. In fact there are many.

How Do We Form Belief Patterns?

Your beliefs are adopted when you were young and they may or may not serve you. You didn’t really choose your beliefs when you were younger, you just went with what was common.

Most of us don’t even question those beliefs we’ve now had for many years until we are challenged. Yet they form a part of our personality, influence our moods and help create our reality. Beliefs are challenged when they no longer work for you.