Reduce The Mental Interference Holding Back Your Potential
As I put together my new business, I've encountered mental hurdles that threaten my progress every single day. What happens between my ears is way harder than anything I have to do with my hands.
But I've discovered some great strategies that have transformed my experience, which I'll share with you today.
So, let's get into it...
How do I stop mental blocks from sabotaging my growth and success?
Imagine this:
You're a writer sitting at your desk, pouring over rejection emails from literary agents and editors. You've gotten used to hearing the word "no" or not hearing back at all.
But then, you get something different.
It's not a "yes", but it's a "tell me more."
You get a reply from an agent who's intrigued and wants to read the first few chapters of your book. You're shocked at feeling the first tug on your fishing line.
What do you do?
Do you reply immediately? Do you go back to refine your first few chapters before submitting them? Or do you archive the email and forget it exists?
Not the last one, you think. That'd be ridiculous. Throwing away the good news you've been waiting to receive? Sabotaging the progress you've said you want?
Doubts begin to creep in, though. You start to second-guess your writing, wondering if it's good enough for the agent to read. You find yourself procrastinating and avoiding the work, telling yourself that you'll come back to it later when inspiration strikes.
Days turn into weeks, and the book proposal is forgotten. You tell yourself that it wasn't meant to be, that you weren't good enough anyway.
But deep down, you know the truth.
Mental interference held you back. Self-doubt and fear took over. Instead of pushing through the discomfort, doing the hard work, and taking a chance, you sank deep down into your comfort zone.
That was me a decade ago. I received that email from the agent interested in my book proposal, and I never replied. I let my doubts and fears get in the way. By the time I recognized my procrastination was really mental interference, it was too late. The opportunity was gone.
You don't need to be a writer to know what this feels like.
We've all been through it one way or another—applying to jobs, preparing for a sensitive conversation, thinking through your future, making risky bets—but the result is often the same:
Missed opportunities and unfulfilled potential.
And sometimes, our interference is hard to identify when it's happening. It camouflages as many other more "acceptable" obstacles: being busy, feeling tired, indecision, other priorities.
No more.
Interference be gone.
In this email, we'll break down how to:
Recognize when mental interference is holding you back
Then, take action to overcome it and reach your goals (and your all-too-amazing potential)
So, you can unlock that ideal life, where you daily experience is beautifully aligned with your values.
Identifying interference
My eight-year-old son is really into basketball right now, and recently went to his first NBA game — go Heat! — so I'll tell you a story we've been talking about at home:
As a sophomore at Laney High School in Wilmington, North Carolina, Michael Jordan was eager to make the varsity basketball team. However, when tryouts came around, Jordan was not selected for the team. He was devastated by the news, and initially considered giving up on basketball altogether.
Mental interference was running rampant in his mind.
But instead of wallowing in self-pity, he made a decision.
Jordan decided to use experience as motivation to work even harder. He spent countless hours practicing his skills, working on his conditioning, and studying the game. He made the varsity team the following year and quickly established himself as one of the team's best players.
You know what happened next: the GOAT emerged. 🐐
Six NBA championships, five MVP awards, and numerous other honors. An icon both on and off the court, and his influence on the game of basketball is still felt today.
What does this mean for you?
Well, if the GOAT struggled with mental interference, imagine how much more we mere mortals do.
Regardless of our "status" or who we are, managing mental blocks and interference has a direct correlation to what we are able to accomplish and the kind of life we build.
“The view you adopt for yourself profoundly affects the way you lead your life.”
So let's break down how to first become aware of the view we've adopted and our mental interference at play.
What 🚩 red flags 🚩 signal you may be experiencing interference?
It could be a moment in time:
Facing a challenge, like wanting to grow your business
After a failure, like Jordan getting cut from the team
Making a decision, like wanting to quit your job
It might be a feeling:
Procrastinating something, like I did with the agent
Apathy toward a project or losing interest in a goal you cared about
Avoiding someone or a situation, like an important conversation
Overthinking or overanalyzing a situation
Self-doubt, or a belief that we can't pull something off
That interference blocks your access to your goals and, ultimately, where you want your life to be in the future.
On the other side of our interference is our potential.
We don't want to stop short. We want to grow and live our ideal life.
So, once we know we're experiencing interference, how do we get past it?
Getting past interference
Michael Jordan recognized his mental interference and jumped right over it by getting in his reps: practicing, training, learning, playing pick-up games, and ultimately challenging himself to grow in his skills and abilities as much as possible.
We can do the same with our interference.
We have to turn this limiting belief:
“I am inadequate on my own — I am not enough — to guarantee the outcome I desire.”
Into this empowering one:
“I can feel everything and survive. I can use pain to become.”
What steps can you take to reduce (and remove) mental interference from holding you back?
Here are some strategies that have gotten results for the people I work with:
Change thought patterns: Identify negative thoughts and replace them with positive, constructive ones.
Confront limiting beliefs: Challenge self-imposed limitations and barriers that hinder your growth.
Discuss it honestly: Find a safe and supportive environment to discuss it honestly. This could be with a coach, mentor, therapist, or trusted friend.
Take decisive action: Replace overthinking with behaviors and actions that will help you move toward your goals.
Meditate and clear your mind: Taking time to tame your thoughts builds muscle around letting go of interference as it pops up in your brain.
It's a constant choice: is your priority validation or learning?
Committing to learning will make overcoming mental blocks and interference that much easier.
This quote says it all:
“The art of competing, I’d learned from track, was the art of forgetting, and I now reminded myself of that fact. You must forget your limits. You must forget your doubts, your pain, your past. You must forget that internal voice screaming, begging, “Not one more step!” And when it’s not possible to forget it, you must negotiate with it.”
When you learn to negotiate with the interference, it moves out of the way.
What this means for you
Interference pops up multiple times a day: in myself as I grow my business but also in the people I coach. Each session I have is really about removing different kinds of interference that stand in the way of someone's goal.
As we all strengthen our muscle of managing interference (identifying it and then removing it), it becomes easier to move past it and continue building toward our ideal lives.
It all boils down to this:
If I squeezed you, what would I get?
Renowned writer Wayne Dyer compared people to oranges. He said when you squeeze an orange, you get orange juice because that's what's inside.
“When someone squeezes you, puts pressure on you, or says something unflattering or critical, and out of you comes anger, hatred, bitterness, tension, depression, or anxiety, that is what’s inside. If love and joy are what you want to give and receive, change your life by changing what’s inside.”
By building muscle around removing interference, what's inside us becomes an unstoppable mindset. If I squeeze you, I'll get pure, realized, delicious potential.
A life aligned with your values. That's the goal.
Don't let interference get in the way of it.
Here are some questions to help you take these insights into your own life:
What are the thoughts, beliefs, or habits that are holding you back from reaching your full potential?
What hard evidence do I have of the negative thoughts or beliefs that are hindering my progress?
Have I ever successfully overcome a similar mental block or interference? If so, what strategies did I use?
What resources or support systems do I have access to that could help me address my mental interference?
How can I reframe my mindset to view challenges as opportunities for growth rather than threats to my self-worth?
You got this. ✌️
All the best vibes ✨
