Page 86 - The Truth Landscape Format 2020 with next section introductions-compressed

Remember that cars, houses, money, relationships are not values, they are objects of desire. It is the feeling these things bring to our lives that are represent
our values.

A belief is nothing more than a feeling of absolute certainty that something has a particular meaning to us. Many of the beliefs we hold onto so tightly,
are either out of date, no longer serving us, or do not belong to us at all, having inherited them from others. Beliefs can either positive or negative, they
can either limit or liberate us.

Where do our beliefs come from?

Our earliest and initial beliefs stem from childhood. From birth up to the age of two years, we believe that anything is possible. You will recall the section on
self esteem telling us that we are born with only two fears and without the inhibitions the develop later in adulthood.

We are born with only two fears :

• A fear of loud noises
• A fear of falling

From childhood onward, we slowly begin to adopt and acquire other beliefs which we inherit from our parents, peers, teachers and what we see, hear
and experience. We believed things when we were children that now seem silly. We will believe things now that we never even thought before.

How does this happen?

Children have little or no information to analyse situations, starting out in life as they do, as a blank sheet of paper. Because of this, they tend to accept
information without judgement. For example, let us imagine a beautiful young girl who loves dancing. She practices with passion daily and is truly at her
happiest when entering competitions and performing. If that child is praised only when performing or looking her best, she will have embedded in her the
belief that she is only worthy of praise when looking her best or winning. Once this belief is accepted in her mind, it will lead to a change in behaviour from
that day. She will believe she is only pretty and worthy of praise when winning or standing out from the crowd.

From that day onward, that small child may be conditioned with the belief that could influence all her later interactions in life. Every human being wants to be
loved unconditionally, looking pretty or not, performing well or not. In this example, it would not be surprising to discover the child grows into an adult with
a tendency to perfectionism, constantly seeking approval to validate her need for self worth.

Imagine the father of that child, proudly boasting to his friends that his daughter could be a professional dancer or a model, but then following it up with “forget Page86
how she looks today, she hasn’t washed her hair and she has a few spots. When she dances she looks beautiful and she’s my darling”.