When walking through an elephant camp, a man noticed that the elephants were only secured with a small rope that was tied around one ankle. He was confused and wondered why the elephants didn’t break free from the rope, as the elephants were certainly strong enough to do so.
He asked a trainer why the elephants didn’t try to break free, and the trainer responded;
"We use the same size rope for baby elephants all the way up to adulthood. Because they’re too small when they’re babies to break free from the rope, they grow up being conditioned that the rope is stronger than they are. As adults, they think the rope can still hold them, so they don’t try to fight it."
The man was amazed. These animals could at any time break free from their bonds but because they believed they couldn’t, they were stuck right where they were
This elephant in the story, represents many of us…tied down by the ropes of limiting beliefs, which were formed in our early years or through experiences. But here's the twist-just like the elephant we have gained strength, wisdom and capabilities beyond what we had when those beliefs were formed.
It is very important to identify our limiting beliefs so that we can start replacing them with empowering ones.
