I sat frozen at my desk last Thursday, staring at a blank document. The deadline was approaching, but my mind felt like it had hit a wall. Complete standstill. Nothing was happening upstairs.
We’ve all been there – those moments when our brain seems to work against us rather than for us. Mental blocks aren’t just frustrating; they’re success killers.
Thinking clearly isn’t some mysterious talent that only certain people possess. It’s a skill we can develop, sharpen, and rely on when we need it most. But first, we need to identify and remove those mental blocks that keep our thinking foggy and our progress stalled.
Our Mind Creates Invisible Barriers
Mental blocks are like invisible force fields. You can’t see them, but man, do you feel them when you hit one.
These blocks form from various sources – past failures, criticism we received growing up, limiting beliefs we’ve collected over the years, or even something someone said to us in passing that we internalized deeply. The wild thing is we often don’t even realize these blocks exist until we keep bumping into the same obstacles repeatedly.
Look, our minds are meaning-making machines. We experience something once, form a conclusion about it, and then our brains file that away as “truth.” Even when it’s completely false. Even when it’s hurting us.
This week is all about accurate thinking – separating what’s actually real from the stories we’ve been telling ourselves. And the first step is identifying and removing those mental blocks that distort our view of reality.
1. Get Real About What’s Actually True
The first way to remove mental blocks is surprisingly simple but incredibly powerful: distinguish between facts and opinions masquerading as facts.
So many of our mental blocks come from statements we believe are objective truths when they’re actually just interpretations. “I’m not creative” sounds like a fact, but it’s just an opinion. “I failed at my last business” might be a fact, but “I’ll fail at every business” is definitely not.
Try this: Take out a notebook right now. Draw a line down the middle. On one side, write “Facts” and on the other side write “Interpretations.” Now think about a goal you’ve been struggling with and list everything you believe about it.
Facts are verifiable by outside evidence. Interpretations are the meaning you give those facts. Once you separate them, many mental blocks suddenly look less solid.
We tried this exercise with a client who was convinced she “wasn’t good with money.” When we separated facts from interpretations, she realized the only facts were that she had made some poor financial decisions in her twenties. Everything else – including the belief that she was fundamentally bad with money – was just interpretation she could choose to release.
Catch Your Brain’s Sneaky Distortions
Our thinking gets twisted in predictable ways. Psychologists call these cognitive distortions, but I just call them thinking traps.
Common traps include:
– All-or-nothing thinking: “If I don’t do this perfectly, I’m a complete failure” – Catastrophizing: “If this presentation goes badly, my career is over” – Mind reading: “They definitely think my idea is stupid” – Emotional reasoning: “I feel inadequate, therefore I am inadequate”
These distortions create and reinforce mental blocks that stop us from thinking accurately about our capabilities and opportunities.
The solution? Become a detective of your own thoughts. When you notice yourself feeling stuck or discouraged, pause and ask: “What am I telling myself right now? Is there a distortion happening?”
I caught myself in this trap last month while working on a new project. I kept thinking, “This has to be absolutely perfect or nobody will take me seriously.” Classic all-or-nothing thinking! Once I identified it, I could challenge it: “Actually, even the best work has flaws. People respect progress and authenticity more than impossible perfection.”
By catching and correcting these distortions, you’ll remove mental blocks that have been limiting your thinking and success.
3. Whose Voice Is That In Your Head?
Something weird happens when we grow up. We absorb the voices, opinions, and judgments of others – parents, teachers, friends, bosses – and eventually mistake them for our own.
Those voices create some of the most stubborn mental blocks because they feel like they’re coming from us when they’re really echoes from our past.
“You’re not good at math” becomes “I’m not good at math.” “Don’t take risks” becomes “I should play it safe.” “Be practical” becomes “My creative ideas aren’t valuable.”
To remove mental blocks caused by these internalized voices, we need to recognize them for what they are: outdated programs running in our mental operating system.
Next time you feel resistance toward something you want to do, ask yourself: “Is this really my voice? Who used to say this to me? Do I actually believe this, or am I running someone else’s program?”
Sharon had a breakthrough with this when she realized her belief that “being visible is dangerous” came directly from her mother’s anxiety. Once she recognized it wasn’t her own belief, she could consciously choose a different perspective that served her goals better.
Break Your Pattern With Something Weird
Mental blocks thrive on routine. They love when we keep thinking in the same patterns, taking the same actions, and getting the same disappointing results.
One of the fastest ways to remove mental blocks is to disrupt your patterns with something unexpected. Pattern interrupts shock your system out of its usual grooves and create space for new thinking.
When you feel stuck, try:
– Changing your physical environment (work from a coffee shop instead of home) – Using your non-dominant hand for a simple task – Taking a different route to work – Listening to music you normally wouldn’t – Standing on one leg while brainstorming (seriously, it works!)
These might sound silly, but that’s precisely why they work. They knock your brain out of its comfortable patterns and create openings for new perspectives.
When I’m completely stuck on writing, I sometimes do jumping jacks for 30 seconds. It changes my physiology, gets blood flowing differently, and almost always leads to a breakthrough when I sit back down.
5. Remove Mental Blocks Through Strategic Questioning
The questions we ask ourselves determine the answers we find. Many mental blocks persist because we keep asking disempowering questions like “Why can’t I ever get this right?” or “Why is this so hard for me?”
These questions assume there’s something wrong with us and lead our brains to find evidence supporting that assumption. Not helpful.
To remove mental blocks, replace limiting questions with expansive ones:
Instead of “Why can’t I do this?” ask “How can I approach this differently?” Instead of “What if I fail?” ask “What might I learn either way?” Instead of “Why is this happening to me?” ask “What opportunity might this situation contain?”
Better questions lead to better thinking, which leads to better actions and results.
The best question I’ve found for breaking through mental blocks is: “What would this look like if it were easy?” This simple question has helped me simplify complicated projects and find more elegant solutions countless times.
Clear Thinking Creates Clear Results
Removing mental blocks isn’t just about feeling better (though that’s a nice bonus). It’s about seeing reality more accurately so we can make better decisions.
The quality of our thinking determines the quality of our lives. When we remove the mental blocks that distort our perception, we can finally see opportunities that were always there, recognize our true capabilities, and take actions that actually move us forward.
This week, pick one mental block you suspect might be holding you back. Apply these strategies to examine it, challenge it, and ultimately remove it. Then watch what happens when your mind is finally free to think clearly.
Mental blocks aren’t permanent unless we let them be. With these five approaches, you can begin clearing the path to the success you’ve always been capable of achieving.