178: The Invisible Ceiling: How to Break the Limits You Didn’t Know You Set

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You didn’t mean to hold yourself back, but somewhere along the way, your brain decided this was as far as you could go.

In today’s Thrive in 5, we’re digging into the invisible ceiling the quiet limit you’ve placed on your own growth. You’ll learn how to name it, challenge it, and stretch beyond it with one identity-aligned action. No more shrinking. You’re ready.

What we cover:

• Why the invisible ceiling forms (even after success)
• The subtle signs you’ve hit one
• How to challenge the story that says “too much” or “not yet”
• A bold, aligned action that helps you break through today

🎯 You don’t need permission to go bigger. You just need to stop believing the limit was real.

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Episode Transcript

(00:00):
One of the biggest thing holdingyou back is you in today's
Thrivent five, we're crackingthe invisible ceiling wide open
and showing you how to breakthrough the limits you didn't
even know you've set foryourself.

Speaker (00:13):
Welcome back to Thrive in Five, where I give you a
quick burst of motivation andproductivity in five minutes or
less.
I'm Cindy, your host, aself-made entrepreneur, busy
mom, and a business coach.
I've built and sold severaldigital businesses ranging from
five to six figure successes.
So when it comes to managingtime and priorities in both life

(00:35):
and work, I get it.
I've been there and I am here tohelp you thrive.
Let's talk about somethingpowerful and sneaky.
It's the invisible ceiling.
It's the limit you'veunknowingly placed upon
yourself.
It's not external.
It's not a lack of time, a lackof resources or talent.

(00:55):
It is internal.
It's the belief that you're onlyallowed to go this far and no
further.
But here's the kicker.
These ceilings are.
Often come from success.
You hit a milestone and yourbrain quietly decides that's
probably as good as it gets.
Or worse, you almost reach thegoal and then you sabotage it

(01:16):
because deep down, part of youdoesn't feel ready to go bigger.
So how do you spot thisinvisible ceiling?
You delay your next steps aftera win.
You keep tweaking things thatare already good enough.
You shrink your goals down tosomething that feels more
realistic.
Does that sound familiar?
If so, here's how to breakthrough it.

(01:38):
Step one, you're gonna name thelimit.
Ask yourself, what do I believeis possible for me right now?
And then go one step further.
What would feel like too much ortoo big, even if I secretly
wanted it?
That's your ceiling.
Step two, challenge the ceiling.

(01:58):
Say it out loud and then asksays who.
Who decided that was too much,too fast, too soon.
Often, the story has nothing todo with your current reality and
everything to do with oldmindset patterns you've
outgrown.
Step three, take an identityaligned action.
Do one bold thing that alignswith your next level and not

(02:22):
your current one.
Maybe that's pitching yourself,raising your rates.
Posting the thing that you'vebeen holding back.
It doesn't have to be perfect,it just needs to break that
invisible ceiling to implementthis immediately.
If this speaks to you, here ishow to implement this
immediately.
Write down one goal that feelsjust beyond what you think you

(02:44):
can do.
Identify the fear or the storythat's trying to keep you small.
Take one small, bold actiontoday that moves you towards
that goal.
You don't need permission to gobigger.
You just need to stop believingthe limits you didn't even
realize you'd set.
And remember, you've got this.

Speaker 2 (03:07):
Thanks for tuning into the Thrive in Five podcast.
If you found value in today'sepisode, I'd love for you to
leave a review.
It helps more listeners discoverthe show and don't forget to
subscribe so you never miss adose of productivity,
motivation, and success tips.
And hey, share this episode witha friend that could use a little
extra inspiration.
Until next time, keep thriving.

(03:28):
And remember, you've got this.