15 Ways To Go From Dumb to Smart In A Year or Less

‘I’m so dumb’.

Or some kind of variation of that, is something I often hear.

So in this article, I’m going to go through what’s behind calling yourself dumb and how to stop calling yourself dumb.

So let’s get started.

1. Understand ‘being dumb’ is a belief

Thinking or saying aloud that you’re dumb is nothing more than a belief. Therefore, you’re not really dumb. But because you have this belief, you think, feel and behave in ways that are equal to that belief. Therefore, reinforcing your belief to yourself and others over and over again so it becomes true.

Why do you believe you are dumb?

So how did you get this belief? From past conditioning. In other words, as a result of overhearing and observing others in your life speak to themselves and others in this way. As well as, yourself being put down and being called dumb by others too.

And the more people called you dumb and you overheard and observed others calling themselves dumb…

The more ingrained this belief came in your subconscious. The good news is though beliefs can be changed with lots of awareness and understanding of them.

2. Accept that you call yourself dumb

Before you can change anything in your life, you first must accept that you do it. Whether that’s engaging in a destructive thought pattern (like calling yourself dumb) or destructive behavior.

Why? because if you beat yourself up about doing it, it’s only going to make you feel worse about yourself.

So how do you do that?

By understanding yourself and why you specifically do it. Therefore, bringing me to my next point.

3. Understand yourself

Understand yourself when you don’t understand yourself…

In other words, when you don’t understand where your:

• Thoughts
• Feelings
• Actions
• Reactions; and
• Decisions

Are coming from, you’re less compassionate and understanding toward yourself when you do something wrong. So you move straight into ‘I’m so dumb’ without a second thought. Therefore, it’s up to you to work on understanding yourself so you can overcome your feelings around being dumb over time.

4. Don’t make calling yourself dumb acceptable

Often, we make throwaway comments, like ‘I’m so dumb’ because we believe that makes us more ‘likeable’. However, it doesn’t. As it in fact shows others that you’re not confident in yourself. Therefore, don’t make saying you’re stupid to yourself or others acceptable.

Make it unacceptable. But, as I said above, do so without beating yourself up about it. How do you make calling yourself dumb unacceptable?

First, every time you catch yourself calling yourself dumb imagine pressing the delete button on a keyboard in your head. Or imagine burning a piece of paper on a lit candle with the words ‘I’m so dumb’ on it.

Second, if you overhear someone else calling themselves dumb, let it wash over you so you don’t take it onboard. Or have a mantra. For instance ‘you are not dumb, I am not dumb’.

And lastly, if someone else calls you dumb stand up for yourself. If you find this hard to do in person, you can do it later in your head. How? by pausing on, revisiting the memory (like you’re about to meditate) and completely rescripting it just like you would a movie script. Adapting it as needed to suit your needs and what you really want to say in that memory. And repeating the new script in your head over and over again until you experience a change in how you feel in your body.

5. Believe you are likeable just as you are

You don’t need to be, say or do anything to be ‘likeable’. All you need to do is be your most sincere and authentic self. And if people like you as you are, they like you and if they don’t, they don’t and that’s okay. The challenge with this though is it can be really difficult for you to accept people not liking you. So you do everything in your power (including putting yourself down by calling yourself dumb) to get them to like you.

6. Accept we all make mistakes

Just because you do something wrong or you make a mistake doesn’t make you dumb. Because you can be the most smartest person in the world and still make mistakes.

But does that make you dumb?

No. It doesn’t. That makes you human. So why do you believe that you’re an exception to that rule when you make mistakes?

7. Stop caring so much about what other people think

Caring what other people think also means you’re more likely to put yourself down by calling yourself dumb.

Why?

Because you also believe that other people will think your dumb because you took a particular course of action. So to avoid you getting hurt, you get in there first by calling yourself dumb before they do. Because on a subconscious level you believe if you get in there first by pre-empting what others are going to say about you, they can’t hurt you.

8. Learn to become embodied

Your body is the subconscious mind. As a result, your belief that you’re dumb resides in your body, like all beliefs do. Therefore, if you wish to change your belief around being dumb, you must learn to become embodied. To move from being in your head, down into your body when you call yourself dumb.

So that you first become aware of the sensation that’s in your body. And second, become aware of WHERE you are feeling it in your body. So that you can breathe through the sensation and talk to it in a way that’s compassionate. Along with, reciting an affirmation opposite to your belief in the area of your body that you feel it. As this is one way of dissolving your limiting belief that you are dumb over time.

9. Learn to meditate

Meditating regularly also is incredibly beneficial in dissolving your belief that you are dumb.

As you can dissolve beliefs by meditating on the sensations within your body. Therefore, over time helping you to change all your limiting beliefs about yourself.

10. Gain a change in perspective

To change your belief, you must also get a change in perspective around the things you call yourself dumb on. As it’s another way of you tackling your belief that you are dumb.

11. Learn to trust in yourself and your ideas

You have good instincts. We all do. However, many of us don’t trust ourselves and our thoughts so we deny and ignore them. Therefore, further reinforcing our belief of being dumb.

12. Don’t surround yourself with people who also believe they are dumb

Okay, this one’s a hard one when you’re surrounded by other people who also have this belief. And you can’t exactly stop speaking to them just because of that. The thing is though by changing your belief that you’re dumb, you also help to change the beliefs of others.

As you no longer stand for the things that you once used to. So they choose not to stand for those things either over time. As you help them to come around to your way of thinking. Therefore, stopping you from surrounding yourself with people who believe they are dumb.

13. Seek wisdom not knowledge

You have absolutely everything you need to change your belief around being dumb. That is, your thoughts, your feelings, your actions, your reactions and the people, places and situations in your life. That’s it. That’s all you need.

14. Find someone who shows you the opposite of what you’re believing

When there’s someone in your life who shows you the opposite of what you’re believing, your beliefs change. As they show you a different way of thinking and feeling that you hadn’t considered before. Therefore, developing your confidence and belief in yourself. So you don’t need to keep calling yourself dumb because you’ll know that that’s not the truth of the matter.

15. Work with a therapist

At this point, you’re probably wondering well that’s all said and done and good. But how do you actually implement all these things into your life to be able to stop believing your dumb in a year or less? And the truth is, you can’t do it all on your own.

You need to enlist outside support. Like that from a therapist. Because by doing so you get to work on all of the above simultaneously. Even if you don’t realize that’s what you’re doing straight off the bat.

Summary

So, there you have it, 15 ways to go from dumb to smart in a year or less, which boils down to one key point…Work on yourself with a therapist so you can tackle each point above simultaneously, even if it doesn’t feel that way at first.