Humans are creatures of habit; this includes both our thoughts and behaviors. Patterns develop as we respond to pleasure and pain. When something painful happens to us we find ways to protect ourselves. Our internal receptors note everything about the painful situation and then alert us of future danger by triggering a fear emotion. How you respond to the fear emotion eventually becomes an unconscious automatic behavioral response.

The liability of this remarkable system is when you unconsciously limit yourself because of past experiences that did not support your talents and abilities. A good example of this is the child in school that becomes the class clown to gain acceptance. Since they are afraid of failure, due to past embarrassments with reading or math, they take control by acting out. They self-sabotage their education in order to feel safe, where in the right environment they may be at a genius level. If you or your child destroys relationships or projects just before you are about to reap the rewards of your efforts, it is probably due to the unconscious limitations you have set up to protect yourself.