What do you do when you have subconscious programming that makes you think you’re unworthy of success?   

The first step is finding out that it’s there.  How?

Look for patterns of failure in your life.  Cases where you are just about to break through to success, and “something” else stops you.  You’ll probably think it is some outside factor that you have no control over.  At least I always thought it was an “outside” factor.

When I started a business, the county started construction on the highway, the next time I had a crooked partner, and another time the economy went bad.  Finally the last time, the IRS seized my restaurant for non-payment of taxes, and auctioned it off on the courthouse steps.

What a great thing that turned out to be!  Really.  Because losing everything made me finally stopped looking at all the outside factors (crooked partner, IRS, economy, etc.), and started looking at the inside ones. Or more specifically, ask the question, "Was there ONE person who was always at the scene of the crime?"

Of course I didn't like the answer I came up with, but it was the true one.  All those outside factors were being manifested by me because I:

* Had a subconscious fear of success;
* Lacked Self-esteem; and,
* Didn't believe I was worthy of success.

In the book “As a Man Thinketh,” James Allen relates how usual it is for people to say, “Many men are slaves because one is an oppressor; let us hate the oppressor.”  He then goes on to note the increasing tendency of people to say, “One man is an oppressor because there are slaves; let us despise the slaves.”

The real truth is that both the slaves and the oppressor are co-creators in ignorance, lack and limitation.  While it seems that they are victimizing each other – in reality, they are each victimizing themselves.

Prosperity and human dignity are both based upon value received.  An oppressor cannot sustain prosperity because he is exacting more than he returns, and will ultimately bankrupt his own consciousness.  A slave gives not enough value to himself, and likewise ends up in a state of spiritual bankruptcy.  As the Course in Miracles teaches, they are no victims, only volunteers.

This can also show up as procrastination and perfectionism.  You’re always going to write that book, screenplay, or opera, but you don’t have time to make it perfect.  Rather than chance failing at something, you can always lie to yourself that you’re going to do it some day.

So here are the important questions for you:  Have you got a pattern of false starts, failures, and/or procrastination?  And have you been blaming them on outside factors, allowing yourself to become a victim?

Don’t get discouraged if the answer is yes.  Because awareness is more than half the battle.  In the next post we’ll go the next step.