--- title: Escape from the Past Before You Step Into the New Year | The Sales Blog description: Before you sit down and write your plan to make next year rock, take a few minutes (or longer, if you’re serious about your goals), and decide what you need to unlearn. Over the course of your life, you’ve been infected by some beliefs that you now hold as truths. You’ve learned to take some […] image: https://www.thesalesblog.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Screen-Shot-2012-12-17-at-8_59_47-PM1.png --- ### [Now booking SKO meetings for 2026/27! 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Over the course of your life, you’ve been [infected](http://thesalesblog.com/blog/2012/08/17/make-your-beliefs-your-own/) by some beliefs that you now hold as truths. You’ve learned to take some actions based on those beliefs, and to avoid other actions—some of which would help you to produce much greater results. I won’t lie to you; this isn’t easy work. But growth only comes from outside your comfort zone. Take a big step with me here. #### Escape form Old Limiting Beliefs. Adopt New Ones. Nothing has a greater impact on your results than your model of the world. That model is built on all of [your beliefs](http://thesalesblog.com/blog/2010/09/15/your-beliefs-the-greatest-driver-of-your-personal-sales-results/), all of the rules that you live by. There can be nothing more powerful. And there can be nothing so dangerous. These are two shockingly difficult questions to answer. – Which of your long held beliefs are you willing to shed? – What new beliefs are you willing to adopt to replace those beliefs? Do you believe that need to wait for [permission](http://thesalesblog.com/blog/2012/04/10/your-permission-slip/)? Do you believe that the kind of prospecting that you don’t like to do doesn’t work anymore? Do you believe that your competitors are beating you on price and that there’s nothing you can do about? Do you believe you’re not really big enough to make a difference? We all have self-limiting beliefs. Each and every one of us also believe the lies we tell ourselves because it helps maintain on illusion, our hallucination, our model of the world. Write down a long held belief and then write the opposing belief right next to it. Now see if you can make the counter-argument and explore what it would mean for you to hold that belief. Pick a belief that you suspect may no longer be serving you. #### Escape from Old Limiting Actions. Adopt New Actions. A lot of your doing is already working for you. You want to keep what’s working in your repertoire; there’s no reason to change that. But if you don’t take some new actions, you aren’t going to produce any different result next year. You’ll just have [the same sales year](http://thesalesblog.com/blog/2010/08/17/is-your-year-in-sales-the-same-year-over-and-over-and-over/) over and over again, ad infinitum. Here are two more tough questions. It’s an act of bravery to answer these honestly. It’s even more courageous to take action. – Which actions are you willing to abandon? – What new actions are you willing to take? What actions do you take that no longer serve you? Do you procrastinate? Are you a [dependent](http://thesalesblog.com/blog/2012/10/31/on-not-creating-dependents-a-note-to-the-sales-leader/), always counting on someone else do some heavy lifting that you should do yourself? What actions, if religiously taken, would propel your sales results to a whole new level? Who do you have to be to take those actions? As you sit down to write your plan for next year, first decide which of your existing beliefs no longer serve you and what beliefs might serve you better. Then decide which actions you routinely take that might be better replaced with some new set of actions. This is the price of change. This is the price of improvement. ###### Tags: [Sales](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/tag/sales) [2012](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/tag/2012) Post by [Anthony Iannarino](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/author/anthony-iannarino) on December 17, 2012 Written and edited by human brains and human hands. ![Anthony Iannarino](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hubfs/ai-blog-profile-crop.jpg) Anthony Iannarino is an American writer. He has published daily at [thesalesblog.com](https://www.thesalesblog.com) for more than 14 years, amassing over 5,300 articles and making this platform a destination for salespeople and sales leaders. Anthony is also the author of four best-selling books documenting modern sales methodologies and a fifth book for sales leaders seeking revenue growth. His latest book for an even wider audience is titled, The Negativity Fast: Proven Techniques to Increase Positivity, Reduce Fear, and Boost Success. Anthony speaks to sales organizations worldwide, delivering cutting-edge sales strategies and tactics that work in this ever-evolving B2B landscape. He also provides workshops and seminars. Connect with Anthony on LinkedIn, X or Youtube. You can email Anthony at [iannarino@gmail.com](mailto:iannarino@gmail.com) [Follow me on my website](https://www.thesalesblog.com/anthony-iannarino) [Follow me on Facebook ](https://www.facebook.com/thesalesblog) [Follow me on LinkedIn ](https://www.linkedin.com/in/iannarino/) [Follow me on Twitter ](http://www.twitter.com/iannarino) [![AISA-square-ad-SKOs-26-27](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hs-fs/hubfs/AISA-square-ad-SKOs-26-27.jpg?width=400&height=400&name=AISA-square-ad-SKOs-26-27.jpg)](https://www.thesalesblog.com/authority) [![ai-cold-calling-video-sidebar-offer-1](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hs-fs/hubfs/ai-cold-calling-video-sidebar-offer-1.jpg?width=318&height=179&name=ai-cold-calling-video-sidebar-offer-1.jpg)](https://www.thesalesblog.com/free-cold-calling-video) ![salescall-planner-ebook-v3-1-cover (1)](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hs-fs/hubfs/salescall-planner-ebook-v3-1-cover%20(1).jpg?width=768&height=994&name=salescall-planner-ebook-v3-1-cover%20(1).jpg) ### Free Sales eBook: Sales Call Planner Planning your sales call improves the likelihood of making a successful call, and it demonstrates to your dream client your professionalism. 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What we’re doing right now **is working**, even in this challenging economy. **Would you like some help?** [![Solve for Sales](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/2922376/d3a4938b-2008-4a27-8b44-7b2223f6d035.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/2922376/d3a4938b-2008-4a27-8b44-7b2223f6d035) ### Join my Weekly Newsletter for Sales Tips Join 100,000+ sales professionals in my weekly newsletter and get my *Guide to Becoming a Sales Hustler* eBook for FREE! --- ```json { "@context" : "http://schema.org/", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Anthony Iannarino" }, "dateModified" : "2022-06-16T3:22:25 PM", "datePublished" : "2012-12-17 21:20:31", "description" : "Before you sit down and write your plan to make next year rock, take a few minutes (or longer, if you’re serious about your goals), and decide what you need to unlearn. Over the course of your life, you’ve been infected by some beliefs that you now hold as truths. 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