Challenge Your Beliefs
Challenge Your Beliefs is an 80-minute session in which each participant identifies one limiting belief, examines it with a partner and rewrites it as a short statement they can act on. It was developed by Hedwig Boer and Miranda Trippenzee with Margreet Smit for the Transition Makers Toolbox at the University of Amsterdam. It opens with a silent 'crossing the line' exercise that shows how many people in the room carry the same beliefs.
Facilitation script
- 1
Introduce limiting beliefs with two or three relatable examples and name the two goals: notice one, rewrite one.
10 min - 2
Crossing the line. Read each prepared belief aloud; those who recognise it step over in silence and back again. Short debrief on what it was like, then each person privately notes the belief that resonated most.
15 min - 3
Pairs investigate one belief each, ten minutes per person. The listener only asks questions. Announce the switch.
20 min - 4
Reformulate: write the belief, cross it out, write the replacement that starts with 'I', in the present tense, positive and short. Partners test whether it is believable, actionable and memorable, and the writer revises.
20 min - 5
Reality check in the same pairs: where the new belief will be applied and what will act as a reminder.
12 min - 6
Closing circle: each person says their new belief aloud once. No comments.
8 min
Tips
Write the beliefs for the line exercise with this particular group in mind and order them from mild to more personal; start with something nearly everyone will step forward for.
Keep the pair conversation on how the belief shows up now.
The source advises against exploring where it came from, and that is the right boundary for a workshop.
When partners test the new statement, 'believable' matters most: a slogan the person does not believe will be dropped the same day.
Common pitfalls
Using a generic list of beliefs: few people step over the line, the room stays flat and the point about shared beliefs is not made
Allowing talk or laughter during the line exercise: people stop stepping forward for the more personal statements and the exercise turns into a performance
Pair conversations drifting into childhood and causes: the session becomes amateur therapy, runs over time and leaves some participants unsettled with no one qualified to follow up
Accepting replacements that are simply the opposite of the old belief, such as 'I am great at everything': the person does not believe it, so it has no effect on behaviour
Dropping the reality check when time is short: the new statement stays on paper with no situation attached and is forgotten
Variations
Online, replace the floor line with cameras: everyone starts with the camera off and switches it on when a belief applies, or use an anonymous poll if the group is less familiar. For a team stuck in shared assumptions such as 'we can't change that', run the line exercise with beliefs about the team's work, then do the investigation and reformulation in small groups on one shared belief. With fewer than 12 people the line exercise loses some of its effect because individuals are more visible; consider asking people to note recognition privately instead. Reframing is the related facilitator technique; cross-reference it for the underlying idea.
Where it fits
When to use it
Participants hold themselves back with assumptions about their own ability and would benefit from seeing that others share them
A development programme needs a session that produces one concrete, personal takeaway per person in under 90 minutes
The group has 12 to 20 people, enough for individuals to feel unexposed when they step over the line
People are about to take on something new, such as a first leadership role, and doubts are already audible
There is enough trust for honest pair conversations, even if the group does not know each other deeply
When not to use it
The limiting factor is real and external, such as workload, budget or a blocked decision: treating it as a belief problem insults people, so run a problem-solving method such as Force Field Analysis instead
The group is small, hierarchical or in conflict: stepping over a line in front of a manager is exposure, not recognition; use private writing and a Peer Coaching Circle
Someone is dealing with beliefs rooted in trauma or mental illness: a peer conversation of ten minutes is not the right setting, and professional support is
You want more than cognitive rewriting and have the time and experience for it: Adapting Response Patterns adds a rehearsal of the new response
Related methods
Frequently asked questions
What is Challenge Your Beliefs?▾
Challenge Your Beliefs is an 80-minute group session from the Transition Makers Toolbox at the University of Amsterdam. Participants recognise limiting beliefs through a silent line exercise, pick one, examine it with a partner and rewrite it as a short first-person statement that supports action. It ends with each person saying their new belief aloud.
What is a limiting belief?▾
A limiting belief is an assumption a person holds about themselves, others or the world that narrows what they attempt, for example 'I am not the kind of person who speaks up'. Such beliefs often started as sensible protection and stayed after the situation changed. The session treats them as habits of thought that can be examined, not as flaws.
How does the crossing the line exercise work?▾
The group stands on one side of a line on the floor. The facilitator reads a belief aloud, and everyone who recognises it steps over the line in silence, notices who else has moved, and steps back. It takes 10 to 15 minutes and shows quickly that beliefs people think are private are widely shared.
What makes a good replacement belief?▾
It addresses the same situation as the old belief, starts with 'I', is in the present tense, positive, short and points toward something the person can do. The partner tests three things: is it believable, is it actionable, and is it easy to remember. A modest statement the person accepts works better than an ambitious one they doubt.
How is this different from reframing?▾
Reframing is a technique a facilitator or coach uses in the moment to offer a different interpretation of a situation. Challenge Your Beliefs is a full group sequence in which participants do the examining and rewriting themselves, in pairs, on a belief of their own choosing. The two fit together well: the pair questions are a form of guided reframing.
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Try it freeMethod descriptions on Workshop Weaver are original content written by our team, based on established facilitation practices. This method was inspired by work from Hedwig Boer, Miranda Trippenzee and Margreet Smit, Transition Makers Toolbox (University of Amsterdam).