To the teacher who told me, "Once a cheater, always a cheater"

I have spent my life proving you wrong.

When I was in Primary School, in 5th grade, we had a test. I was nervous, and definitely unprepared, so I peeked at my notes, and one of my classmates saw me, then left the room and dobbed me in to our teacher (who was also the School Principal).

That betrayal from someone I thought was a friend cut deep.

I was pulled in front of our teacher in the staff office, and the shame I felt was overwhelming. The humiliation of being caught, and then they said it: "Once a cheater, always a cheater."

I was ten years old, and they decided who I was. They didn't give me a chance to explain, and they just labeled me and told me that's who I'd always be.

And many years later I realised that that became a sliding doors moment, because I could have adopted that statement and built a belief around it. But something happened inside me in that moment. I rebelled and thought: No. Not me. Never again.

That moment became the turning point because I decided that, from then on, I would be scrupulously honest, all the time, in everything. Honesty and integrity became my core values and doing the right thing even when no one's watching. My family jokes that it drives them crazy sometimes, but I refuse to compromise on it.

I have spent my entire life doing the opposite of what he said I'd be.

So thank you. Even though you shamed and humiliated me, you gave me something I didn't know I needed. You showed me that one moment doesn't define me, one mistake doesn't write my story.

And the labels (aka 'help', 'advice', 'descriptions') people give you, especially when you're young, vulnerable, or struggling, those aren't facts or the truth, they are not beliefs that you have to adopt, even though we often do unconsciously. They're just other people's opinions. We get to decide whether we believe them.

I could have accepted that label and adopted that belief. I could have let shame shape me, but instead, I let it fuel me.

So if there's a label someone gave you that you've been carrying as a belief, whether a teacher, a parent, a boss, a partner who told you who you are or who you'll always be, you get to decide if that's true.

You're not defined by your worst moment, you're defined by what you choose to do next.

That's why I love working with the people I work with, helping them identify those limiting beliefs that have quietly been shaping how they move through life.

I'm running a 7-Day Belief Busting Experiment. If you want to learn how to bust some limiting beliefs without even necessarily knowing what they are, sign up to the challenge here.

Maree