Your core beliefs may be working against you!

Introduction to Core Beliefs

We organise information about ourselves, the world, and other people through core beliefs. Core beliefs are cognitive units of knowledge that allow us to make sense of reality in a way that is coherent with our perspective. They affect how we interpret and store information that is processed by our senses, as well as our feelings and behaviours in relation to it. 

As they are a product of culture, the environment and the quality of our experience and the relationships we have had over the years, core beliefs not only reflect our history, but also help define it. Because they are so hugely influential on the way we think, feel, relate to others, and lead our lives, expanding your knowledge about them can be a productive exercise. 

To help you achieve just that, here are 3 facts about core beliefs that will make you reassess your own:

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Core Beliefs Are Often Unrelated to Objective Reality

Because you feel strongly about something, it does not mean it reflects an accurate approach or evaluation. In fact, strong convictions are supported by rigid beliefs. Those beliefs, in turn, are deeply connected to our experience and subjective perspective. 

Experience is then given significance by emotions, which play a big part in convincing us of the “veracity” of something, even when there is little or no concrete proof to validate it. We can observe that process in practice, when we are quick to agree with or reject something or someone without further deliberation. 

When it comes to making a decision or formulating judgement, the quicker and more automatic reactions, the more subjective, intuitive and emotional.

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Core Beliefs Are Stored in the Emotional Brain

Core beliefs are stored in the amygdala, which is part of the limbic system. The amygdala is responsible for behavioural and emotional reactions such as anger, fear and responding to stressful situations (fight or flight response), as well as encoding, storing, and retrieving memories of events that define our personal experience. Those memories – loaded with emotional significance – are what shape our core beliefs about ourselves, the world, and others. When we take into consideration subjective perspective, our past predicts the future. 

Core beliefs reflect that principle accurately since they tend to remain rigid throughout an individual’s development and are indifferent to the changes he or she experiences. For that reason, a single or multiple traumatic events in childhood have the potential to define one’s view of himself or herself as an incompetent and unlovable adult, for instance, and remain unchanged for many years after their occurrence.

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Negative or Irrational Core Beliefs Are at the Root of Psychological Distress

As core beliefs are formed in childhood and are of an inflexible nature, they are prone to filtering information in an extremely biased and often irrational manner. 

Depression and anxiety sufferers, as well as trauma victims, for instance, tend to hold a very negative view of themselves, the world and others. Individuals who believe not to be good enough and, therefore, are terrified of “looking silly” and being judged by others in social interactions are highly likely to develop anxiety problems. 

When that anxiety becomes unbearable, they may feel the need to isolate from social contact, a dysfunctional behaviour which is also at the heart of depression. Similarly, trauma victims whose core beliefs about emotions are centred on denial are naturally resistant to approaching their own suffering honestly and proactively. 

That tendency compromises their ability to manage the effects of trauma in the long term, which may result in debilitating and life-changing mental health issues, such as addictions and eating disorders.

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Reassessing Your Core Beliefs

Reassessing core beliefs is most effective when it moves beyond reflection and becomes a structured, repeatable process. The aim is not simply to identify what you believe, but to examine how those beliefs operate in real time. Mood shifts are a reliable entry point because they signal that an interpretation has just occurred. By pausing at that moment and asking, “What was going through my mind?”, you capture the automatic thought close to its source, before it becomes blended with secondary reactions such as rumination or avoidance.

Once identified, the task is to analyse the thought for what it reveals about deeper assumptions. Automatic thoughts are rarely isolated; they tend to follow predictable patterns that point back to underlying beliefs about the self (“I am inadequate”), others (“people will judge me”), or the world (“things will go wrong”). Rather than taking the thought at face value, examine its structure. Is it absolute or conditional? Does it rely on rigid rules (“I must always perform well”) or broad generalisations (“this always happens to me”)? These features indicate whether the belief system is flexible and adaptive or overly restrictive.

The tone of these beliefs is equally important. A critical, punitive internal stance often manifests as harsh self-evaluation and low tolerance for error, which can erode self-esteem over time. In contrast, a more balanced and compassionate stance allows for accountability without undermining self-worth. This is not about self-indulgence, but about maintaining a standard that is both realistic and sustainable. A belief that demands perfection will consistently generate distress because it sets conditions that cannot be met.

It is also necessary to test these beliefs against evidence. This involves asking whether the belief is consistently supported across situations, or whether it is selectively reinforced by attention and memory biases. For example, a belief such as “I am not competent” may persist because failures are given more weight than successes. Deliberately identifying counterexamples—instances that contradict the belief—introduces variability into what may otherwise feel like a fixed conclusion.

Importantly, core beliefs do not just reflect past experiences; they actively shape how new experiences are interpreted. They function as filters, influencing what is noticed, how it is understood, and what is remembered. Without deliberate reassessment, this creates a self-reinforcing loop where the belief appears increasingly valid simply because alternative interpretations are not considered.

In practical terms, the goal is to move from automatic endorsement of these beliefs to active evaluation. By consistently tracking mood shifts, identifying the thoughts that precede them, and examining the assumptions they reveal, individuals begin to loosen the grip of unhelpful belief systems. This creates space for more balanced interpretations, supports healthier emotional responses, and allows behaviour to be guided by current evidence rather than historical patterns.