A good way to catch yourself in an assumption is to listen for final-sounding statements in your head. Things like “I’m not ready,” “I could never do that.” When you hear that voice, just pause and ask yourself why you think that’s true.
Sometimes the answer is vague. Other times, you’ll trace it back to a specific moment, a comment someone made, or a past failure. If you genuinely reflect on it, you will realize you’ve been acting like that belief is a permanent truth, when it’s really just an old fear or a protective reflex. Once you catch it, you can challenge it. What would you do differently if that assumption wasn’t there?