Every year I choose a “word of the year” in addition to my regular goals. Previous words I’ve used are “Light” and “Intuitive.” At the beginning of 2013, I asked myself, “What do I want more than anything else?” The answer was simple. I wanted to be “LIMITLESS.”

I wanted to be limitless in my energy. Limitless in my love—especially in my love for my kids and husband. Limitless in my faith in a higher power. Limitless in my abilities to have a successful business and speaking career and grow my paychecks. Limitless in the amount I could get done in a day. Limitless in my health, nutrition, and my athletic ability. I wanted to release the limitations I place on myself and get them out of my mind once and for all. I wanted to feel limitless in my possibilities and future.

In previous and subsequent years, I shared my word with other people, but I didn’t do that in 2013. Part of what I wanted to let go of were the limitations others placed on me. We all have people in our lives who make our dreams feel small. I didn’t want anyone to bring me down with well-meaning comments about human limits. I simply wanted to tell myself I was limitless and live in that experience. So I kept it private and let the journey be my own.

The reality is that I know I have limitations. I know I’m not super human. I have weaknesses and shortcomings just like everyone else, and throughout the year I still had my fair share of mistakes and set-backs. I even had breakdowns and cry fests. Feeling limitless is not about having super powers, it’s about letting go of weighty beliefs that keep you from your dreams. I discovered that some of the biggest limitations I have are ones I place on myself.

When I released some of those limitations, amazing things happened.

For example, in my annual planning session, and under the influence of Ann Webb’s “Ideal LifeVision” program, I decided I wanted to run a half-marathon. To that point I had run a few 5K races and a 10K, but running wasn’t really my thing—or at least that’s what I had always told myself. I felt a pull to run a half marathon, so I decided it was time to release the “I can’t run” limitation from my life. On January 1st, I registered for a half-marathon in September. I announced my intention on Facebook (because everyone knows there’s no turning back once you post something on Facebook).

The training process was hard. I began to see exactly how many of my limitations were only in my head. If I told myself “I am strong. I am a runner. I am capable and ready to run this 10 miles,” I could do it. Like so many things in life, running is just as much a mental game as it is a physical one.

There were still times in those months when I wanted to quit, drop out of the training program, and never run again. Yet I couldn’t escape the fact that I had committed, and though I might have physical limitations, I’m NOT a quitter. I continued my training, and I ran the race in September. For me, it wasn’t just about crossing a finish line, it was about staying committed and removing limits.

Though your stories and circumstances will differ from mine, I want you to think about the limitations you place on yourself. What “I can’t _________” statements are holding you back?

When it came to being limitless in my relationships, I found I understood people better when I looked them in the eye, and they understood me better as well. I tried to look at my children with limitless love, and I smiled and practiced having limitless amounts of patience. I wish I could claim a flawless track record in the parenting department, but I can’t. I still snapped more than I wanted, but I also had times where I remembered to exude limitless love, and that is when the miracles happened. Just having the words run through my brain were powerful and relationship-altering.

I was blessed to see an abundance of results in my professional life as well. My radio show took off (it now gets more than 40,000 downloads a month), I produced physical products to sell at live events, and I had some record breaking paychecks. I meditated and prayed for success and received energy and clarity to go to work. With those gifts, I was able to write two books. My first book, “The Time Blueprint for Entrepreneurs” (Available on Amazon.com) was a #1 Bestselling book in my category. It was well received, and exceeded my initial expectations. Writing a book can be hard, but I removed that limitation and created the possibility that it didn’t have to take months, it could take days. When a press opportunity arose, I wanted to have my book, Make It Happen—The Practices of Peak Performers, ready for a show. I had 12 days. I worked at night and while my kids were at school. With my mind fixed upon my goal, and with incredible editors, I was able to remove my limits and release the book digitally in time for the press opportunity.

However good it felt to have the book available digitally, though, I knew it wasn’t enough. After all, I was limitless! While I was in the process of exploring my self-publishing options, I sent the manuscript to an industry contact. I was hoping for feedback I could use in writing my third book, but to my surprise and delight, they wanted to publish this one. I was blown away. My dream of getting published within three to five years happened in two.

While we’re on the subject of limitless business achievements, let’s talk about the fact that I also quadrupled my revenue that year. To be honest, I hadn’t even set a money goal. I had things I wanted to accomplish, and I kept my businesses churning, but I was shocked when I did my accounting and realized I’d earned four times as much as the previous year. Releasing limits has a way of affecting every area of your life if you open up to the possibility.

Michelle McCullough is a speaker, strategist, success coach, serial entrepreneur and show host. In addition to The Living Room, Michelle also has a solo show called Make It Happen.  She loves God, is married, has two kids and her secret love is sugar cereals.