Podcast Summary: Achieve Your Goals with Hal Elrod
Episode 617: How to Rewire Your Brain to Overcome Self-Sabotage with Thais Gibson, PhD
Release Date: December 24, 2025
Host: Hal Elrod
Guest: Dr. Thais Gibson (Co-founder, Personal Development School)
Episode Overview
In this episode, Hal Elrod sits down with Dr. Thais Gibson to dig into the mechanics of self-sabotage and the ways we can rewire our subconscious to achieve our goals and heal emotional wounds. Thais draws on her background in neuroscience and therapy to share tools, techniques, and actionable steps listeners can implement right away. The conversation blends scientific insights with practical strategies, focusing on belief reprogramming, the mind-body connection, and breaking patterns rooted in childhood conditioning.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. Connecting with Thais Gibson (02:09 – 03:30)
- Thais reflects on her experience being a guest on Mel Robbins’ podcast, highlighting the power of presence and connection.
- “She was just so strong… a tiny bit intimidating in real life. She was just so strong.” — Thais Gibson (02:55)
2. The Core Message: “You’re not broken. You’re just ready to heal.” (03:30 – 05:00)
- Many get stuck believing something is inherently wrong with them when, in fact, their subconscious programming—shaped by childhood and other formative experiences—underlies most recurring challenges.
- Thais explains how our subconscious makes up 95–97% of our beliefs, choices, and emotions.
- “By the time you’re making that judgment…that’s actually emotional feedback that there’s something to be healed, to be loved, to be brought back into wholeness happening in a subconscious level.” — Thais Gibson (04:25)
- View challenges as signals for healing rather than as evidence of being “broken.”
3. Understanding and Rewiring the Subconscious (05:00 – 14:15)
The Subconscious Mind’s Role
- Affirmations are powerful, but most people miss the mark by using only language.
- “Your conscious mind speaks language. Your subconscious mind doesn't really speak language at all. It speaks in emotions and imagery.” — Thais Gibson (06:09)
Enhanced Affirmation Practice
- Link affirmations to specific memories and emotions for greater effectiveness.
- Record these affirmations and listen to them for 21 days, ideally in “suggestible states” (first hour after waking, last hour before sleep, after exercise, etc.).
- “Memories are a container of emotions and imagery.” — Thais Gibson (06:58)
- Hal: “It has to be rooted in truth. And then you got to support it with why, why are these things true?” (08:33)
Behavioral Reprogramming
- Limiting beliefs become self-fulfilling prophecies because we unconsciously re-enact them.
- Audit your behaviors for evidence of these beliefs and intentionally choose actions that reinforce new beliefs.
- “People who fear abandonment the most are the people who self-abandon the most.” — Thais Gibson (10:20)
- Take three daily actions for 21 days that align with your desired belief (e.g., speaking up or setting boundaries).
4. Why Self-Sabotage Happens (14:16 – 18:03)
- Self-sabotage is not a conscious choice; it reflects an inner conflict between conscious goals and subconscious needs/limiting beliefs.
- Thais uses the analogy of a maze: subconscious limiting beliefs are walls; when removed, progress accelerates.
- “There’s no actual such thing as self-sabotage. Nobody wakes up and consciously says, ‘Today I’m going to sabotage myself.’” — Thais Gibson (15:20)
- Example: aligning goals with what provides comfort, safety, or community for faster progress.
5. Formation of Limiting Beliefs (18:32 – 21:45)
- Most limiting beliefs are formed in early childhood (ages 0–3, 3–8) when the brain is most suggestible.
- Conditioning continues through repetition and emotional experience.
- “We take in our deepest beliefs from the ages of 0–3 and then 3–8, where our brain is producing mostly alpha and theta brainwaves…we’re super suggestible.” — Thais Gibson (18:58)
- Emotion trumps repetition when imprinting beliefs. One highly emotional event can overwrite years of positive conditioning.
6. How to Heal and Rewire Faster (21:45 – 24:59)
- Get clear on what you want to heal and identify the specific underlying belief.
- Weigh the costs of holding onto limiting beliefs and the benefits of releasing them.
- Follow the 21-day affirmation protocol, pair behavioral shifts, and frame goals in alignment with reptilian brain needs (safety, freedom, family).
- “Whenever somebody sees that they are the most distressed, mentally, emotionally too, it's like you have to take that much better care of yourself.” — Thais Gibson (33:24)
7. Mind-Body Connection and Emotional Regulation (25:50 – 33:59)
- Speaking and singing to yourself triggers biological effects (activates vagus nerve, calms nervous system, increases suggestibility).
- “Singing and humming are so good to actually activate you to be in parasympathetic nervous system mode.” — Thais Gibson (26:51)
- When highly emotional, our higher thinking “shuts down”; it’s essential to regulate before reprogramming.
- Somatic emotion labeling (naming what you feel and where you feel it) activates the prefrontal cortex, making change possible.
8. Meaning-Making and Acceptance (36:43 – 40:34)
- Two people with the same adversity can have radically different outcomes based on the meanings they ascribe.
- Acceptance is the key to peace and progress.
- “You will always, 100% of the time, lose the war against the past…Acceptance is non-resistance to the past.” — Thais Gibson (39:02)
- Inspired by Eckhart Tolle’s “The Power of Now” and the idea that resistance is the root of emotional pain.
9. Practical Steps to Break Patterns (41:20 – 49:25)
Start Here:
- Define Your Goal
- What outcome or feeling do you want to experience? (41:23)
- Ask Why You Haven’t Achieved It
- The answers reveal your limiting beliefs. (41:50)
- Reprogram Limiting Beliefs
- Use the “opposite belief and 10 pieces of evidence” exercise for 21 days. (42:03)
- Action Alignment
- Take 2–3 actions per day that your “future self” would do. Actions should be incremental but consistent for maximum rewiring. (43:04, 44:17)
- Leverage Exposure Reprogramming
- Start small to avoid overwhelming yourself. Success builds with repetition and realization. (44:16)
Memorable Story
- Hal shares a formative moment from his early sales career:
- “Do you want to be successful in life? … What would a successful person do right now?” — (46:22)
- The lesson: Take actions in alignment with your desired identity, even after setbacks.
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
- “You’re not broken. You’re just ready to heal.” — Thais Gibson (03:46)
- “Nobody wakes up and consciously says, ‘Today I’m going to sabotage myself.’” — Thais Gibson (15:20)
- “Your conscious mind speaks language. Your subconscious mind doesn’t really speak language at all. It speaks in emotions and imagery.” — Thais Gibson (06:09)
- “Acceptance is non-resistance to the past. It’s like, this is my reality. I’m here.” — Thais Gibson (39:02)
- Hal on self-talk: “I’ll literally sing to myself what I feel like I need to hear…It feels so empowering.” (25:50)
- “Whenever somebody sees that they are the most distressed, mentally, emotionally too, it’s like you have to take that much better care of yourself.” — Thais Gibson (33:24)
Important Timestamps
- [03:30] — The “You’re not broken” philosophy
- [06:07] — How to make affirmations actually work
- [10:19] — Core wounds and self-fulfilling prophecies
- [14:40] — Maze analogy and self-sabotage explained
- [18:54] — When and how limiting beliefs are formed
- [21:46] — How to accelerate positive belief change
- [26:51] — Scientific benefits of vocal self-talk and chanting
- [36:43] — Acceptance vs. resistance to adversity
- [41:20] — Step-by-step starter guide for breaking negative patterns
- [44:16] — “Exposure reprogramming”: start small, repeat often
- [46:22] — Hal’s early career story: embodying your goal self
Resources & Further Learning
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Find Thais Gibson:
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Books Mentioned:
- “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill
- “The Power of Now” by Eckhart Tolle
Actionable Takeaways
- Identify and challenge your limiting beliefs—ask yourself why you’re not achieving your goals to surface these.
- Use emotionally connected, evidence-based affirmations, not empty statements.
- Pair belief healing with small behavioral changes, repeated daily.
- Regulate your nervous system before attempting deep mindset work.
- Acceptance is a superpower: peace with reality opens the door for growth.
- Align your daily actions with the habits and mindset of your ideal future self.
For implementation, replay Thais’s exercises and integrate the small, consistent actions she describes. Reflect, reframe, and repeat—your subconscious is ready to heal.