I was having a conversation with my business partner, Ana, last night. She brought up the issue of the inner critic. We (Ana and I) are in the start up phases of our new coaching business, Jumpup. It’s a very exciting time! We are both extending ourselves greatly and learning lots. Along with the excitement and wonderful feelings of doing something we truly love, we have noticed the voice of self doubt that occasionally creeps in. Ana was kind enough to share with me her methods of handling the inner critic and I in turn have shared some of my own.
1. Surround yourself with believers
This is not just your parents and other family members; whilst these guys are a fantastic cheer squad it is the people in the same industry, your network who really believe and understand what you are doing. You can find these people everywhere; you just need to know where to look. Try Facebook, twitter and other blogs. They are out there! Also don’t forget to be a believer for someone else!
2. Respond positively
One of the keys to managing the inner critic is to respond positively. Change the flow of the energy and answer it back with a positive spin.
3. Write a letter
Disarm your inner critic by writing it a letter, tell it to go away, give it a silly name that makes you laugh when it appears in you mind. This will take the power away from your critic.
4. Learn
Your inner critic often points out areas of weakness in your life. When this happens, note what the inner critic is saying and take effective steps to make some changes in your life.
5. Challenge
When you start to doubt your actions, ask yourself, what would happen if I just did it? What is the worst thing that could happen and what is the best thing that could happen? And lastly, feel the fear and do it anyway!
We all have an inner critic, what are some ways that you manage yours?
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Point 4 and 5 are extremely powerful self improvement tools, but the hardest to do, takes a lot of reflection to see that we need to change ourselves
ReplyDeleteThank you for you comment. I do agree with you, Awareness is the precursor for change. Looking within and working out why you behave in certain ways is difficult but extremely satisfying when this leads to positive change.
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