Stop Emotionally Abusing Yourself Through Negative Self-Talk

Is that little voice in your head constantly saying negative things to you and about you? Is it hard to turn off or even to ignore? Maybe you need to know a little bit more about that incessant voice and how to deal with it because by letting it rule your life you are essentially emotionally abusing yourself. That is not a good place to be. Wouldn't you like to be listening to good things rather than abusive things all of the time?

First you need to get to know that little voice. It is your inner voice or Critter as I call it and it can be corralled. You have to understand it first. Get out a piece of paper and draw what yours looks like. Mine is green and has a huge head with sharp pointy teeth. It is always talking and flapping its tongue. What does your look like? Now give your Critter a name. I call mine Kreachur. I have had clients who name their Boss, The General, Mother - name yours whatever you want.

Now for a little about this Critter of yours. Understand that its only purpose is to make you unhappy and miserable. It wants you to think that it is protecting you from things but it is really keeping you from experiencing life and trying out new things. It does this by putting you down and telling you that you are not good enough, among other negative comments. How do you deal with this guy?

You already know you can not argue with it. it just gets louder and all around noisier and pushier. You also can not reason with it. It is a master at leading you astray. Do not even try to reason with it. The thing that you can do is to just acknowledge it. Watch it with semi-detached interest. It is an amazing creature. It will act like a little child and pout and carry on when you decide not to listen or engage it. Ignore that and just watch. Let it be.

Now just continue to acknowledge that it is there. What it is saying is just another piece of information - and not very good information at that - that comes at you during the day. Replace what it is saying with the truth, do not argue with it, just replace its words with true words and move on. Over time you will learn that this is the way to corral your Critter. It will never go away so do not spend your energy trying to bury it deep down inside you. That will only be worse. Work on just corralling and then moving on.

About the Author:

Lynn Banis PhD, MCC is known as America's High Performance Coach. She specializes in helping executives and entrepreneurs make the most of their opportunities and potential. Her years of working with small and large businesses has given her a depth of knowledge that is invaluable to her clients. You can reach her at http://www.discoverypointcoaching.com or lynn@discoverypointcoaching.com. Also check out Lynn's other businesses: Coach Academy Texas, a cutting edge coach training company; and Turnkey Coaching Solutions, a coaching program management and contract coach staffing company.