Do you have an inner critic that you can’t seem to silence?
Believe it or not, most people from all sorts of different professional backgrounds have this inner critic, and silencing it is an ongoing battle. If you find yourself struggling to get out of your own way, it can be so difficult to accomplish the things you want to in your life.
Today, we’re going to tell you why this inner critic is a toxic element of your psyche and give you a few tips on how to silence it. You’ll probably never be able to completely rid yourself of self-criticism, but knowing how to handle it when it pops up will help you lead a happier and more successful life.
Your Inner Critic Appears In Many Forms
We should first say that having an inner critic isn’t always a bad thing. Being able to think critically about the things you do in your day-to-day is important for staying grounded and building relationships with others.
At a certain point, however, this seemingly healthy mindset can begin to hold you back. If you start to critique yourself too much, you’ll end up doubting your abilities and eventually lose your confidence.
When you don’t have confidence, it becomes really hard to reach your potential. After that, things like anxiety and depression might creep into your life and make living more difficult than it needs to be.
So, how do you deal with this little voice in your head telling you you’re not good enough?
How to Silence Your Inner Critic
Dealing with your inner critic starts by recognizing patterns of behavior that give it life. If you can take notice of when you’re being critical of yourself as it’s happening, you can stop it in its tracks and try to think logically.
Your thoughts and feelings aren’t necessarily the truth, they’re biased depending on where your self-esteem is at the time. Try some of these strategies to treat low self esteem and you might see your inner critic wither away.
One effective way to manage your inner critic is by personifying it. Give it a nickname and tell it to be quiet when it shows up to tell you that you’re not good enough. It’s a good way to take something abstract in your psyche and make it more concrete.
You can then cross-examine your inner critic. Your self-criticism almost always goes unchecked because you’re the only person that can combat it. When you’re looking at these criticisms, ask yourself how true they really are and realize that the critic in you is almost always exaggerating your faults.
This can allow you to shift your perspective a little. The thing that’s inside you telling you you can’t do something is the same thing that should help you realize that your inner critic isn’t right about everything.
Overcome Negative Thoughts
Negative thoughts and energies can stop you from doing what you want to do, but it’s important to remember that everyone’s got an inner critic. We’re all able to deal with it in different ways with different levels of success. The best thing you can do is try to understand it and know when to use it to your advantage and when to push it away.
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