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Send Your Inner Critic On Vacation!

5 Easy Tips To Build Self-Confidence By Halting Negative Self-Talk

Most of us are very familiar with the nagging inner voice that barrages us with opinions all day long. It criticizes everything we say and do, tells us what we deserve and want, and where we failed. Referred to by many names, the voice has been called:

The Gremlin
The Inner Critic
The Nay Sayer
The Voice of Reason
Negative Self-Talk, etc.

While this voice may seem real, do we need to listen to what it says? Does it offer helpful advice? What is this inner talk, if it is not our true voice? The first step is to recognize that the inner critic, while a part of us, is not the authentic self. Often, it shows up to protect us from looking foolish and failure -usually by preventing us from even getting started.

The next question is- who is in charge? Who is responsible for what we think, say, feel, and do? Becoming aware frees us to consciously choose who is in charge. Knowing that we have the choice is where the power in life resides.

Succumbing to the opinions of our inner critic, short-changes us and limits the full range of possibilities. The inner critic will never disappear completely, so the trick is to minimize its impact. How can we shut that gremlin up, and put our true self in charge to lead our life?

The good news is that there are many strategies for taking charge! Here's a list of several, highly effective methods to deter the inner critic:

Acknowledge the inner critic. Recognize who is talking and separate from that voice by saying- "Oh, that's my inner critic talking. What do I really think?"

Name the gremlin. Give the gremlin a name that fits its personality. Talk to it directly, thank it for expressing an opinion, and state that you aren't listening.

Shout STOP at your gremlin- You may need to repeat STOP several times since the gremlin often sneaks back into your thoughts.

Send the inner critic on vacation. Send the inner critic anywhere you want - on vacation or into a closet. You decide where that critic can exist.

Play with and laugh at gremlin. When you encounter the gremlin, feel free to take it lightly! Laugh at what it has to say.

All of these techniques are designed to help us ignore the inner critic and its limiting beliefs. Once free, we can listen to our heart and authentic self to get what we want from life. The choice is ours, so let's go for it!