Don’t silence your inner critic.
We all have that inner critic. Thay voice inside your head that seems to play the role of the red horned cartoon character perched on your shoulder, whispering negative views. There are certain moments when these thoughts can hijack our views of a situation. In some cases, this critic can halt you from reaching for what you want in life.
The inner critic is a fear-based perspective.
Here’s the thing, many people try to ignore it. Or repress it. Stuff it deeper into their psyche. Please stop ignoring it, for your sake.
What I’m about to say may sound counter-intuitive, listen to it. Accept that it is there for a reason. Learn from it. If you choose to ignore it, it will likely dominate your views moving forward. The old axiom of “what you resist will persist” is undoubtedly accurate here. Not only will it persist, but it will also likely grow over time to the point that it’s hijacked decisions that may have otherwise gone very well for you.
Listen to it, acknowledge it then move on to the task you need to do. This inner critic does not define you. It is not you. It’s a voice that can help you navigate what you genuinely want. If you don’t listen, you will have a much more challenging time getting in touch with what matters to you.
Learn from this inner critic. Acknowledge what it has to say, accept it. Fighting it will only increase the volume and regularity of the critic.
Take, for instance, that you are heading into a sales presentation (sidenote: we are all salespeople in life and career, whether it’s selling an idea, a product, or any completed task that is up for review), and your inner critic begins to chime in. That inner critic of yours starts to raise negative aspects of your offering or the many things that could go wrong in the meeting. You may notice that your confidence begins to feel unsteady.
Many “experts” say that at this moment, you need to squash the negative voice. Suppress it and push through.
I choose to go a level deeper and ask myself where this fear is coming from – to learn where it originates from. What impact is this voice having on my life? What relevance does this have to me right now? Is this maybe something I can date back to an experience I had when I was much younger? Perhaps a particular Junior High exam that I managed to discover the possibility of marks hovering at 50%?!? (yup, this happened!) When I do have these fears, I pop back into that memory and remind myself that that was a very long time ago and that this was a valid fear at that time; a time when I felt unworthy and inferior to my classmates. Once I have seen where it originated from, it’s a lot easier to understand and accept it. That I’m okay in the now, and I’m going to be fine as I move forward. What’s also essential to acknowledge is that I have a lot of life and business experience since that fateful exam. The subsequent experiences are a far more accurate representation of my capacity for business and aptitude to connect with others that I meet.
Choosing to run away from the fear stops your growth. If you stop your growth, then it will significantly impact what you can achieve personally and professionally.
There is nothing to fear when it comes to your inner critic. Look at it the inner critic, shed light on it, it will shrink away on its own if you face it and accept that it can pop up from time to time – noting that it is not you nor does it define you in any way. It’s merely a thought or statement. Your brain has many thoughts in each second of the day. It’s what you choose to do with the thoughts that ultimately defines you.