Letting Our Inner Dialogue Guide Us Towards Greatness
On a constant basis we have an inner dialogue running through our heads, a constant stream of chatter that flows through our sub-conscious. Our minds work just like a movie with a constant flow of images, words, and thoughts that never stops, we are constantly thinking, analyzing and trying to figure things out even when we don’t know that we are doing so.
Bringing these thoughts and this chatter to the forefront is the action of being more mindful or merely just being more aware of the kind of self talk that you have going on in your mind. For some reason human nature is very prone to negative self - talk and that negative self-talk can be paralyzing and over time when you allow this negative self-talk to control and take over it can take an emotional, mental, and even physical toll on the body.
Here are some Benefits of Focusing on Productive and Positive Self talk
•Higher level of motivation
•Higher level of focus
•Decreased anxiety
•Higher ability to redirect focus
•Increasing Energy
•Redirects attention to the task and not outside things going on.
•Higher level of belief
•Increased passion for whatever journey you are on
Learning how to control the Self - Talk and subsequently learning how to change it allows you to take control and get after your potentional. So how do you change your self talk? Its not an easy process but if you are willing to take the steps towards changing then here are some tips to help you:
Acknowledge The Self Talk
The very first step is to recognize and/or be made aware of your negative self talk and then recognize how that negative self talk makes you feel. Being able to acknowledge it is more than just recognizing that it exists but also how it makes you feel. As much of our thinking is automatic it often happens so rapidly we don’t even notice it, especially in the busy lives that we lead. Acknowledgement of the self talk and the emotions behind the talk requires us to slow down, pay more attention to our thoughts, and be more mindful about the emotions that we experience on a regular basis.
Once you are aware of it then you can begin making a conscious decision to change it.
Talk Back
Once you recognize the self talk don’t be afraid to talk back to it. This gives you a sense of control as well a sense that you have a choice in the matter to listen or not to the self talk. Tell the self talk that you refuse to listen to it, that it is not correct, and that instead you are choosing to be kind to yourself or you are choosing to believe in yourself.
This talking back can be done in your head, however I have found it very beneficial to sometimes even say it out loud. Speak directly to your own mind, tell it to STOP, say the words out loud as when you do they have a bigger affect on the chatter.
Replace the Negative with Positive / Flip the Narrative
You can’t just ignore the negative forever, once you recognize it you want to continue to acknowledge it. But rather than listen to it you change it, flip your thought process.
Flipping the narrative that runs through your mind is the act of creating a stronger ally of positivity and productivity on your side. You have to start noticing the good things about yourself because no matter what the inner critic (ie: the negative/down grading self talk) says you always have positive traits, there are good things in you.
The act of flipping the narrative in your mind creates an action of acknowledgement of the critic, an acknowledgement of the emotion it makes you feel and then turning around and creating a positive and productive thought behind that.
Example:
Negative Thought: I am slow
Flipping the Narrative: I may be slow but I strong and steady and I never have to walk in a race.
Why this is important: You recognized that you feel slow and that makes you feel weak, then you turned that around and recognized two good pieces in yourself 1) that you are strong and 2) that you consistent and because of that you are able to hang tougher than other people and that makes you feel good.
Practice
Practice makes perfect. No different than training physically you must train mentally. The best way to defeat the critic inside of you is to train yourself to not listen to it and that takes time. As the talk we often are listening to is so automatic it takes time and patience to change this automatic thinking from one to the other is constant practice.
For more on Self Talk and few tips from Coach Kayla on how to change your self talk check out the You Tube below!!!
Learning to change your self talk isn’t an easy process, and there isn’t one single trick that works for everyone you have to find what works for you in order to change it. It all boils down to you making a choice to want to change your inner dialogue, a choice that you make to not let the negative thoughts consume you, no one else can make it for you it has to be you!
Want to learn more about mindfulness, self talk, how to change it, and tips and tricks to improve your mindset? Coach Kayla is offering a four week mindset program through the end of 2019 at a massively discounted price!!! For more information CLICK HERE!!