Self-Talk
I ran across this bit from Brad Stulberg recently:
Having your own back is the difference between self-talk that sounds like:
You’re never motivated, you always feel like crap, why is everything so hard for you, you better get going or you’re going to be a failure.
. . . and self-talk that sounds like:
What you’re trying to do is hard, but you’re capable of doing hard things; this matters to you, no one is going to do it for you; let’s muster some gentle yet firm persistence, get started, and see what happens.
— Brad Stulberg
My self-talk doesn’t sound exactly like that, but the gist is the same. It revolves around my seeming inability to be organized and disciplined, and why I’m an idiot and lazy because of that.
It’s easy to berate ourselves constantly. But, as you know, negative self-talk isn’t even a little bit motivating. The only thing that works is a) accepting where you are without judgment and b) figuring out WHY you want to make a change. If you have a solid why, then your mantra must become, “Let’s try that again.”
But you may find that there isn’t a “why.” Upon examination, it may become obvious that the thing you’re beating yourself up for not doing, isn’t really something you want to do anyway.
Worth some thought . . .
xo,
Beth
