“If you spoke to your friends the way you speak to yourself, how many friends would you have?”
I have posed this question to thousands of people over the last 15 years. There is no right or wrong answer, but listening to your mind’s immediate response will give you instant insight into whether your Inner Critic or your Inner Coach is in charge.
- I forgive myself for believing that it is OK to put myself down.
- I give myself permission to speak to myself in supportive ways.
- I choose to speak kindly and supportively to myself – it matters.
- I am free to be as thoughtful with how I speak to myself as I am to those I care deeply about.
- I know what it feels like to be spoken to supportively and kindly, and I am grateful to my friends and family who are supportive.
- I am learning to be more supportive of myself through positive self-talk.
Becoming aware of the feelings that result from how you speak to yourself clears the way for you to increase your positive self-image. After all, you wouldn’t hang out with someone who put you down and spoke unkindly to you …. and you spend all of your time with yourself! Your inner dialogue creates your self-concept, more so than the thoughts, actions, and comments of others.
I used to focus a great deal of time and energy on wondering what others thought of me, until I came to the understanding that I cannot control how or what others think. I can gain complete control over what I think about myself, and since what I think about myself makes a difference to the quality of my life, I decided to make the switch. Ready to ‘flip the switch for yourself?
I’m looking forward to working with 12 people over 3 Thursday evenings in May to make positive self-talk a habit. I’m holding the space for you to join us.
Namaste,
Suze
