How Do You Talk to Yourself?

How often do you say negative things about yourself, whether it be out loud or in your head? Studies show that 72% of our self-talk is self-critical or negative! It’s a habit most of us fall victim to quite easily. Negativity breeds self-limiting beliefs and can cripple our progress no matter what we’re trying to achieve.

Here are some ways to help break that habit:

Recognize Non-Empowering Thoughts: To shift away from negative, self-defeating thoughts you must first recognize them. Keep a journal and write a general summary of your thoughts for the day and analyze how you speak to yourself. You may not think you are hard on yourself, but this exercise may prove otherwise.

Set a New Mental Equivalent:  Rise out of negativity in as many ways as you can identify. Think great thoughts about everyone. See yourself as a success, and that you've come into this world with a gift.

Know that Thoughts Create Reality: when we continue to stay in negative thought patterns that do not serve our higher purpose we are destined to keep repeating the same life experiences over and over again because we will never view reality any differently. Think positive and those thoughts are what become our reality.

Cancel Our Old Thoughts and Substitute Powerful Ideas:

1.) Check Your State of Mind - Be consciously aware of what you want to create and claim it as your unique mantra.

2.) Focus on Today - the past is the past, so don't dwell on it. Today is a new day!

3.) See the Big Picture - move gracefully through the difficult moments because we are not stuck there! Life goes by way to fast, make each day count and don't waste energy on negativity.

4.) Release Negative Expectations- instead practice positive expectation and by believing in this process, you will be surrounded by positive circumstances.

5.) Be Thankful - there is nothing more positive than being thankful for all the good in our life no matter how big or small. There is always something to be thankful for.

One final idea about helping to eliminate negative self-talk in our life. I saw a TV program where they had each participant find a picture of themselves when they were young. She asked them to look at that picture and asked the question, “would you ever say the things you say to yourself now to this little girl or boy in the picture? Would you tell this little girl she was fat or ugly?”

Most of us would never in a million years say the things we say to ourselves to any child. Why is it so easy to say it to ourselves as adults? Don't we tell our kids how wonderful they are and that they can do anything if they put their minds to it? We do this for a reason don't we?

Get out a old picture of yourself and think about all the things you love about that little girl or boy because you are still that same person! Say one thing out loud that is positive right now. And continue to love yourself because there are a million reasons you should!