How to Silence Your Inner Critic During the School Day
Everyone has or has had that voice of self-criticism in their head that does little else but make life harder - How loud is your inner critic?
The school day is already hard enough without being hard on yourself. Today, I want to help you take a step towards calming and silencing the voice of your inner critic during the school day.
And the first step to silence that inner critic is to become more aware of when it is present and what it is saying.
This exercise, called “Naming your Inner Critic” is the first exercise in our Ebook, “30 Days of Self-Compassion”. If you like this exercise, you can access the full ebook here.
Name Your Inner Critic
The purpose of this activity is to become more aware of your inner critic. The more accurately you can pinpoint what your inner critic says, the more quickly you can discredit, and disassociate yourself from it. That voice is not you. You don't need to be fixed, and you are not the problem. The problem is the voice.
After you identify what the voice is telling you, give it a name. This name could be funny, it could have something to do with what the voice is telling you...whatever feels appropriate to you.
Research shows when you label your experience or name your emotion it steadies your mind and helps you remain calm.
Consider the following questions below and journal your responses:
What types of things do you typically judge or criticize yourself for? (career, appearance, relationships, parenting, etc.)
What language do you use with yourself when you notice a flaw or mistake?
Close your eyes and get in touch with the voice behind that negative language. What does the owner of that negative voice look like to you?--what name would you give it?
PRACTICE:
As you go through the rest of this week, notice when that negative voice comes up. Without changing anything else, work to become more aware when the critic is present.
Getting to know and naming your inner critic is a big step towards silencing that voice. I hope this activity comes in handy as you work to foster a mindset of self-compassion this school year.
