Think about the effect that a constant negative voice could have on you; not just on your mentality, but also physically. It was about 3 months ago that I could tell that my self-confidence was at an all-time low. I had beat myself up so bad internally that I was slacking in my work performance, I stopped taking care of my hair and skin, and I even noticed some of my personal relationships falling apart due to my negligence and poor attitude. I had had enough and decided it was time to make a change. I noticed that I couldn’t quite catch negative thoughts about myself fast enough, so to combat them, I would say “stop” in my mind and replace it with something that I knew was true. Here’s an example:

•Negative thought: I’m so inexperienced in my job. I’ll never get better in this field and I should quit.

Here’s when I would recognize the thought I just put into my head and say “stop” and replace it with something like this:

•It is true that I’m new to this industry, however, I bring a unique set of skills and offer a new perspective to my team. I can’t expect to get better if I don’t continue to try.

This active practice of recognizing my negative self-talk and replacing it with something that is true has helped me shed the idea of thinking about “kind self-talk” as an airy and ignorant way of excusing poor habits.

We talk a lot about ownership in our gym. Own your mistakes, sure…but also own your strong suits and let them be shown. Not for others, but for you.