Pessimists and Procrastinators
Everyone has an inner critic, even optimists, but unlike optimists who have learned the art of silencing their inner critic, pessimists keep their inner critics alive by constantly feeding it with negative thoughts and feelings of doubt. And soon the pessimist becomes a procrastinator—putting off their goals until it comes down to the wire.
So, how do you silence your inner critic? Can you really bolster yourself up and put duct tape over that nagging voice that keeps whispering doubt and criticism in your ear?
Good News and Not-So-Good News
In my quest to rid myself of my own inner critic, I was led to advice from everyone from Buddhists to psychologists and even some advice from writers and artists. Ha, it seems I’m not alone in my quest after all. That’s good news.
And now, the not-so-good news. The general consensus is that there is really no way to completely silence your inner critic—at least not immediately, but there is hope.
You can try to minimize the inner critic’s effect on you and then hopefully, over time, that nagging voice is brought down to a whisper that you can easily ignore. I can’t list all my tips here, but I will share the ones that resonated with me the most:
Kill Them With Kindness
Buddhists don’t condone the killing of anything, but they do practice something called “Loving-kindness Meditation” where you generally concentrate on wishing good things to come—starting with yourself and working your way up to someone you hardly know. If you can offer unconditional feelings of love and good will to a stranger, than you can surely do it for yourself, right?
Treat the Inner Critic Like a Stranger
Some psychologists suggest that you act as though the inner critic within is really someone from the outside. How do you respond to a stranger who offers an unwanted opinion? Generally, you tell them to mind their own business. The conversation might go something like this:
“You can’t do that.”
“Why can’t I? Who are you to tell me I can’t?”
“It’s not good enough.”
“Of course it’s good enough. No one asked for your opinion.”
“You’ll never finish on time.”
“I can and will finish this on time, if you would just be quite.”
Basically, you’re taking back your power and making the inner critic’s hold over you irrelevant.
“Know that within your spiritual core you deserve abundance. Stay away from people who say otherwise. Take real action to make your goals happen. If you’re thinking about, but not taking steps in the direction of abundance, you’ll usually end up disappointed.” – William ext. 5131
Ignore the Inner Critic
The artists talk about constantly doubting whether others will like what they have done, but this can really apply to anyone. Some suggest:
• Keep pushing on.
• Don’t stop.
• Concentrate on the task at hand.
• Don’t look back until it feels done.
Psychic Jean ext. 5132 has the tools you need to turn your intentions into a career. Make it happen today!
The inner critic here is treated like a mosquito buzzing annoyingly in your ear, but instead of stopping what you’re doing to show him the door, you swat him away and hope you get a few good brush strokes in (or words typed) before he comes back. Eventually, he’ll tire of being ignored and he’ll go bug someone else.
Your unique talents could turn into a job you truly love with the help of Psychic Renata ext. 5320!
9 thoughts on “Silencing Your Inner Critic”
Thank you so much for this article I really needed to read it. I have been wondering what is wrong with me and why I am like this and all of you who have left a comment have made me see why. I have been and am critizied for everything my whole life and have no self confidence left. I did at one time but not anymore. I am looking after my mom now she is 89. I understand now Thank you I thought I was going crazy and there was something wrong with me.
I liked this article, great that I was/ am not alone in my moments of doubts, I was brought up with violence and criticism as my parents way of managing, I vowed I would never be like them, so that was the start,it has not been easy, I was/ am my biggest critic, not such a bad things at times as it helps us push harder and improve! However life is like a diet! we have to be hard on ourselve’s but at the same time give ourselve’s a break as well and pat ourselve’s on the back. I have learned that what we think of us is not necessarily what others think of us, so confidence comes from within, unlike anything else that is given free of charge confidence is something we have to learn and earn!
great article, and very useful for anyone to red
Great article. I too was raised by hypercritical parents who wanted me to be the person they thought I should be, and not the person I really was. Yes, it led to low self-esteem issues for many years. My ex-husband finally told my mother to taking a flying leap, and I had no contact with my family for six years after that. During that time I discovered who I really was, and I realized that while I wasn’t perfect, I wasn’t a bad person either. My parents have both passed, and my siblings seem now seem to have a respect for me that they did not have before.
Dear Tracy and Khummo – it’s very uplifting to me when I hear such empowering news. Someone on TV said the other day “life doesn’t happen to us, it happens for us” and that’s so true. I’m smiling for both of you. Life’s waiting, go out and live it the fullest!
Love & Starlight,
LJ
awesome…
very good article …
Hi great article, it was exactly what I needed to read. I grew up with criticism, and it has made me a pessimist and a procrastinator. My mother would never let me participate in sports because she was afraid that I would get hurt. I missed out on a lot of things because of my over protective mother. It made me afraid to try to do new things. I am 46 years old now and I have no confidence in myself. I thought that my mother was my biggest critic, but as it turns out I am my worst critic. Please parents, encourage your children to try new things even if you or they are afraid, build up their confidence so they can achieve their goals and give them a positive out look on life.
How angry i get when i listen to this selfess inner voice of mine ? It had me almost swimming in mud just because i paid so much attention to it.
Never again I AM DONE with self doubt whispering in my ears.