Overcoming Negative Self-Talk
Recognize, Reason, and Rewire
Today, let’s dive into something real, raw, and super relatable—overcoming negative self-talk. We all deal with it, and it can seriously mess with our well-being and productivity. Recently, our business hit a busy period with tons of back-end tasks, leading to delays in posting blogs and social media content. But you know what? We're practicing patience and kicking negative self-talk to the curb. Let’s explore the Recognize, Reason, and Rewire approach to handle negative self-talk effectively.
Recognize: Identifying Negative Self-Talk
First things first, you gotta recognize that sneaky negative self-talk. It can show up in different ways:
Catastrophizing: Imagining the worst-case scenario.
Personalizing: Blaming yourself for things beyond your control.
Filtering: Focusing solely on the negatives while ignoring the positives.
Polarizing: Viewing situations in black-and-white terms, without any middle ground.
For example, during our recent delays, it was easy to think, “We’re failing our audience,” or “We’re not good at managing our time.” These thoughts are classic negative self-talk that can zap your confidence and productivity.
Reason: Challenging Negative Thoughts
Once you spot the negative self-talk, it’s time to challenge it with some good ol’ reason. Ask yourself:
Is this thought based on facts or feelings?
What evidence supports or contradicts this thought?
What would I say to a friend who had this thought?
In our case, the facts were that we had a temporary backlog due to important behind-the-scenes work, not because we’re failing. We had to remind ourselves that occasional delays are normal and that we’re doing our best to juggle everything.
Rewire: Replacing Negative Thoughts with Positive Ones
Now, let’s rewire that brain of yours. Replace negative self-talk with more constructive, positive thoughts. This isn’t about ignoring challenges but about viewing them through a more balanced, hopeful lens.
Here’s how we rewire our thoughts:
From: “We’re failing our audience.”
To: “We’re temporarily behind, but we’re making improvements, and our audience understands.”
From: “We’re not good at managing our time.”
To: “We’re managing multiple priorities, and we’re learning to balance them better every day.”
By practicing this shift, we can keep our motivation high and keep moving forward despite setbacks.
Practicing Patience and Positivity
This past week or two has been a huge lesson in patience and positivity for us. Managing a business is never without its challenges, but how we talk to ourselves about these challenges makes a massive difference. By recognizing, reasoning, and rewiring, we can turn negative self-talk into positive self-reinforcement.
Thank you all for your understanding and continued support. We’re committed to providing valuable content and staying connected with you, even when things get hectic on our end. Let’s all practice patience with ourselves and avoid the trap of negative self-talk. You got this!