Do you ever feel held back by your own thoughts? It’s normal to feel a bit nervous when trying something new, but what if that anxiety feels like a constant, nagging presence in your life? You might be experiencing the critical inner voice, a self-limiting pattern of negative thoughts towards yourself and others that can prevent you from achieving your goals. If you feel like your own worst enemy, don’t worry – there are steps you can take to quiet that critical inner voice and start living the life you’ve always wanted.
Voice therapy is a proven way to identify and separate from your inner critic. By understanding where your critical inner voice comes from, you can learn to take actions that represent your true point of view and are goal-directed. Here are the steps involved in voice therapy:
Step One: Identifying What Your Critical Inner Voice is Telling You
Start by becoming aware of the self-attacks you experience in your critical inner voice. Pay attention to what those criticisms are and articulate them in the second person. For example, instead of saying “I feel so lazy and useless,” say “You are so lazy. You’re useless.” This format can help you express your critical thoughts more clearly, leading to insight into the hostility driving your inner critic.
Step Two: Recognising Where Your Voices Come From
As you verbalise your inner critic’s attacks, you may start to recognise old patterns of familiar attitudes or phrases. Think about where these thoughts originated, and recognise that the criticisms you face may be misguided shadows of past events that now serve only to limit you. Understanding and acceptance of this past can help you develop compassion for yourself and new ways to move forward.
Step Three: Responding to Your Critical Inner Voice
Respond to self-attacks with positive statements about yourself and your capabilities. If your inner critic tells you “no one wants to hear what you’re thinking,” respond with “What I have to say is valuable and worthwhile. People care about my thoughts and opinions.” Rationally and calmly telling yourself what is true about you can help counteract the lies your inner critic is trying to make you believe.
Step Four: Understanding How Your Voices Influence Your Behaviour
Pay attention to how your inner critic’s self-defeating thoughts have affected your past and present behaviours. Recognize when you’ve listened too much to this voice and acted in a less confident way as a result. Understanding the consequences of its actions is the key to moving forward more confidently.
Step Five: Changing Your Self-Limiting Behaviours
Once you’ve recognised your limiting behaviours, you can begin to change them. This involves making a conscious effort to not listen to your inner critic and instead make new, positive choices. If you’re shy, it’s not easy to build new social connections, but you can start small. Strike up conversations with strangers and practice being more outgoing.
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Overcoming the critical inner voice can be challenging. Change is always difficult, and the anxiety that comes with new direction and self-confidence can be intense. Some believe that the critical inner voice is what keeps them in line, so they fear that if they do not heed them, they will act badly. However, the more people act against their critical inner voice, the weaker its influence on their lives becomes. By sticking to the steps of voice therapy, people become more themselves and are able to achieve goals and live free from imagined limitations.
Even if you feel like you’re stuck in a cycle of anxiety and self-criticism, it’s possible to conquer your critical inner voice. Through voice therapy, you can discover new ways of thinking about yourself and your abilities. Start your journey through the voice therapy steps today and evolve your ability to take control of your thoughts.
Source Credits: _sophiedear
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