Did you know that the first day of June was Say Something Nice Day?! When was the last time you said something nice….. to YOURSELF?! That little voice inside our head in there for a primal reason, but sometimes unfortunately, it is more of a critic than a voice of reason.
Case in point – picture me, last weekend, it’s my little one’s 5th birthday party. And as I am putting the finishing touches on the fondant lego bricks for his two- tiered Ninjago cake (whilst people are arriving!) that little voice inside my head was running OVERTIME!!! “I’m so rubbish”, “None of the other Mums left their cake making so late”, “People must think I’m so disorganised” “I bet it’s going to taste dry” “Why didn’t I start this cake last night instead of working” etc etc.
What helps me in those moments is to pause, breathe and to ask myself…..
Is my inner voice helping me or hindering me?
Sometimes, after all, it is the voice of reason eg: “Don’t eat that 4th piece of cake, you’ll regret it!” So – Top tip to understanding if that little voice is the critic or the voice of reason: Listen to the tone of your inner voice. Is it the tone you would use with your child/ with your best friend/someone you loved dearly, if they were asking you to make a decision or if they were ever worried about something? Is it making a lot of statements? Like: “You’re rubbish at making cakes!” versus quality questions like “How could I make this cake better?” So it’s about the tone of voice. Is it questioning you with a view to helping you, or is it making somewhat nasty toned statements and hindering you?
To press pause on that inner critic, and start building the skill of acceptance here is a question to consider > What if there’s nothing wrong with you?
My challenge for you this week is: Spend the next 24 hours without saying something nasty to yourself. And find a quiet time in the next week to write down; one thing that you have done in the last month that you are really proud of.
For me, it’s going to be that Ninjago cake, four chocolate cakes (not dry!), enough butter cream to frost a house & 30 happy hyped up high on sugar kids! (Inner Critic – 0, Gitanjali –1!)
As always, I hope this inspires and empowers you to live a life you love. I always look forward to hearing how you’re getting on so do get in touch, or follow me on Insta. I’d love to hear how you go with pressing pause on that inner critic.
With gratitude,
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