We all do it from time to time – engage in a little negative self-talk. They meant to do that to me. They don’t think I’m good enough. I know I’m not good enough. I can’t do this. I’ll never get this right. Sound familiar?
Well, I was indulging in a little of this activity myself the other day. I’d gotten left off a list for a meeting and decided that it was a deliberate act – you know – nobody loves me, everybody hates me; I’m gonna eat some worms ….
I ran through all my usual techniques. I thought of five alternate explanations. I ran through all my affirmations. I eventually came to peace with the fact that this was a typo, not a plot. I mentioned this in passing to my coach and got an assignment that brought me up short and will push me to think about negative self-talk in a much more conscious way.
"Write down the negative statement," she said. (Yeah, yeah, been there – done that.)
"Then go put a quarter in a jar." (Wait just a second here – this is going to cost me money?)
"Then go write down what you know to be true." (Oh, jeez – no pity party AND it’s gonna cost me money!)
"When you look at the jar, you’ll have a visual reminder of how often you engage in negative self-talk." (Oh, thanks a bunch.)
And when the flow of quarters becomes a trickle, you can go spend all the money! (Woo HOO!!)
So, I’m passing this on as a great technique to try. And also as evidence of the strong link between behavior and attitude. Try it. And buy a great gift when you’re done!
