Ep. 117 Softening Your Inner Critic
Ep. 117 Softening Your Inner Critic
Do you have a loud inner critic commenting on everything you do? We’re talking about what to do with that voice in your head -- how to quiet it, give attention to it, and pay more attention to our inner mentor instead.
You’ll learn:
The quickest way to quiet the inner critic
How to recognize if the voice is yours or the inner critic’s
A meditation/visualization exercise to find out what your inner critic wants you to hear
How to tap into the inner mentor for truth and inspiration
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Softening Your Inner Critic
If you have a loud inner critic like we do, you probably just want to ignore it or tell it to “be quiet already!” But…if you can take some time to get to know it and understand where it’s coming from…something beautiful will start to happen!
When you start to understand your inner critic, you’ll start to develop compassion for you inner critic. This allows it to become softer & quieter allowing you to listen and hear your inner mentor more easily instead!
If we can hear our inner mentor MORE than our inner critic, we’ll be able to tap into the truth and inspiration that our inner mentor has for us!
So how do we quiet our inner critic so we can hear our inner mentor more easily?…
First Understand Your Inner Critic
In order to quiet our inner critic we first we need to understand it.
Do any of these sound like your inner critic?
Quick to judge yourself or others
Fearful, afraid of change or to try new things
Afraid to act
Gets overwhelmed, gets stressed, anxious
Makes you feel guilty
Gets embarrassed easily
Resorts back to what you’ve done in the past
Take some time today or this week to get to know you inner critic by asking yourself these 5 questions.
What does your inner critic say?
How does it act?
What does it make you feel, say, think or do when you let it be in charge.
What does it keep you from doing?
What’s its purpose? What are it’s intentions?
You could try visualizing your inner critic.
What does your inner critic look like? Could be realistic or abstract. (Laura’s looked like a very large, black and red rock that was extremely rough with bumpy edges.
When you breathe is there a place in your body that you feel your inner critic? ex. tight in your chest.
Notice when your inner critic shows up.
Are there time when your inner critic shows up more than other times? Maybe it’s when you’re not feeling emotionally aligned? Maybe it’s when you’re trying to do something new or difficult.
When you can take the time to really understand your inner critic, we promise that you’ll start to see it soften. You’ll start to realize it’s just trying to protect you. When you can acknowledge it, you’ll notice it’s voice becomes quieter. You’ll then have the chance to listen to your inner mentor instead!
Tap Into Your Inner Mentor Instead
Once you quiet your inner critic you then have the chance to hear your inner mentor instead. This could also be considered your best self, higher self, spiritual self…whatever feels true to you. It’s just important to label it so that you can reference it.
Once you’ve decided on a name like “inner mentor” or “best self” now it’s time to get to know it, just like your inner critic.
Get to know your inner mentor by asking it these questions:
What does your inner mentor look like? (could be abstract or realistic)
What does your inner mentor say?
What does it or she allow you to do?
What’s its purpose?
Then ask yourself what can you do to listen to your inner mentor more often?
How you can have your inner mentor be in charge and speak louder than your inner critic? How can you connect and call upon your inner mentor throughout your day? How could you give it more attention?
If you can go about it with a sense of curiosity and understanding you’ll be surprised at the answers you come up with.
Try it out today! If you have any questions or need more help, we’re always here for ya!
-Laura + Kristin
If you liked this episode, you’ll really love these ones!
Ep. 108 What Do I Actually Need?
Ep. 81 Using Self-Inquiry to Find Answers
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