If you’re anything like me, some days are better than others. And on those bad days, I could use some self-esteem exercises to get me out of the cave I crawl into to hide. That’s the promise of this blog: self-esteem exercises to get you back where you belong.
Did you know that 80% of the thoughts swirling in your head are negative ones? To create new pathways in your brain for positive self-talk, you need to stomp out the Automatic Negative Thoughts (ANTs). And you need to be aware of the negative thoughts that you actually voice. Those need to go, too.
Recognize that these ANTs are created by your primitive brain, the one that kept humans safe and alive in primitive times. Learning to overcome your ANTs with these self-esteem exercises will turn around your thinking.
The links below offer many approaches to wrangling your negative thoughts. Even if you think you’ve tried every single self-esteem exercise that exists, like a client told me last week, check out these suggestions. Try one this week and see how it helps. If that is not a good fit, try another one next week. And so on.
Remember that you did not get into this negative funk overnight. It’s going to take a while for these self-esteem exercises to get you to your happy place.
In our family, when one of us is going off the rails big time, we ask: “Is anyone bleeding or dying?” If the answer is no, then we take a deep breath and figure out how to handle the so-called catastrophe. It works every time—or at least it gets us out of catastrophe mode and back into rational thinking.
Pam
P.S.: When changing your thoughts, avoid the word “don’t.” Our brains do not recognize the word “don’t.” Instead our brain hears or sees “do.” Therefore, telling a child “don’t do that” actually comes across as “do that.” Do you doubt me? Try this: Don’t think of a pink elephant. Hah!
Remember this when teaching your teen to drive. Instead of saying, “Don’t hit that car,” say “avoid that car” or “leave space between you and that car.” You’re welcome.
From Forever Conscious:
“Many of us walk around beating ourselves up for the things that we did or didn’t do. We tell ourselves that we are not good enough and overtime this can affect our self-esteem and feelings of self worth. . . . While everyone’s inner critic speaks a little differently, . . . if you find yourself using these words frequently, it is time to reprogram your mind.”
In this in-depth piece, Dr. Daniel Amen explains what ANTs are, what they sound like, how to get rid of them and so much more. It’s worth your time is ANTs are constantly nagging at you.
Here’s a different take on silencing your inner critic–all in ONE easy step. See what you think and let us know if this works for you. I’m curious.
One Easy Step to Silence Your Inner Critic
Please email us at pam@mentorloft.com and let us know which of these self-esteem exercises worked for you. If you have a different technique that worked for you, let us know about that too. We thank you.
Feature photo (c) iqoncept www.fotosearch.com