Taming Your Inner Critic
How do you make peace with that inner chatter that contributes negative self-talk to the flow of thoughts in your head?
Some small portion of it may be helpful and keep us on track and noticing necessary details. But sometimes, it just amounts to an internal beating and bullying of our softer side, that really does want to do things right.
According to Jay Early, PHD, there are seven types of Inner-critic self-talk
Perfectionist - provoking the highest, maybe unobtainable standards, this critic drives performance, behavior and production to very high levels. It can result in projects that never seem to end since they can never reach a perfect state. It can also freeze a person into inaction, as they become convinced their work will never be good enough.
Inner Controller - tries to control impulsive behavior perceived as "not good for you" or even "dangerous". Failure to comply results in harsh bullying and shaming from that same critic voice.
Taskmaster - like the perfectionist, the taskmaster forces hard work and a workaholic attitude to reach success thru discipline and laser focused production and an "at all costs" avoidance of shoddy and insufficient results.
Underminer - works to sabotage self-esteem and self-confidence to avoid risk and failure as an absolute imperative, even if the result is inaction. It also attacks any efforts to assume a role that is too powerful, responsible or "big" to avoid attention and drawing attack from others, even if it is unwarranted. It's goal is a feeling of worthlessness.
Destroyer - uses shame to suck out any self-worth present. Its convinces the person they shouldn't and don't have the right to exist.
Guilt-Tripper - exerts pressure based on some specific action or repeated behavior that was harmful or crossed a personal value boundary. Weaponized guilt assaults the person and they feel like they will never be forgiven.
Molder - has in mind a specific way of being, acting or looking, that originates in cultural or family norms. If the person veers out of this very narrow standard or if it just doesn't fit and never did, then the person is made to feel inadequate. It is quiet when living up to the standard, but blitzkriegs when not. [1]
The Inner Critic can be a Terrorist!
With the volume turned down, like a reasonable notice from the conscience, our inner voice may be keeping us safe or funneling our efforts to the best advantage, keeping us from social faux pas and taboos, etc.
But when the volume gets too loud or hypercritical, with "You're stupid", "You're not attractive", "You'll never get it right", "He doesn't really care about you"[2], then it becomes your own worst enemy and it's time for a change!
How the Inner Critic expresses itself comes from internalized trauma and social patterns and negative attitudes that were picked up as early as infancy. They continue to expand as we grow and learn how to conduct ourselves in our families, schools, jobs and other social groups. [2]
Emotional Resolution(EmRes) is a protocol or technique that addresses the emotions that trigger the Inner Critic's voice. EmRes is a tool that everyone MUST have in their back pocket.
Through a combination of one-on-one sessions with a professional and learning to conduct mini-session in the moment, EmRes clears away the embedded emotions that are triggered in a person's life. By tackling each triggered situation as they come up, "the voice" will quieten as they are resolved. With some work, but in an amazingly short time, it will stop completely.
EmRes sessions with a professional are calm, restoring and reassuring. EmRes-Self mediating are immediate and effective.
By removing the emotional triggers, EmRes clients and practitioners say they have "learned how to be happy with themselves", they "get more done" and they "feel comfortable in their own skin".
Are you ready to Tame Your Inner Critic?