Have you got a harsh inner critic?
The inner critic can be brutal and persistent. A voice that reminds you of your shortcomings and is relentless in pointing out when you’ve made a mistake.
Psychologists and psychotherapists have varied ways of analysing the causes and manifestations of this inner critical voice and it can be worthwhile to get to the root cause.
It’s hard to see that this inner critical voice is not your friend as it can appear to be an inner objective observer. The problem is it reinforces insecurities. How do you know if you are governed by a critical inner voice? Here are 4 signs that you may have a harsh inner critic.
1. Do you get positive feedback and then automatically minimise it?
It can feel uncomfortable to enjoy the feeling of being praised or appreciated. It can feed into a myriad of uncomfortable thoughts about showing off, modesty and enjoying the limelight. Yet if we are aware of our weaknesses, it is only fair to yourself to recognise your strengths.
2. Do you find it difficult to promote yourself, your expertise or your business?
The harsh inner critic does not serve a positive function in business. It distorts the realities of who we are. It makes you struggle to promote yourself and/or your business.
3. Do you define yourself by your successes or by your mistakes when it comes to taking on a new opportunity/challenge?
When faced with a new opportunity the harsh inner critic, is a saboteur. The inner dialogue whispers all sorts of ‘what ifs? always anticipating an adverse income. What if a disaster occurs? What if I make a fool of myself? ‘What if I fail?’ These plus a host of similar questions only prevent risk taking and actions towards a new opportunity.
4. In a room of your peers do you feel under qualified, inexperienced or do you have imposter syndrome?
In group or individual sessions, accomplished and charismatic individuals, it’s always amazing to hear that beyond the façade there can be multiple personal stories of self-doubt, imposter syndrome and self-limiting beliefs.
The inner critic is a familiar and stalker like alter ego. It’s not the same as the measured self-evaluation that is balanced able to analyse fairly and take risks. At its worst, it shows up as severe self-sabotaging beliefs resulting in underperformance or missing out on opportunities to thrive.
At DDC, we have many tools to tackle the inner critic, if you’d like to find out more, please email info@dynamicdevelopmentconsulting.co.uk. You can also join our small Meetup Group, https://www.meetup.com/discovering-dynamism/events/278723836.
