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"As much as I believe you’re wildly talented, intelligent, and useful to this world, I also think you can sell yourself short."
(Ayodeji Awosika, Writer)
I am my own worst enemy.
If anyone else would tell me the sh*t I tell myself, that person would have their face rearranged in such a way that it would take a really, really skilled reconstructive surgeon to make them resemble anything remotely human.
Much has been written already about managing that "little voice" inside one's head. Yes, that one. The one telling you how horrible you are at life and how you're a failure and how you'll never amount to much. Blair Singer has an excellent book about how to teach that small person a better tune to sing, titled - yes, I know - Little Voice Mastery
It's funny how we are all controlled by that tune, almost like the pied piper's song, and yet that little voice is actually extremely small and powerless. After all, it has to be able to fit into our heads!
And while that little voice can be amazingly negative, it's real function is to be the "voice of reason", so you can't chase it out altogether. If you do, it'll simply return with a friend or two and cause schizophrenia (perhaps not really, but that's a good enough reason for me!)!!
Solving this problem...
Looking at the situation from all sides, I reckon the best way to change that voice is to give it a better tune with more positive lyrics. That's where affirmations come in. If I tell myself every single morning how cool I am and how pretty and how other people are privileged to know me and how I make a positive contribution to my world, then that voice will hear it too, and after those 66 days of new habits, start repeating it back. The key is to say the words out loud where I can see and hear myself.
Another book that I found useful, is Empower Her, by Shani Jay. It comes with a link to a PDF journal that you can download and work through. Yes, it's aimed more at women, but I think some men struggle with the same issues. They just don't talk about them!
And since this is ultimately a Permaculture blog, I would also like to make mention of the (free and paid) courses offered by the Permaculture Women's Guild. Again, it's aimed at women of all ages and from all walks of life, as long as they want to make a difference to their world in a sustainable way. That world includes their inner being.
After all, I am Zone 0! If I am screwed together the right way, it's easier to impact others than if I were a hot mess. Getting ME sorted should be my priority for the next 2 months.
That could be fun!