Most of us, in the quiet of our own company, are intimately familiar with self-critique.  We have a monkey-mind that is like a room full of monkeys chattering.  And what they are saying is never anything good about us.  We’re never good enough, or good-looking enough, or thin enough, or smart enough, not old enough or too old, and never have it together enough.  It’s our dirty little secret in the privacy of our thoughts.  No one knows what goes on in our heads but we all do it to one extent or another, beating ourselves up.

Sometimes the monkey-mind is just a quiet conversation and we are able to set the thoughts aside and get on with our day.  Other times the chatter is more like a loud roar and we cannot push the thoughts aside or see the truth about ourselves.  These thoughts can be detrimental to our self-esteem and they can cause us to second-guess ourselves, and our actions. 

Underneath all of these thoughts is the corroding element of fear.  Fear that we are just not enough.  And if we are not enough we think we do not deserve.

No matter what legacy of judgments and punishments we got from the people in our lives, no one seems to judge us more critically than we judge ourselves.  We take it to a whole new level.  We often say very unkind, derogatory comments to and about ourselves.  We would not talk to a friend or a loved one the way we talk to ourselves. 

Centered Action

Here is a hint:  we only feel bad when we are taking our monkey-mind chatter seriously.  If we can say to ourselves “Ah Ha…there’s that commentary…again!” we can begin to insert some humor into the mix.  The commentary is not reality.  We are not the worst, nor the best, as our monkey-mind may portray us to be.  When we pay attention, we begin to notice the words we are using and the ridiculous number of times we use them. We begin to acknowledge this thinking as harsh comments, not useful, not helpful, and not kind.  Be mindful today of your damaging monkey-mind. 

The real truth is, no matter what, you are magnificent and deserve a magnificent life.

If you feel this message would be useful to someone you know, please forward it to them.

Keep the Faith, Clean up the messes in Your Path, Give to Someone Else,

And Be Your Most Magnificent Self…

Jody D.