Using self compassion to silence your harsh inner voice
You can hear that too, right? The little voice in your head telling you how you’re not good enough, how you're not worthy, how you’re never going to make it and should just give up now? That is your inner-critic talking, and I can assure you that most of the time it is not correct. You can’t compare yourself to others, and you don’t always need to be so hard on yourself.
Having an inner-critic is difficult in the best of times, let alone in a founder lifestyle when you’re often working solo, or in a small-team and you’re relying on your own conscience to help you with decision-making and self-motivation.
The same inner-critic that can help you to see things from a different perspective or consider different options or methods, is the same inner-critic that can hold you back. Adopting a more self-compassionate mindset is one way you can take back control over your inner-critic and silence its most harsh comments.
Compassion isn’t necessarily “self-love”
Having self-compassion is more about being gentle with the self, accepting its humanity and flaws, and giving the self what it needs.
Through small adjustments, alterations to your mindset and thinking patterns, we can establish a more compassionate approach to ourselves.
Situational best- your first step to a self-compassionate working style
One way to increase compassion towards yourself, is recognising your ‘situational best’. We’ve always been told to ‘do your best’, ‘give it 100%’ and ‘always try your hardest’ ; especially if you're a perfectionist, this is probably a thought pattern you're all to familiar with. The situational best approach still suggests this, but it invites you to also consider your circumstances at that time. Maybe you are running on a poor night's sleep, maybe you are working through the day with personal stresses and strains on your mind. These are all normal components of life, and scenarios I’m sure you as a founder have experienced.
On a cloudy day, trees don’t grow at their typical rate, and the same goes for you. When the scenario isn’t at its peak, your output won’t be either. Be compassionate about your situation, and recognise that your 100% best looks different each day.
So…
Self-compassion is about being gentle with yourself, treating yourself how you would treat others, and not always being your own worst critic.
Recognising what your ‘100% best’ looks like when considering other components of your day, is recognising your situational best. Rather than striving for your optimal performance each day, strive for your situational best each day. This is just one small change that aligns with a self-compassionate mindset.
Written by: Dani Olliffe, Psychological Well-being Associate
Using self compassion to silence your harsh inner voice
You can hear that too, right? The little voice in your head telling you how you’re not good enough, how you're not worthy, how you’re never going to make it and should just give up now? That is your inner-critic talking, and I can assure you that most of the time it is not correct. You can’t compare yourself to others, and you don’t always need to be so hard on yourself.
Having an inner-critic is difficult in the best of times, let alone in a founder lifestyle when you’re often working solo, or in a small-team and you’re relying on your own conscience to help you with decision-making and self-motivation.
The same inner-critic that can help you to see things from a different perspective or consider different options or methods, is the same inner-critic that can hold you back. Adopting a more self-compassionate mindset is one way you can take back control over your inner-critic and silence its most harsh comments.
Compassion isn’t necessarily “self-love”
Having self-compassion is more about being gentle with the self, accepting its humanity and flaws, and giving the self what it needs.
Through small adjustments, alterations to your mindset and thinking patterns, we can establish a more compassionate approach to ourselves.
Situational best- your first step to a self-compassionate working style
One way to increase compassion towards yourself, is recognising your ‘situational best’. We’ve always been told to ‘do your best’, ‘give it 100%’ and ‘always try your hardest’ ; especially if you're a perfectionist, this is probably a thought pattern you're all to familiar with. The situational best approach still suggests this, but it invites you to also consider your circumstances at that time. Maybe you are running on a poor night's sleep, maybe you are working through the day with personal stresses and strains on your mind. These are all normal components of life, and scenarios I’m sure you as a founder have experienced.
On a cloudy day, trees don’t grow at their typical rate, and the same goes for you. When the scenario isn’t at its peak, your output won’t be either. Be compassionate about your situation, and recognise that your 100% best looks different each day.
So…
Self-compassion is about being gentle with yourself, treating yourself how you would treat others, and not always being your own worst critic.
Recognising what your ‘100% best’ looks like when considering other components of your day, is recognising your situational best. Rather than striving for your optimal performance each day, strive for your situational best each day. This is just one small change that aligns with a self-compassionate mindset.
Written by: Dani Olliffe, Psychological Well-being Associate
Using self compassion to silence your harsh inner voice
You can hear that too, right? The little voice in your head telling you how you’re not good enough, how you're not worthy, how you’re never going to make it and should just give up now? That is your inner-critic talking, and I can assure you that most of the time it is not correct. You can’t compare yourself to others, and you don’t always need to be so hard on yourself.
Having an inner-critic is difficult in the best of times, let alone in a founder lifestyle when you’re often working solo, or in a small-team and you’re relying on your own conscience to help you with decision-making and self-motivation.
The same inner-critic that can help you to see things from a different perspective or consider different options or methods, is the same inner-critic that can hold you back. Adopting a more self-compassionate mindset is one way you can take back control over your inner-critic and silence its most harsh comments.
Compassion isn’t necessarily “self-love”
Having self-compassion is more about being gentle with the self, accepting its humanity and flaws, and giving the self what it needs.
Through small adjustments, alterations to your mindset and thinking patterns, we can establish a more compassionate approach to ourselves.
Situational best- your first step to a self-compassionate working style
One way to increase compassion towards yourself, is recognising your ‘situational best’. We’ve always been told to ‘do your best’, ‘give it 100%’ and ‘always try your hardest’ ; especially if you're a perfectionist, this is probably a thought pattern you're all to familiar with. The situational best approach still suggests this, but it invites you to also consider your circumstances at that time. Maybe you are running on a poor night's sleep, maybe you are working through the day with personal stresses and strains on your mind. These are all normal components of life, and scenarios I’m sure you as a founder have experienced.
On a cloudy day, trees don’t grow at their typical rate, and the same goes for you. When the scenario isn’t at its peak, your output won’t be either. Be compassionate about your situation, and recognise that your 100% best looks different each day.
So…
Self-compassion is about being gentle with yourself, treating yourself how you would treat others, and not always being your own worst critic.
Recognising what your ‘100% best’ looks like when considering other components of your day, is recognising your situational best. Rather than striving for your optimal performance each day, strive for your situational best each day. This is just one small change that aligns with a self-compassionate mindset.
Written by: Dani Olliffe, Psychological Well-being Associate