Naming your inner critic
Give the voice in your head a name so you can hear it as separate from you
Call it Bob, call it Stacey, or call it something ruder. The critical voice does not switch off, in Sinek's account, but naming it puts a gap between the thought and the person having it. Takes a second. Mental health professionals back the same move, usually as one part of a wider self-compassion practice.
People on record
Sorted by strength of stance
Does it: documented as part of their own routine. Recommends: explicitly advises other people to do it. Discusses: covered it substantively without clear personal adoption; this can include criticism or disagreement.
- Simon SinekRecommends
Author · Start with WHY
You cannot stop the critical voice, in his view, but you can manage it, and the way in is to give it a name. Call it Bob. Or Stacey. Its arrival turns into something you notice instead of something you take at face value.
Source: The Optimism Company: One Effective Way to Silence Your Inner Critic
Aimed at the same thing
Other entries filed under stress or focus.
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Daily meditation
10-20 minutes of formal practice, most days
On record from 21 of 62 tracked people: 17 do it, 1 recommends it, 3 have discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost
Deliberate solitude
Regular time with your own thoughts and no other inputs
On record from 12 of 62 tracked people: 9 do it, 3 recommend it - HabitFREE, no cost
Daily prayer
A fixed time for prayer each morning, before the phone and before the day starts
On record from 4 of 62 tracked people: 4 do it - HabitFREE, no cost
Personal mantra
A quote kept where you will see it before you perform, taped up or written on your gear
On record from 4 of 62 tracked people: 4 do it - HabitFREE, no cost
Quitting social media
Deleting the accounts rather than trying to use them less
On record from 3 of 62 tracked people: 2 do it, 1 has discussed it - HabitFREE, no cost
Chess
Short games used as a mental reset between blocks of demanding work
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it
Habit entry · notes paraphrased from cited sources, quoted excerpts copied from the transcript they link to. Not medical advice. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or reviewed by anyone listed. How this works.