How do you talk to yourself?

Do you use words that are nurturing and encouraging or do you continuously beat yourself up?

Your internal monologue with yourself is probably one of the most important things that you can control, yet most pay little attention to it.

Both constructive and destructive self-talk can play a huge part in your daily well-being and how others perceive you. Studies show that leaders that engage in positive self-talk not only perform better at their jobs but are also more likable. This is not surprising because if you don’t speak highly of yourself then how can you expect other to do so.

Engaging in positive self-talk doesn’t mean being self-consumed. It does mean paying attention to what you are thinking and if you catch yourself using negative words like ‘dumb,’ ‘stupid,’ or ‘failure’ to describe your behavior then stop and re-evaluate.

Depending on your personality the habit of constructive self-talk might take some time to feel natural, so start slowly. Choose a simple phrase to start your day with, write it down and get in the habit of saying it every morning and see how it changes your day.