It’s crucial to stay focused, both on yourself and on work, now more than ever. The race to the end consists of a variety of hurdles to get over, but one of the biggest obstacles we may find is supporting ourselves all the way to the finish line. Give yourself the support you need by starting with how you treat yourself through self-talk.
What is Self-Talk?
If you feel like your life objectives keep shifting further away, you may ask the question: “How do I check in with myself?” When we do not have a solid metric to measure our growth, progress may feel like an overly optimistic but distant hope.
Chances are you’ve come further than you’d expect. Reflection allows you to realize your growth, and predict your direction in the future. In another sense, the way you understand yourself may be reflected in the way you express yourself. Negative self-talk may reflect on the way you treat others, so be sure to ask the question: “How do I speak to myself?”
Shift Your Language: Positive Self-Talk
Positive self-talk looks like showing compassion to yourself and having a deep understanding of your positive character traits. Unfortunately, our minds naturally direct us to think more pessimistically and succumb to “self-talk traps”. Try to identify when you experience more negative self-talk to help you anticipate and prepare your mindset. So, how do you shift these negative thought patterns?
- Notice your feelings. Catch yourself mid-thought and ask: “Are these feelings permanent?” “Am I having a bad day?” “What would I say to a friend having these thoughts?”
- Try using positive affirmations. Using inspirational sayings can be enough to reframe your thinking. Words hold power and just as negative words can evoke negative emotions, positive words can inspire and uplift our self-perceptions.
- Surround yourself with a positive support community. The people we surround ourselves with can also impact our mindset. Your community can provide the much-needed social support you need to feel less isolated while engaging in healthy behaviors. Open your world to community wellness events hosted on campus to find that support!
Embody Gratitude
Activities like meditation and gratitude are examples of deliberate appreciation practices. They help to improve your ability to focus on the positive things in life while building resilience. Gratitude reinforces the ability to appreciate the good things, small or large, and builds resilience by establishing a more hopeful disposition. Remaining open to change and observing oneself between seasons is essential for learning about oneself.
How do you practice gratitude deliberately? This answer will look different for everyone, but here are some things to get you started:
- Learn from your past by using journaling. This allows you to document your progress and continually improve your habits.
- Write yourself notes of appreciation. Write yourself kind words and place them throughout your working space as a reminder of your positive qualities or send these words to others.
Positive Self-Talk in Action
Here are some common phrases you might say to yourself after a long day:
- “I failed to complete my tasks. I can’t do anything right.”
- “There’s no way I can complete this in time. There’s too much to do!”
Did you notice the all-or-nothing thinking in these statements? Are these statements accurate? These are things to consider when transitioning to positive self-talk. Let’s change the phrasing to:
- “I didn’t finish all of my tasks today, but I gave myself a good headstart for tomorrow. I will continue to put in 100% effort in all I do.”
- “I can work on tasks in small sections. I can ask for an extension if I need more time.”
Notice how you can rephrase situations so they don’t reflect poorly on your whole day. There may be realistic opportunities to ask for support when completing tasks.
For more ways to grow your knowledge of gratitude and mindfulness, visit the Resilient PACK page on the Wolfpack Wellness website. By checking your chatter with self-talk, you’re building resilience overtime!
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