We have caught ourselves talking to ourselves quite often, sometimes loud and sometimes inside our heads. Some researches show that the small talks or the elongated ones that we do with ourselves have impacts bigger than our anticipation on us and our mental health. People who are found talking about the positive aspects of a situation are said to be in a healthier mental state and the ones who are looking at the negative side of the story and focused on it are with a negative mental state.
When you wake up in the morning and start questioning your existence or the importance of your job it is indeed a negative way to start your day and hence you carry the negative attitude for the whole day around. However, it is very important to understand that there exists a very thin line between questioning if you should bring in some changes for betterment or you are questioning your existence as a whole. Albert Camus believed that human life is nothing but meaningless existence, in other words absurd. He wrote the book Myth of Sysiphus where he illustrates the problem of absurdity by talking about the story of Sysiphus who rolled a rock up a mountain only for it to fall back down and for him to carry it up again. This is a repeated process and Camus questions this to be a monotonous job that has no purpose. This questioning of the purpose of an action is called existentialism and when one is an existentialist they ponder upon the ways of life and why one needs to do what one does.
This is a very deep thought to be thinking about but having this thought daily does not reflect a healthy mental state as per researches. One needs to be quite positive about life, say aloud affirmations and only then they can continue having a positive outlook on life. Self-talking is way more important than we think it is but is also important to keep a check on the trail of our thoughts.
What is Self-Talk?
Let us assume you are on a budget and you go to the supermarket to buy your monthly essentials. There you visit with a list in mind and then find a thing that is not on your list but you want it anyway. There is where you ask yourself if you need this, is this purchase going to hamper the rest of the purchases that you are going to make, is this an unnecessary purchase? If no then can this be postponed?
Well, these are the questions that you will ask yourself and this is what is known as self-talk. Your thoughts are the seeds that decide what germinates as your mood. The talk that you have with yourself can be constructive or destructive and no one but you is in control of this.
Why is Positive Self-Talk Important?
To under positive self-talk, let us look at a negative self-talk example. Let us say you are applying for a new job and you did not have a very good experience leaving your old one, so you start questioning yourself and your ability. You think less of yourself and that you are not good for anything, will this have a positive impact on the interview/ A big no. Remember, what you think about yourself has a lot to do with what others have to think about you.
You have to think positively about yourself so that you can reflect the same positive attitude when you are appearing for your interview and then finally hope for positive results. However hoping for a positive result and wishing hard for positive results is again walking on a thin line, you need to keep your hopes positive but your expectations are set right that the best fit for the job will get the job. One when focusing on thinking about the positive thoughts and walking along those lines will realize the benefits of positive self-talk.
Rumination: Negative Self-Talk
Rumination is the other side of the coin, the negative side. When you play certain negative events or create some negative scenarios inside your head again and again then you are more likely to fall into a place of going through depression or anxiety. It is our self-negative talks that defeat us in the end.
Instead, why not repeat or force your brain to think something good? It is called ‘Affirmations’, they are the positive thoughts we feed our brain which at times results in a great positive outcome.
Some Self Affirmations
- I give and allow myself the space to learn and grow.
- I listen to my intuition and it is my inner guide who is guiding me in deciding what is good for me.
- I will allow myself to be me without being judged by me.
- I am with bright and brilliant ideas.
- My smile is worth it for it makes the people around me happy.
- I am at peace with the person I am becoming and the person I am.
- My existence is of significance in this world. I matter.
Some people use these affirmations to start their day in front of the mirror while brushing their teeth, some while commuting to their workspace, some before a big meeting. The idea is to be positive and keep a positive outlook for the world. It does not matter how you do it, where you do it till the time they are working for you. Practicing positive self-talk is one of the best practices that you can start today.
