Fighting Your Inner Critic
Take back your confidence by challenging your negative self-talk
Don’t forget the spring session of Writing Your Novel Your Way begins Monday May 11. Full instructor-guided, interactive course. Just $47. Click here to learn more.
Lack of confidence has defeated more writers than a failing printer. Some of us have sitting on our shoulder or staring at us from the top of the computer, an ugly little critter we'll call "Buster." His job is to try to bust our dreams.
He does this by shouting out things like:
"Who do you think you are that someone should read your article?"
"You, a writer? That's a laugh!" "Nobody wants to read what you write"
"People will laugh at you,"
"You’re writing stinks. Go back to knitting."
Well, if Buster is going to talk to you, you might as well talk to him. You aren't getting any writing done anyway. Write a dialogue between you and Buster. Set the scene. Where you are going to meet him? My own personal image is out on some wind swept prairie with the tumbleweeds blowing by, and we are slowly marching toward each other.
Now, let Buster speak. Let him tell you all the things that keep you from writing, that make you feel worthless, that make you feel like you are wasting your time, or that make you feel like you lost whatever talent you had, or that people will look at you funny if you say you are a writer, or whatever it is that Buster throws at you.
Then respond. Tell him off. Tell him why it doesn't matter if what you wrote yesterday wasn't that good because you are going to rewrite it today. Tell him that you are worthy because you are a Child of God. Tell him that it doesn't matter what people think. Be prepared, though, he probably has some comebacks. Write those down too and then respond. Keep the dialog going until you defeat him? Well, at least for that day. Hey, the worst thing that can happen is that you spend several minutes writing, and anything that gets you writing is a good thing.