“A thankful heart turns sorrow into joy, drudgery into pleasure, pessimism into optimism, depression into hope, hatred into love.  Thankfulness is a choice!” — Gregory Mollner



In the previous two articles of this series, “Confronting Your Inner Critic,” we explored how to adjust to the challenges that life throws our way by channeling our inner strength and remaining simultaneously flexible and focused. Our inner strength and resiliency gives us the Staying Power to contribute to life, serve those around us, and reap benefits for ourselves as well as others.  Our positive, personal Staying Power stands up to the negative counterpart within us—our Inner Critic.



We have already discussed the five basic steps to identifying and controlling our Inner Critic, and we have also discussed how to overcome it by asking ourselves the tough question of where its true foundation lies.



Today, my new challenge to you is to tame your Inner Critic by rejoicing in the blessings in your life rather than focusing on the negatives. Ask yourself what is working in your life. Make a list of blessings, give thanks and gratitude for them, and draw on them as anchors. Look back on your list as frequently as you need to remind yourself of just how lucky and blessed you are.



Thankfulness, gratitude, and appreciation of our blessings is one of the most powerful and therapeutic antidotes to our Inner Critic.



The last suggestion I wish to make is to allow yourself to rely on a community for support. Remember that we are all part of a grand, evolving Universe. Drawing on friends, family, and fellow like-minded people is a source of support, inspiration, and love. We are all on this Earth to grow together—not apart.



Day by day, we grow beyond what we thought was possible for ourselves. Look back at your personal circumstances a few months ago, one year ago, a few years ago, and so on.  What were your obstacles? What were your blessings? How do your past circumstances relate to your present? What did you learn from your obstacles? What are you still learning from them?



Everyone has the potential to succeed and the ability to receive and share in the positive benefits of life. The key is to use each experience—positive and negative—as a learning tool for personal growth and happiness.



My sincere hope is that you are able to confront your Inner Critic, control it, and then use your own personal Staying Power to rejoice, daily, on the positive blessings you have in your life.
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“When life turns upside down, stand on your head!” – Lucky Everyday by Bapsy Jain



Lucky Everyday is a story about the human spirit’s ability to adjust to the challenges that life throws our way. I frequently remind myself of this quote when I hit rough spots or phases. Even though I feel blessed by the gifts I have received throughout my life, a lot of those gifts are a result of remaining focused, yet flexible enough, to adapt to my present circumstances. 



Bravery, inner strength, and resiliency give me the Staying Power to serve those around me and to directly improve my own personal quality of life. I believe it is our positive, personal Staying Power that allows us to stand up to its negative counterpart within us—our Inner Critic.



We all know who our Inner Critic is—the internal voice that is our own worst enemy, judge, and jury that paralyzes our ability to go after what we want. Our Inner Critic is powerful. It is so powerful that we tragically think we can’t manifest our goals; we become convinced that the best outcome couldn’t possibly transpire. When faced with our Inner Critic, how do we keep our motivation going? How do we successfully fight something that lives within us?



Here are five basic steps on how to confront and control your Inner Critic:



1-Identify your current obstacle. This could be a significant relationship, situation, or challenge, either in the present or something that has evolved from your past.



2-Visualize a physical object associated with this obstacle and name it, while also taking note of the physical sensation(s) in your body that you experience when confronted with this obstacle.

For example, I have experienced guilt—one of the most toxic Inner Critics—as an obstacle. I then visualize guilt as an old, nasty, smelly, and worn out plastic object. I know when my Inner Guilt Critic rears its ugly head when I feel a nauseous sensation in my stomach.



3- Objectify your situation. For example, when I start experiencing guilt and the related nausea it gives me, I visualize the Inner Guilt Critic as a worn out nasty object and I say to it, “I recognize your presence. What is it that you want from me?  Why are you here?” 



4-Ask your Inner Critic as many personal questions or comments as you feel necessary to find the answers you seek.



5-Reflect and meditate on the questions and answers you are receiving from your Inner Critic. Take time to breathe, quietly and intently, and listen.  What do you hear? 



Your Inner Critic is toxic. Allow yourself the gift of disempowering and controlling it. When you feel yourself succumbing to your Inner Critic, stop the battle raging within you and start the five basic steps above. Regain control. Defeat your Inner Critic.



What will you confront today?

Olga Financial Life Guide’s Posts – 919 Business Networking – Local Business Owners & Professionals

In the first part of the series “Confronting Your Inner Critic,” which I started last week, I discussed the importance of adjusting to Life’s challenges by being flexible enough to adapt to present circumstances, while also remaining focused enough to persevere against any obstacles that come our way.



In juggling our ability to be simultaneously flexible and focused, we are able to “live fully in the moment” and luxuriate in a wide variety of circumstances. We can find our focus and perseverance through our own positive, personal inner strength and resiliency, known as our Staying Power. Our Staying Power allows us to contribute to life, serve those around us, and reap benefits for ourselves as well as others.  It helps us to stand up to its negative counterpart within us—our Inner Critic—whose main purpose is to throw obstacles in our path to happiness.



In last week’s article, we discussed the five basic steps to confronting our Inner Critic by objectifying our obstacle, noticing the physical sensation(s) we experience when it rears its ugly head, and learning how to interact with the experience by asking questions and listening to the answers. Most importantly, we learned how to reflect and meditate on the information we receive through this exercise in order to learn—and earn—the higher value of our obstacle.  The ultimate goal of the five steps is to create awareness of the situation in order to harness the power you have against the obstacle, as opposed to the obstacle controlling you.



Today, I challenge you to go one step further and ask yourself, “What is the internal source of my external obstacle?”  In other words, what is it about your present obstacle that disturbs you the most, and why? Many times, when you are deeply affected by a person or an event, there is something about that person or event that disturbs you about yourself. Somewhat like the saying, “What you hate most in others is what you secretly don’t like about yourself.” Simply put, what isn’t part of ourselves can’t disturb us.



Asking yourself this loaded question is a critical component to battling your Inner Critic. Rise up to the challenge that this new question poses. Take quiet time to reflect, listen, and learn from it.



Most importantly, do not be afraid to take on this challenge. The hardest and most disliked situations are the ones that we need the most for our inner growth.  I call the negative voices that haunt, defeat, and hold us back from our dreams the Saboteur or Gremlin.  The irony is that if the Saboteur is present in a situation, then that is the place in which we need to dig deeper. Confronting our Saboteur can be a formidable challenge, but what awaits us on the other side is our Higher Self. Once we identify the factors of this equation, the rest is a matter of regular and conscious practice in order to prevent ourselves from repeating our dilemma.



What’s making you feel uncomfortable right now? What do you need to let go of? What’s stopping you? What do you need to say “no” to? What’s the worst that can happen?
Olga Financial Life Guide’s Posts – 919 Business Networking – Local Business Owners & Professionals