Question

It's easier to eliminate negative self-talk when we

Answer 1

When we’re beating ourselves up, a tiny blunder is inflated into an epic typhoon of failure. So the next time a negative thought intrudes, take a few deep breaths and then “quickly narrow it down and put your problems into the smallest box possible,” Chansky says. “If you think you screwed up in a meeting, instead of saying, ‘I’m an idiot; I ruined my career,’ say, ‘Man, I used a poor choice of words.’ Visualizing that box can really help.”

Seeing a tiny box in your mind shows the actual size of the problem and helps you feel more confident that you can take it on.