Which Voice Are You Listening To?
ADVANCE CONFIDENTLY!
“It isn’t the mountains ahead to climb that wears you out; it’s the Pebble in your shoe.” ~Muhammad Ali
Whether it’s the pebble in your shoe or the rocks in your backpack, both will wear you out. Everyone understands the pebble in your shoe analogy because at one point in time or another during our lifetimes, we have all experienced the pebble. The pebble left unattended begins as an irritant but eventually becomes a blister.
The question to ask metaphorically is, what’s the pebble in your shoe?
The pebble in our shoe represents the inner struggle, the annoyances, the challenges, the speedbumps, the negative chatter, the anxiety, the worry, the struggle, the pressure, the buzz and drone of modern life, the hustle and grind, the hamster wheel…
The way in which we respond to all these potential stressors has a lot to do with which voice we listen to.
Our inner critic is the part of our mind that seems way too familiar with ALL our perceived shortcomings. It sees our flaws, magnifies our mistakes, knows our weaknesses, preys on our uncertainty, casts shadows of doubt, and predicts negative outcomes with the certainty of Nostradamus!
It’s important to understand that the critical part of our mind is actually there to serve us and it’s only when it goes on an inner tangent that we need to become concerned.
Using our inner coach, we can enlist our critic to help us instead of attacking us. Instead of developing an adversarial relationship with your critic, put it to work doing the job it was intended to do. With the help of the inner coach, the critic can be coaxed into becoming a creative problem-solving machine. Think of the critic as the work force waiting for orders. It’s ready to take orders from whichever part of the mind is in control.
The crew that assembles to build a house is equally capable of tearing it down. The foreman will give the crew the direction required to either build or destroy. He or she will guide the actions of the workers and will also tell the crew which walls to build and which ones to remove.
When the critic and the coach work together, they get things done. When they don’t, things will invariably go awry because left to their own accord, the crew might simply take an extended break, have a two or three beer lunch, or fall asleep at the wheel while driving from one job to the other…
The inner coach keeps everything moving in the desired direction all while being mindful of the needs of him or herself.
After years of practice, the inner coach will often step up and take on the role of the inner champion. The inner champion is the still small voice that resides in all of us that is often overshadowed by the inner critic. The inner champion is the part of our brain capable of calling BS on the negative thoughts that creep in when the gatekeeper is caught napping.
The inner champion will call out the lies of the inner critic and expose him for the fraud that he is and when the inner champion gets really good at their primary job, they catch the thoughts before they ever have a chance to enter the garden. If one of these thoughts happens to somehow slip through, the inner champion will quickly pull the weed by its roots and toss it in the trash where it belongs.
The inner champion knows fact from fiction and rarely falls for the easy fix and is constantly vigilant for the shiny objects that show up as distractions designed to derail us from our intentions.
The inner champion is like the conductor of the train working in unison with the crew and with proper training will run our lives with the precision of a Japanese shinkansen bullet train, racing toward its destination with minimal disruptions, speed, accuracy, and safety.
Embrace your inner shinkansen. Become the conductor of your life. Put your inner champion to work! Your future destination is waiting for you…
This article was inspired by Eddie Pinero from Your World Within and my writing friend, Shasheen. I am #Grateful for both of them!
See Eddie’s YouTube video below and keep your eyes open for Shasheen’s forthcoming transformational book that provides an easy to follow 5 step process to create the life you’ve always known was available for YOU! I’ll be sure to let you know when it’s available for purchase. Stay tuned!
This entire video is awesome. The segment that inspired this article begins at about the 20:00 minute mark. Enjoy!
Keep Pedaling, Keep Going, Keep Growing!
Advance Confidently!
If you enjoyed and found value in this article, please share it.
In Gratitude,
Bobby Kountz, Author, Speaker, Sobriety Scholar, Inspirationalist!
PS. You can find out more about me here. You can find my book on Amazon.
Author’s Note: Day 21 of my Spring into 2021 writing challenge!
