Lately I have found myself being too hard on myself. It is good to have goals, to hold myself accountable, but often times the negative self talk saps my joy and leaves me feeling inadequate.

The other morning I woke up feeling discouraged. Negative thoughts kept running through my head. I was honestly feeling a bit hopeless and questioning my gifts and talents. I was falling into that horrible comparison trap that quickly sucks the joy from every situation.

After some quiet reflective time I was feeling better and decided to hush that negative voice in my mind and replace it with positive thoughts. I know this can be hard to do but my dear friend Deanna helped me come up with a strategy that has been working wonders.

How to replace the negative thoughts with positive ones:

1. Every time I feel discouraged I imagine that my very best friend is sitting next to me.
2. I imagine what SHE would say to me in that moment.
3. I say THOSE things to myself.

That’s it. It seems too easy right? How could that possibly help? But honestly I have been doing this over the last month and it HAS helped me to stop the negative chatter.

Why it works

It works because we would never talk to our best friend the way we talk to ourselves. We would be gentler and more encouraging. We would help them see all that they have accomplished and tell them to hang in there. When I imagine what my best friend would say to me, I am naturally being gentle on myself.

If you would like your own reminder to “Be Gentle on Yourself” feel free to download the free phone backgrounds below.

• Pink Phone Background
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