You’ve heard it. C’mon, be honest, you’ve heard that voice in your head. It’s the voice that seems to show up just in time to sabotage your success. We’ve all heard this unwelcome intruder and we’ve all been influenced by it but you don’t have to give in to it any more.

Who is this inner critic and who invited him or her to the party anyway? Our inner critic doesn’t need an invitation because its sole purpose is to remind you that. “That wasn’t good enough”, “This won’t work” and “You can’t hit that shot”.

The word “critic” is derived from the ancient Greek word krites meaning a judge.

The critic within you can be the harshest judge of all and 85% of my clients judge themselves more harshly than anyone else does. When it gets personal it can throw your game off track. If you’ve ever “attacked” yourself you know exactly what I mean.

Here are 5 insights/steps you can take to quiet or delete the critic inside you:

1. It’s only a recording –Your brain has VCR-like capabilities. It records and plays back whatever you continually imprint on it. Unless you break the pattern it will default to the voice of the critic if that’s what’s already on the tape!
2. It’s only 1 part—The “inner critic” is not you, it’s only one part of you. If you only pay attention to your left elbow, does it mean that you have no other body parts? No, of course not. The critic is NOT all of you.
3. Accept It!—What you resist; will persist. When your inner critic shows up, accept it, there is nothing to fight so welcome it and this will help reduce its intensity.
4. Choose—Who says your inner critic is the definitive expert on anything? It’s not! Once you accept it; choose differently by TALKING BACK to it. The critic in you tends to focus on negativity but what about what you ARE capable of? Choose to focus on that and you won’t have to battle with your inner critic any more.
5. It’s NOT Personal!—Be wary of the words “You” or “I” because they are very personal. “I’m no good”, “You idiot!” and comments like this are personal attacks and when it gets personal it is more difficult to deal with. Change the words” you” or “I” to the words “It or That”. Now it becomes “That was a bad shot or decision”. “It and That” remove personal attack from the equation.

To Your Best Golf!