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High Performers
& Their Inner voices
↓

🧩 QUICK SPIN:

One of my favorite sayings from a high school Life Skills class:
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→ Your thoughts become your words
→ Your words become your actions
→ Your actions become your habits
→ Your habits become your values
→ Your values become your life

TL;DR = Your thoughts influence where you will go in life.

“You live the words you tell yourself in your mind.”
— Dr. Magdalena Battles

Today I’m going to teach you how to reprogram your brain for high performance.

• The science behind self talk
• The psycho-biological connection
• Identifying your inner voice
• 4 strategies to change your inner voice

♟️ MY TURN:

Some of you reading may have an allergic reaction to words like manifestation or mantra……so I’m going to start with science and facts before we dive into some daily applications. Cool?

Knee pain & Placebo effects

A few years ago I learned about a placebo effect study done in 2002.

In the study, 180 patients with knee pain were randomized into groups. One group received a procedure to fix the pain. Another group underwent simulated surgery; small incisions were made, but no instruments were inserted and no cartilage removed.

Before undergoing surgery, participants wrote in their chart, "On entering this study, I realize that I may receive only placebo surgery. I further realize that this means that I will not have surgery on my knee joint. This placebo surgery will not benefit my knee arthritis."

They knew they might not get an actual procedure!

During two years of follow-up, patients in both groups reported moderate improvements in pain and ability to function. However, no one reported less pain or better function than the placebo group.

The placebo patients even reported better outcomes than the patients at certain points during follow-up. They believed they were better, so they were.

Feels super hero-esque, right?

Moving on to the next example…..as a former fitness professional and athlete, I’ve been fascinated by the psycho-biological connection (how our brain affects our body’s performance).

Positivity as a performance enhancer

A January 2018 article in the “Psychology of Sport and Exercise” journal looked at the effects of smiling, frowning and relaxing while running.

They had 24 trained runners do six-minute on a treadmill at 70 percent of velocity at VO2 max (essentially an easy run pace). When smiling, they used less perceived effort and energy to go the same pace, translating to improved running economy of 2.2 percent over control and 2.8 percent over frowning.

The “facial feedback hypothesis” indicates that a smile or a frown can actually influence emotional experience. And studies show emotional state has an impact on running economy and performance, with positivity usually making faster running feel easier.

A second study on performance and psychology investigated the effects of a motivational self-talk on RPE (rate of perceived exertion aka how hard does this feel) and endurance performance.

24 participants performed two cycling tests focused on time-to-exhaustion. The second test followed a two week self talk intervention for half of the participants.

The results revealed that self talk significantly slowed time to exhaustion and reduced RPE - meaning people could go further for longer with the main variable being positive self talk.

So what’s the TL;DR (too long didn’t read)

• If the brain thinks you can, you can
• Positive self talk and mood increase performance

♟️ YOUR TURN:

So let’s put this into practice. Some of you reading may have an allergic reaction to words like manifestation or mantra……

So let’s call it what it is: self-talk.

What is self talk?

Self-talk is your internal dialogue. It’s influenced by your subconscious mind, and reveals your thoughts, beliefs, questions, and ideas.

The following 4 strategies re-wire your inner voice and unlock the next level in this game of life.

Step 1: Name It

We all have an inner voice that tells us we aren’t as good or why we shouldn’t be doing something.

​I wrote about an exercise I use in therapy called the "emotional bus" to remind us we all have different versions of ourselves inside of us at all times.

At any given time, current you should be driving the bus. You are an adult with logic and reasoning and know you're going to get through whatever is coming at you.

However…..

Sometimes a situation will stir up 6 year old Amanda. Little Amanda is scared of being abandoned and alone. 6 yo Amanda hijacks the driver’s seat and starts to drive us all to spiral city to avoid being abandoned. She is not equipped to be driving.

So name the negative bus rider. Give it a name (Sheila or Karen or Bob or Fred) and every time it pops into your head - acknowledge Bob, thank him for stopping by and show him back to his seat.

Step 2: Identity it

There are 4 types of negative self talk:

• Personalizing: When “It’s not you, it’s me” becomes your mantra. If something bad occurs, you automatically blame yourself.
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• Magnifying: You focus on the negative aspects of a situation, ignoring any and all of the positive.
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• Catastrophizing: You expect the worst, and you rarely let logic or reason persuade you otherwise.
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• Polarizing: It’s either good or bad. No middle ground.

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Step 3: Notice & Ask

When you notice one of the above happening - congratulate yourself. Noticing is the first step in re-wiring your brain.

The next step is to assess the actual situation vs. the perceived one in your head.

Personalizing: When “It’s not you, it’s me” becomes your mantra. If something bad occurs, you automatically blame yourself.

Ask yourself:

• Is there any evidence to support this thought?
• Is the thought factual or just my interpretation?
• What are 5 alternative explanations for what’s happening?

Magnifying: You focus on the negative aspects of a situation, ignoring any and all of the positives.

Remember: You have to re-wire your brain into loving your life. When you are wired to see the negative - you have to build the muscle of seeing the positive.

Ask yourself:

• What are 3 things that went right?
• What progress has been made in the last year?

Catastrophizing: You expect the worst, and you rarely let logic or reason persuade you otherwise.

Ask yourself:

• What’s the worst case scenario?
• What are the odds that will happen?
• What will you do if that happens?
• Is there anything you can do to change the current situation?

Polarizing: It’s either good or bad. No middle ground.

Ex: you are trying to workout every day and skip a workout and start calling yourself lazy.

Ask yourself:

• What did I need in this situation?
  ​I was very tired and my body needed to recover.
• What did I get out of it?
  ​I will be able to workout harder tomorrow.
• Is there anything I can do to support myself next time?
  ​I will go to bed 30 minutes earlier tonight.

Step 4: Assess your environment

The things around you will affect your core beliefs in some way.

This includes:

• Who you follow on social media
• What you read and watch
• Not addressing relationship problems
• Poor health habits
• Living in isolation
• Not asking for help
• Being around others who practice negative-self talk

Look around for what is affecting you within.

Closing thoughts….on thoughts.

1. Your thoughts will influence your life.
2. More positive self-talk will lead to higher performance. We have the science to prove it.
3. Thoughts come from subconscious learnings and you need to consciously retrain your brain.

PS. You are doing great at managing a lot today.

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