Silence Is Golden
Silence is golden. I hear that phrase a lot. Usually from other people who say it in a very biting tone of voice. Maybe it’s because I am a music freak and I’m always making noise that tends to annoy other people. But even when I stop playing music and shut off my stereo (which takes extreme willpower for me to actually power it down) and try to be “quiet”, everything still seems pretty loud. My external world may have dropped to zero decibels, but my brain is still cranked to the max and all I hear are a bunch of screaming voices getting louder and louder as they compete for my attention.
We all have voices in our head, don’t deny it. Psychologists call them our “inner dialog” but I feel more like it’s a one-sided lecture rather than a conversation with myself. The “me” on the outside really isn’t getting a word in edge-wise as the voices increase their intensity and read me the riot act.
I’ve done a lot of research on this “inner dialog” stuff and it is fascinating. All the self-improvement experts will tell you that you should turn that negative banter into positive affirmations, but I think that is so bogus. It sounds nice in theory, but let’s be real. I don’t know about you, but the voices in my head have absolutely no tact whatsoever. They are highly critical of everything I do and they are not afraid to speak up and tell me what they think. I once thought about following that “expert” advice and teaching them to say some nice things. The first training session went something like this:
Me: “Good morning, Maioush. How’s it going today?”
Voices: “What’s good about it?”
Me: “Well, the sun is out and it’s a great day!”
Voices: “It’s hot and muggy. Go back to bed.”
Me: “But there’s a lot to do today, let’s get an early start.”
Voices: “Early? You’ve never been early for anything! Why start now?”
Me: “Well, I want to be productive today so I’m gonna get started…”
Voices: “Productive? That’s a big word for you.”
Me: “I think I can handle it. We’re going to start thinking positively now guys.”
Voices: *deafening sound of laughter*
Me: “Here’s the plan…Instead of you all nagging and criticizing me, I want you to say things in a nicer, more upbeat way. You know, encourage me. Motivate me. You can do it!”
Voices: More laughter followed by “Um…sure. Ok.”
Me: “Now what should I do first today?”
Voices: “Here’s something productive for you…why don’t you go work out?”
Me: “Hey good idea! And you were even nice about it!”
December 27th, 2007 at 1:49 PM
December 27th, 2007 at 6:02 PM
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December 27th, 2007 at 10:41 PM