Most of us have a voice that plays in our heads as we move through the day—a running internal narration of our lives. If you pause and truly reflect on that inner voice, how does it tend to speak? Is it mostly kind and encouraging? Or is it mostly critical and negative?

For many people, that inner critic is loud—it’s the voice that tells you you’re not enough, undermines your capabilities, puts a spotlight on your failures and mistakes, and pushes you to think the worst about yourself.

When our internal dialogue leans negative more often than positive, it can begin to erode our self-esteem, mood, motivation, and performance. It can take a toll on our mental health, impact our relationships, and hold us back from opportunities and happiness.

Our brains are hardwired to focus on the negative. The human brain has evolved to naturally pay more attention to negative information and experiences than positive ones; this is known in psychology as the negativity

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