Feedback Thoughts

One of the articles over this topic that I connect with is Joel Almeida's "How to Tame Your Inner Critic: A Simple Habit to Rewire Your Brain." In this piece, Almeida stresses the importance of being kind to yourself through affirmations and positive thoughts. He uses a tactic he dubbed REBS (reality-based self-congratulation) to celebrate the little victories of daily life. 

"Keep this practice firmly based in reality, anchored to your small helpful steps. Then you’ll be able to do it meaningfully and with conviction. But do it at every opportunity, no matter how small your triumph."

While this primarily helped Almeida become physically healthier, I came to a similar realization this past year, and it helped me become mentally healthier. I'm still hard on myself, but I used to be downright unkind with my thoughts. I didn't take time for self-care or celebrate my victories, and it contributed to the anxiety and depression I'm still dealing with today. When I learned to treat myself with love and kindness instead of harshness, I was finally able to make progress with my mental health. I now shut down negative thoughts, as this article advises, and I think I'm a much happier person because of it. 


Kite Time and Sunset Time with lots of Happiness by Harigopal (Harry) Patel (source: Wikimedia). 

Another article that I like is Sabina Nawaz's "Silence the Critical Voices in Your Head." She implores people to start listening to positives as much as they do negatives. This goes for presentations, job evaluations, academia, and other aspects of life. 

"Instead of only asking about what you did wrong, request positive feedback too."

In doing so, Nawaz believes you will eventually internalize these positive thoughts and accept them as truths while refusing to let negatives bring you down. I think this is both an admirable and achieveable outlook on life, especially for students. I think we tend to focus on the next thing that needs to be improved without taking the time to congratulate ourselves on what we've done well; if we can change this thought process, our thoughts will become much kinder and more productive. 

Comments

Popular Posts