“You’ll never finish your novel.” “You’ve wasted your life.” “You’re too complicated. Who would ever want to be with you?” Sometimes my inner critical voice is so clear I can argue with it. Most of the time, the negativity I wreak upon myself is unconscious and harder to fight. Lisa Firestone and Eric Maisel provide [...]
Is it always a good idea to do the best you can do? Moreover, can we ever be sure that it’s really our best? These questions came up recently in a therapy session and catalyzed my looking more deeply into the nature and implications of this common expression. The man with whom I was working [...]
These quotes by Gerard Butler are from Erik Hedegaard’s profile, Gerry the Sinner / Gerry the Saint, Men’s Journal, April 2010. That I got through all that I got through to be where I am, it doesn’t make sense — this kind of lost soul studying law in Scotland and then moving to London with [...]
“Angels fly because they take themselves lightly.” GK Chesterton That is a quote Therese Borchard uses in this video, from her post On April Fool’s Day: Laugh, People, Laugh She writes about it: In this video, I go over a few of my humor rules–like you can make fun of yourself all you want, but [...]
From post It’s Not Your Parents’ Fault by Morty Lefkoe on his blog. One of the most common questions we get from people who use our free belief-elimination site is, “I don’t think I got my beliefs from my parents. “Can’t negative self-esteem beliefs be formed from interactions with siblings or later in life from [...]
For years we have heard that what you believe will determine how well you will succeed in life. So every year, people diligently attempt to change their beliefs to ones that favor their success and limit their failure. There is an entire industry that supports that cause. “You are what you believe,” is advertised with [...]
Gifted adults often struggle with the same challenges as gifted children. What factors help adults identified as gifted when young to continue to achieve? Educator Carol McGaughey comments about these issues: I think one area that needs to be addressed is what happens to these gifted individuals as they grow into adults. Is the folk [...]
You may belong to the 20% of us who innately prefer to think before acting. By Elaine Aron, Ph.D. Are you famous for being slow to make decisions? Do you need more down time than your friends do? Are you bothered by noise, crowds, and having too much going on at once? Are you unusually [...]
Perfectionism is for many people an aspect of being gifted and multi-talented, and can be an integral part of the pursuit of excellence and high achievement. But being perfectionistic in unhealthy ways can make us feel continually dissatisfied or anxious, and hold us back from finishing – or even starting – creative projects. It may [...]
In her post “to my surprise…” on her site Temporary Reality, “neighbor” writes about the experience of growing up gifted that many of us can relate to. Here is an excerpt [published here by permission]: When I was little I was labelled Gifted. God, it sounds so bad to just up and say that. I’m [...]
Do we need to create new beliefs? By Morty Lefkoe “The Lefkoe Method is very effective at eliminating negative beliefs. But why don’t you replace them with positive beliefs?” This is a very common question so I decided to devote this week’s post to answering it. For many years we did attempt to “install” positive [...]
“I was at dance school doing about 35 hours practice a week until I was 14. Then ballet started to grate – the whole idea of trying to attain perfection started to ruin the experience.” Mia Wasikowska (“Alice in Wonderland”) What’s so bad about perfection? Isn’t it what we all strive for? In her interview, [...]
“You have a companion. One that never, ever leaves you. It sticks with you, staying even closer than your shadow. It is like a leech sucking your blood, and you cannot shake it loose. “This constant companion is your mental chatter. “Another name for it is your internal monologue. It begins the moment you open [...]
Artists are depicted in movies and media in ways that often promote myths about what it takes to be a “real” singer, writer, actor, painter or other creator. Buying in to the negative aspects of those depictions and myths – often subconsciously – can distort our sense of identity and limit what we think we [...]
In her Creativity Portal article, You’re Not Mad, You’re Creative, Orna Ross invites us to rid ourselves of self-blame and criticism stemming from misunderstanding our creative abilities. With the help of an insightful self-test, we can revision our past and present experiences, and recognize, nurture and protect our gifts that may otherwise seem disruptive and [...]
Here is a sampling from the article “Perfectionism and Depression: What to Do When Being a Perfectionist Drags You Down,” by Sedona Training Associates staff and Hale Dwoskin: Do you ever think the following self-limiting beliefs? * It’s not OK to make a mistake * People will not like me if I’m not perfect * [...]
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Site author: Douglas Eby, M.A./Psychology, is a writer and researcher on the psychology of creative expression and personal growth, especially for high ability adults. He is publisher of the Talent Development Resources series of sites.
