What do YOU say to YOU?
How we speak to ourselves speaks volumes. I never really thought about inner thoughts and the power that they have until I seen a meme. Yep, a meme. A meme changed the way I spoke to myself and everyone around, especially children.
A simple meme can alter ones path in life, when looked at with a learning lens.
Just reading the meme hit me in a way that shook my core! I used to be jokey joke with kids and not really pay attention to what I was saying but more importantly how I was saying it. Kids pick up on more nuances than we really give them credit for, they can feel when an adult is BS’n them. But an even bigger thing that I noticed, they remembered!
As an adult I can’t tell you how many adults faked the funk with me at old jobs, because I was doing the same! Meanwhile kids are themselves and for the most part don’t sugarcoat things, well the kids from where I’m from dont, Lol! But they give me the real deal of them from the rip and I guess I can appreciate that but with that being said they don’t have to mask their feelings in a workplace. Having the freedom of speaking their mind allows them to pay attention to what we adults say, even if they act like they didn’t hear us.
How many times have your kids, nephews or nieces said “ remember you said” and called you out on something you said months ago? Yea, they remember the $5 you were supposed to give them for acting civil on the walk through downtown or staying close to you at the zoo. They are so funny with it too. But all that to say kids remember what we say and especially how we say it. Seeing that meme shifted how I now speak to everyone, not just kids. But seeing that meme showed me how loosely I was speaking to everyone else, because we as adults need the positive and up lifting words also!
Realizing that our words became the children’s inner voice made me start the rewiring process of speaking to myself. I never even thought that speaking to myself was a good or bad thing, until I noticed I gave myself excuses and then head nodded right after.
WHAT!
I was reassuring myself I could quit, give up, slack on something just because I had a convo in my head about it? WOW, when I noticed it it blew me away! I honestly said something to the effect of “wow, I just gave myself a pass for being a lazy ass”. Not my brightest moment, but it shined light in a place that I never even thought to look for a weakness.
Ah the power of memes, so with that I ask “What do you say to you?”. In the morning, at noon, afternoon, evening, bedtime or in the middle of the night? What are you saying to yourself? Are you tough on yourself? Are you to light with yourself? Do you even speak to yourself? That reminds me of another meme
But to wrap this up, how we speak to ourselves sets the tone of how we will speak to others throughout our day. I now have a daughter and seeing that meme 5 years ago has prepared me to hopefully be one of the greatest dad’s in history! ;)
Below is the video version of this blog =]