Recently, I've watched some of my favorite college basketball teams struggle horribly from the free-throw line. I'm talking about entire teams shooting far less than 60% from the foul line. Why? Nobody is even guarding the shooter. The basket is wide open and the shooter has no less than 10 years of experience shooting thousands upon thousands of free throws during countless practices and games. Free throws should be an easy part of the game. Then why do they struggle so?
The same reason business owners struggle...it's the inner game that truly matters. Most of sports (and business) success comes down to mastering the mental aspects of the game. Managing the between-the-ears type of issues and challenges that interfere with your desired outcomes. When a shooter walks up to that free-throw line, especially with the outcome of the game in the balance, the nerves and mental demons come out. The "internal critic" creeps into the brain and starts the mental chatter..."you are nervous", "everyone is looking at you", "don't let your teammates down", "you will probably miss", "your teammates have been missing too", "you may lose the game", "you are not a good free-throw shooter", etc. It's no wonder they have a hard time making the shot.
With The Growth Coach providing on-going business coaching to thousands of clients each year, we know first-hand that small business owners are no different than athletes. They too have an "internal critic" in their head, continually giving a play-by-play analysis on just about everything. And believe me, most of it is not constructive criticism...in fact, it's highly destructive. The "internal critic" is your mental demon that is always lurking and trying to get you to stumble, to doubt yourself, and to sabotage your goals. It's the sum total of your fears, uncertainties and doubts.
You already are quite familiar with your "internal critic" based on the inner dialogue you have with yourself on a daily basis. Don't worry and don't deny it. We all have daily conversations with ourselves and most of them are not very positive nor healthy. The "critic" is that pesky voice telling you to be aware of every real and mostly imagined danger. It's that nagging chatter trying to convince you that you are not good enough, that you are a phony, that you are just lucky, or that you are in way over your head.
As a business coach, I have seen way too often that the critic gets the better of the entrepreneur... getting them to doubt themselves, their abilities, their dreams and goals, and even their worthiness. Sadly, it derails them from the greater success and happiness they truly seek and deserve. Since everyone has the "inner critic", the important question is, "Do you listen to the nagging and negative critic and tremble ... or do you ignore it and triumph?" Hopefully, you remain confident, calm and sink the winning shot!
The great news is that the "internal critic" is NOT you. That eerie voice is not your true self. It's but a very small part of your prehistoric brain (brain stem/medulla) that helped our ancestors avoid bodily danger. Once, it was a genuine and useful survival mechanism that helped us "flee" like mad from life-threatening situations. It's also a "holding bucket" of some of our earliest childhood fears and experiences...all adding to and fueling the survival reflex. Consequently, the "critic" is an out-dated mental mechanism to help you survive, not thrive. Again, this "inner critic" is NOT you.
Successful and satisfied business owners discover that the "inner critic" does not support them and their goals. It fact, it sabotages what they truly want from their personal and professional lives. Consequently, they learn that the "critic" is not really them but merely an obsolete survival mechanism that has gone astray. They do not let it dictate their thinking and actions. Successful entrepreneurs learn that "the critic" needs to be toned down or tuned out. We hope you discover the same.
Daniel M. Murphy
President, Founder & Business Coach
The Growth Coach
Business Coaching Franchise System