How to Be Awesome at Your Job

683: How to Break Free from Negative Self-talk and Chatter with Ethan Kross

Jul 8, 2021

41:04

Snipd AI

Ethan Kross, one of the world's leading experts on controlling the conscious mind, discusses the science behind negative self-talk. He shares four simple ways to stop chatter, why venting is harmful, and tools for managing negative self-talk. The podcast also explores the impact of nature, breathing exercises, and nutrition on stress regulation, and how to break free from negative self-talk using techniques like third person self-talk.

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Quick takeaways

Engaging in distance self-talk and temporal distancing techniques can help manage negative self-talk and chatter effectively.

Creating a supportive and regulated environment through organizing spaces, engaging with nature, and performing rituals can aid in managing chatter and promoting mental well-being.

Deep dives

Chatter as the Dark Side of the Inner Voice

Chatter is defined as getting stuck in a negative thought loop, constantly replaying problems without finding solutions. It can undermine our ability to think and perform at work, strain our relationships, and impact our physical health. To manage chatter, one effective tool is distance self-talk, where individuals coach themselves through problems by using their own name and a second-person perspective. Another helpful technique is temporal distancing, where individuals imagine how they will feel about the situation in the future, which provides hope and a broader perspective. Engaging with nature, organizing spaces, and performing rituals are environmental tools that can help regulate chatter.

Introduction

2min

Managing Negative Self-talk and Chatter

4min

Tools for Managing Negative Self-Talk

26min

Restoring Attention and Exploring Cold Water Therapy

3min

Exploring the Inner Voice and Favorite Things

2min

Breaking Free from Negative Self-Talk: Tools and Techniques

4min

Ethan Kross breaks down the science behind negative self-talk and how to change the way you engage with your inner voice.

— YOU’LL LEARN —

1) How chatter takes over and undermines us

2) Four simple ways to put a stop to chatter

3) Why venting hurts more than helps

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— ABOUT ETHAN —

Ethan Kross is one of the world’s leading experts on controlling the conscious mind. An award-winning professor and bestselling author in the University of Michigan’s top ranked Psychology Department and its Ross School of Business, he studies how the conversations people have with themselves impact their health, performance, decisions and relationships.

Ethan’s research has been published in Science, The New England Journal of Medicine, and The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, among other peer-reviewed journals. He has participated in policy discussion at the White House and has been interviewed on CBS Evening News, Good Morning America, Anderson Cooper Full Circle, and NPR’s Morning Edition. His pioneering research has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The New Yorker, Harvard Business Review, USA Today, The Economist, The Atlantic, Forbes, and Time.