Are harsh or negative thoughts about yourself holding you back? This self-compassion exercise can help.
Self-compassion helps you to be patient, supportive and understanding with yourself when life feels challenging. It’s about treating yourself the way you would treat a friend, with kindness, care and understanding.
Self-compassion is a skill you can build with practice. If you would like to build a more self-compassionate mindset, try this simple exercise.
What are the 3 Steps?
Notice when you’re being self-critical
Nip it in the bud
Reframe self-critical thoughts
What are the key parts of self-compassion?
Try it for yourself: Self-compassion exercise
Grab a piece of paper or open your journal. Take a moment to reflect and work through these 3 steps.
Step 1: Notice when you’re being self-critical
Self-critical thoughts can build up over time and it’s not always easy to notice when you’re thinking them. Think about a time when things got difficult or you made a mistake.
- What did you say to yourself in that moment?
- What did your inner voice sound like?
- If someone else was in the same situation, would you speak to them the same way?
Step 2: Nip it in the bud
The next time you notice a self critical thought, pause and gently interrupt it. Remind yourself that you may be too harsh on yourself. You don’t need to feel guilty for having self-critical thoughts, but you don’t have to believe them either.
Step 3: Reframe self-critical thoughts
Try to replace your critical thoughts with kinder, supportive ones. Take a look at the thoughts you wrote down in step 1, and now write down some more compassionate alternatives.
For example: If you didn’t get a grade you wanted in an exam, and your inner voice tells you that you’re a failure, you can challenge that with an alternative thought, telling yourself that while you didn’t get the result you wanted, you worked hard and that’s something to be proud of.
