Workshop Brings Out the Big Guys

As you all know, I recently presented a workshop called, "Your Hidden Potential: Discover Talents You Never Knew You Had." I know it was a success because I'm ready to do it again.  If I'd found myself not enjoying it at all, I would've thought, "Okay.  That was an experiment that will probably not be repeated again in my lifetime."

But I really think workshops are a great venue for me.  I believe I loved every aspect of it, from the creation of the slides to the publicity to the actual event itself.  I loved meeting new people and hearing their insights about talents. I enjoyed sharing all of the research that I've accumulated over the years with receptive ears. And fortunately I had some great participants, many of whom said they found what I had to say very refreshing.

So it's all good, right?

Here We Go Again... Or Not!

Being the perfectionist that I am, as soon as the seminar was over I began mentally checking off the things that weren't exactly how I wanted them to be. But even so, I can happily say that my self-critique remained just that: a critique.  It didn't turn into critical self-sabotage, which is what would've happened many years ago.  I've been working hard (and succeeding much of the time!) at finding that fine line between acknowledging the inevitable flaws that come with a first time anything- in this case it was doing my talents workshop for the public- and appreciating what worked really well. I also found myself hearing and believing the compliments that came from participants, which has not always been a given for me.

Now, in case you too are a perfectionist and feel as if you will never manage your own inner critic, I have some words for you: if I can do it, anyone can. My nasty little inner critic had resided in my brain for so long, I wasn't even charging him rent anymore.  He'd made himself right at home, to the point I didn't even recognize when my thought process centered around his shaming.

But recognition is a powerful weapon. I've learned that when my inner critic is hanging around I begin hearing lots of "should have's," to the tune of, "I should have done it this way... what was I thinking?  How did I miss that when I was preparing??!!"  And then the negative thoughts begin to spiral down to the point that everything I do seems pointless.  

(Not to brag or anything, but my inner critic could argue in front of the Supreme Court- he's THAT good.)

The Big Guys

But as I got better at recognizing my inner critic's antics I've made sure to evict him promptly from my mind, especially before he gets his arguments going. I oust him by immediately replacing his "should have's" with "could's." In other words, instead of going down the path of thinking how I regretfully should have done things differently, I think of how I could take it to the next level and do things even better next time.  Thinking of possibilities and tweaking existing work are my brain's forte, which means I'm bringing out The Big Guys - my driving talents- to tackle my inner critic. They are strong, objective and instantly effective. I've found that Mr. Inner Critic is no match for The Big Guys!

So now that I've tackled my first public workshop I can't wait for my next one.  You can bet it will be BIGGER, BETTER, BOLDER! And I'll be sure to invite you when I set a date.

As for Mr. Inner Critic?  That dude will most certainly not be receiving an invitation.