This past Sunday, I was having a very negative brain day.

It came out in full force on the ultimate frisbee field.

Every single thing I did was wrong.

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• Too slow, that point against us was my fault.
• Gah, I should’ve caught that one.
• What a bad cut, I’m just in the way.
• Why did I throw that? I should’ve looked for the swing throw.

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After a few points of this super fun negative party, I stood off on the sidelines, chugged some water, and readjusted.

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I didn’t have time to do a full introspection of why I was being so hard on myself during the game.

That would have to come afterward.
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So I:

• Acknowledged that I was hurting and told it I would give it space later
• Switched to neutral self-talk

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What is neutral self-talk, Reader?

I learned about it on a podcast recently.
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Instead of positive self-talk (I am amazing! I am worthy! I am incredible!), which frankly is hard to access at times and, at least for me, can feel like I’m just painting over my actual feelings…

And instead of negative self-talk (I suck! I’m worthless! I’m the worst!), which I don’t really need to elaborate any further on…
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Neutral self-talk is a play-by-play.

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At the frisbee match, I switched from the running commentary in my mind of

To

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My play not only improved but you know what?
I started having fun again.

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As business owners, it’s easy to get stuck in the extreme opposites of self-talk—negative and positive.

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Yet, what would neutral self-talk look like during a business day?

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I have days where I just don’t wanna.

Let's face it, we all have days like that.

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Lately, I’ve been trying out what neutral self-talk could be like in my business.

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Let me tell you what, it’s been pretty darn helpful.

It quiets my brain with play-by-play instead of loud YOU SUCK or YOU’RE AWESOME.

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It helps get the work done.

Helps me actually notice what I’m doing instead of just being in chaos-productive mode.
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And eventually, I find myself shifted out of negative brain and into just being present brain.
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Why does this matter to the work I do?​
Copywriting requires a focused, clear head.

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I’m betting what you do also requires focus and clarity.

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The Go-Try-It-Out Section​

Go try it out!

Try out neutral self-talk next time you notice you’re in a negative loop.

(please note this is not a bypass for actually processing your emotions, this is a way to be more present with yourself in the moment!)​
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On a totally different note, the next Toucan Talk is around the corner!

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Amy-mother-f*cking-Posner and I will be diving into the world of client wrangling, aka client management.

She’s been in business for three decades, and I could talk about boundaries all day every day.
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Join us March 16th.

​Client Wrangling (or how to be a partner and not a pest) with Amy Posner​

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Cheers,

Anna (they/them)

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What I'm reading​
​Don Quixote by Miguel Cervantes​

Absolute favorite best book ever of all time. I love this story.