Taming Your Inner Critic

Taming Your Inner Critic: A Path to Personal and Professional Growth

At Granby, we prioritise investing in our people and building an environment where everyone can flourish. As an Employee-Owned Trust, our dedication to personal and professional growth is key. We are proud members of the Alliance of Independent Agencies (AIA), which offers exceptional courses for skill enhancement.

Recently, our Client Services Manager, Kayleigh Scott, participated in a transformative course on ‘Taming Your Inner Critic,’ a challenge we all encounter at some point.

The Transformative Course Experience

The course, led by the seasoned coach Sharon Baker, was truly enlightening. Sharon, has a rich background in psychology, fine art, agencies, and media. Her experience with organisations like NatWest, Esso, and the Post Office, as well as her work with creative agencies, helps her deliver a comprehensive approach to personal development. Sarah brought a unique blend of creativity and science to the session.

Sharon Baker is a highly experienced leadership coach and trainer, in the top 1% of accredited coaches in the UK, and trains professional coaches.

Understanding Your Inner Critic

Kayleigh shared that the session explored the fears associated with stepping into the unknown and how our inner critic often holds us back, keeping us in our comfort zones.

“We delved into our intrinsic drives—expansion, fulfilment, enhancement, and self-preservation—and the role of our inner critic in self-preservation.” Kayleigh said.

Key takeaways included understanding the chemical triggers of discomfort and learning to become comfortable with discomfort.

Childhood Beliefs and the Inner Critic

A particularly enlightening part of the session was examining how childhood beliefs shape our inner critic. By reframing our mindset, we can all learn to view our inner critic not just as an adversary but as a potential ally. The session emphasised that our inner critic can either hinder us or serve as a valuable ally. This all depends on our perspective. Observing and understanding this inner voice can help clarify and align our true ambitions and desires.

Universal Feelings of Inadequacy

Kayleigh’s key takeaway?

“It was reassuring to understand that, no matter what anyone might say, at some time these feelings of inadequacy and fear of judgment are universal.”

The interactive Q&A session was a highlight for Kayleigh. She found it reassuring that by sharing experiences and realising that any feelings of inadequacy and fear of judgment we may have—especially from our peers and colleagues—are universal concerns. The session helped the delegates grasp the central idea that our inner critic can either hinder us or serve as a valuable ally, depending on our perspective.

Practical Techniques for Taming the Inner Critic

The course provided practical techniques to stay unhooked from the critical critter, day to day. Participants left with a toolkit of easy and fun techniques to use every time the inner critic raises its head. These techniques are designed to help individuals unhook themselves and disempower their inner critic, ensuring it doesn’t stop them from taking action or opportunities. By seeing the inner critic in a whole different light, individuals can use it positively to go towards what they want in their work life.

Granby’s Commitment to Empowerment

At Granby, we are committed to empowering our team members like Kayleigh to harness their full potential. By investing in courses like this with the AIA that address personal growth and self-awareness, we ensure that our people are equipped to face challenges head-on and deliver their best. The good news from training is that once you can hear it, you can build a more realistic perspective. This allows you to be more positive, more resilient, more creative, happier, and do better work!

Taming our inner critic can be incredibly beneficial in the workplace. It often leads to increased confidence, creativity, and productivity. By understanding and reframing our inner critic, we can transform it from a hindrance into a powerful ally. In turn, this allows us to achieve our true ambitions and desires. At Granby, we are proud to support our team members in this journey of personal and professional growth.