‘I’m just gonna say it’…One way to STOP editing your every word

We’ve all been there…we have an amazing thought or idea only to find when we go to express it, we can’t find the right words. We stumble, forget our train of thought and talk in circles until we’ve confused others and ourselves… Before we know it, we’re standing there in our embarrassment while the conversation continues on without us. And we’re left wondering,

WHAT THE HELL JUST HAPPENED?

I’m not an introvert. I like talking. I like being around people. I believe I’m a good communicator on most days (maybe not on Monday mornings)… Yet, somehow I find myself in the above scenario often.

It wasn’t until this afternoon, after suffering from another awkward word block, that it finally clicked… I was in a meeting with my boss to discuss a topic I know a lot about. Or so I thought… As I opened my mouth to express my thoughts, the words stumbled out jaggedly like my drunken 21 year-old self leaving the bar on a Saturday night.

It was awkward. He tried to save the mortifying moment but it was too late…

Or maybe it was right on time.

In the painful aftermath, I had an epiphany. After months of this, I finally knew exactly what the problem was… I was too busy self-editing that it interfered with my logical thought flow.

If you want to screw up anything, just overthink it.

Why do we torture ourselves by overthinking, over editing, and being overly concerned with what other people think of us? Doing so is literally killing our mental state. It’s stripping away all the fun from communicating with other people. It’s making us sound dumb.

With every thought we edit, we become boring, lesser versions of ourselves. We’re not meant to be perfect. So how do we stop self-editing and start speaking our minds with dignity, clarity of thought, and with steady, even flow?

Stop worrying about what other people think of you…Stop trying to sound smart. Stop trying to sound funny. Stop trying to sound wise. Stop trying.

Just speak.