Your Inner Critic Has Been Lying to You All Along

Ever caught yourself listening to that nagging voice inside saying you're not enough, you should have figured things out by now, or questioning who you think you are to want more? That relentless inner critic isn't actually you—it's a collection of echoes from your past, borrowed from parents, teachers, society, and moments when you didn't feel safe or seen.

Most of us grew up learning to be polite, quiet, and small rather than embracing radical self-love. For those raised with early responsibility and pressure for perfection, that inner critic often sounds exactly like a disappointed authority figure. The moment we recognize these aren't our original thoughts but inherited patterns, everything begins to shift. This critical voice doesn't just whisper doubts—it actively blocks us from pursuing jobs, charging our worth, setting boundaries, and following our dreams. While it pretends to protect us, it actually keeps us small.

In this deeply personal exploration, I share three powerful tools to rewire your relationship with your inner critic: naming it to create separation, practicing pattern interruption when negative thoughts arise, and actively rewriting your internal script with empowering truths. The goal isn't to banish self-doubt completely—progress happens even when you simply reduce its influence and stop giving it the microphone. When you gently move that critic to the backseat where it belongs, your natural radiance returns. That voice saying you're worthy, your story matters, and you were made for more? It's been inside you all along—you just need to listen to it. Ready to transform your relationship with yourself? This episode is your first step toward lasting change. Share it with someone who needs these words today, and join me next week to explore how to embody confidence before achievement.

Chapters

• 0:57 Introducing Unleash Your Inner Radiance
• 2:08 Understanding the Inner Critic
• 4:06 How the Critic Controls Our Choices
• 5:13 Tools to Rewire Your Inner Critic
• 7:49 Moving Forward Without the Critic
• 9:07 Episode Wrap and Next Week Preview
• 10:15 Sponsor Recommendation and Closing

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:29

You are listening to Unleash your Inner Radiance. I'm Lisa, your Catalyst, life, wellness and Transformation Coach and your guide in the space of real talk, radiant healing and unapologetic growth. Let's dive in. Have you ever noticed how loud that inner voice can be? You know mine. Some days just talk so loud and I'm just like no, because I don't want to hear what you're saying. Right? You know the one that I'm talking about, the voice that whispers you're not doing enough, you are not enough. You should have figured this out by now. Who do you think you are to want more?

Speaker 1: 1:20

That voice, that relentless inner critic, isn't you at all. It's not. It is literally a collection of echoes from our past, from our parents, our teachers, our society, culture and the moments when we didn't feel safe, seen or enough. In today's episode, we are going to really dive deep into the roots of the inner critic, where it comes from, why it is so sticky kind of like little sticky notes all over your body, and how you can finally begin to rewrite the script it's been shouting in your head, because we need to rewrite the messages that we have just taken off those little stickies all over our body and said to ourselves constantly and things that you've been shouting to yourself for years and they're not true. Because, friend, that voice, it literally has been lying to you and your radiant self deserves the truth. So let's talk about where the inner critic is born, you know, because most of us didn't grow up with radical radiant self-love. We didn't do it that way. But we were taught to be polite, not too loud, to play small, not to take up space, to be good, work harder, don't brag, don't need too much. And if you're, like me, raised in a home where responsibility started early, where perfection felt like the only safe path, then your inner critic probably sounds like a disappointed parent or an overwhelmed authority figure. So let me be real with you. Mine used to say things like you should have known better. Why can't you get this right the first time? And you always mess things up? Those aren't my words, they were borrowed beliefs, inherited patterns, and once I realized that everything began to shift. So how does the critic control our choices? How does our inner critic control our choices?

Speaker 1: 3:58

Your inner critic doesn't just talk, it literally directs you and sometimes it stops you from doing like applying for a job, charging your worth, speaking up in a meeting, setting a boundary, launching a podcast, taking that trip, saying yes to your own dreams. That's things that your inner critic stops you from doing, and that voice doesn't keep you safe. It keeps you small, and it's time that we give it a new job title. Or like, literally, let it go, just let it go. So we want to. Or like, literally, let it go, just let it go. So we want to rewire our inner critic. So I'm going to give you some tools. So let's break it down. One, name it. You have to name it to tame it. So when that voice shows up, give it a name. Call it your fear voice, little Lisa or whatever. Your name is the worry witch, whatever feels true. I want you guys to internalize it, because it's not you.

Speaker 1: 5:19

Number two pause and pattern interrupt when a thought hits. I want you to stop and breathe and ask is this absolutely true? Most of the time it's not absolutely, and this creates a pause for your wiser self to speak, because it gives you. You can redirect the pattern right If you just stop and think. Why did I just say that to myself? No, this is really what I need to say to myself Redirect it. Another way to do it, which is huge for me is to keep a tablet in the car and when you say something to yourself, write it down. You'll see a pattern and you can rewrite those and then you can learn to change them quicker, right? Because then you're going to have that thought, you're going to stop, you're going to breathe and you're going to ask yourself is this absolutely true? And you're going to say no, it's not. This is what's true. And three that gives us two.

Speaker 1: 6:34

Number three rewrite the script. Replace I'm not good enough with. I'm growing at my own pace, and that's powerful. Replace I'm behind with. I'm on the path that's right for me. Write these truths on sticky notes, kind of like those who stuck little things on you all along. Write them on sticky notes, put them on your mirrors, put the saying on your phone screen right. Surround yourself with what's actually true, because we are all literally growing at our own pace, and that is really truly powerful.

Speaker 1: 7:21

So I don't want you to do it this way. You don't have to banish your inner critic not completely to move forward, because you can, even if you cut down the chatter in your head, guess what direction you're going to keep going. You're going to keep going forward. You just have to stop giving that inner credit, the microphone. When you begin to notice her, challenge her and gently put her in the back seat, because that's literally where she belongs, and that's when your radiance will start to return, because you're going to believe in yourself more. And that's when your voice gets louder, the voice that said that says I was made for more, I am worthy because I exist, my story matters. And guess what? That voice? It's already inside of you. You just need to listen to it. So that brings an end to this episode.

Speaker 1: 8:39

Thank you for joining me, but I want to talk about next week's episode, because next week we are going to explore the myth that confidence comes after we achieve something, and how to just start showing up as if, even when the inner critic says otherwise. So create the life that you want and start showing up in that life. So if this episode lit a spark in you, share it with a friend please, someone who needs to hear it. And if you're ready to go deeper into releasing those old stories, rebuilding your self-worth and stepping into a radiant life of truth, let's connect. You can always find all the ways to work with me in the show notes.

Speaker 1: 9:37

And oh, one more thing Want to feel better in your body while you rewire your mind. I've been loving the cellular magic of Nueva's Nitro Body and Snow Collagen. Oh my god, they are game changers in my life. They have helped me focus, my energy is up, my confidence is up that's all I can say about it and I just feel so much happier and I believe in sharing what actually works. So tap the link in the show notes to learn more. Until next time. You are worthy, you are radiant and you are rewriting your story.