Living your life in the game vs. in the stands, or in our heads. In the stands is the inner critic. Brene Brown calls the Court “in the arena.” Living your life fully, like a gladiator in the arena, is taking risks and being vulnerable.

If you're in the stands for life, it can quickly pass you by; judging yourself, talking negatively towards yourself, and preventing yourself from making choices; just cheering on the game, and never being in it. 

Get on the court today. Notice when you’re talking yourself down from something. The inner critic is there as a defense mechanism. He wants to keep you alive and keep you from living outside of safety and -- but instead of a life, what you get is death by sadness or boredom if you always listen to him. Remember, no one is getting out of this thing alive. Notice when your inner critic is fully controlling your life, and physically pull yourself back to reality and out of that anxiety.

 

References: The Landmark Forum - created by Werner Erhard; Daring Greatly - Brene Brown; On Being Human - Jen Pastiloff