ANTS in the Arena
“It’s not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes up short again and again; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.” -Teddy Roosevelt
We all ( I assume) want to be bold. And we all want the credit when we’re busting our butt to reach a goal. That’s why this quote can be found on inspirational blogs and posters across the internet. My dad had this quote on the wall in his clinic. Coaches across America have had this quote in their office for decades. At The Workshop we have it framed and hanging near our co-work area. It’s a great quote. It’s great for spurring you on to try harder, be bolder, and not give a flying efff what other people think.
This quote also makes me think about another type of critic. A sneaky, subtle, sinister critic. It’s in the arena with us. It’s the voice in your head that tells you you’re an idiot for trying. It’s the voice that’s quick to say, “I told you so” when something doesn’t go well. This voice is more than an annoying obstalcle on the road to success. This voice quite literally shapes the lens through which you work. It can steal your joy and make it impossible to find contentment, even when things are going well. I know this voice well.
A book I read to my kids call this voice, these thoughts; ANTS (automatic negative thoughts). The book is silly and defines the many types of ANTS that can infest our mind. It’s called, “Captain Snout and the Super Power Questions.” Captain Snout is, you guessed it, an anteater and he visits some kids when they are having trouble staying positive while working towards a goal. I read this book to my kids a lot back when we were starting The Workshop. It wasn’t until much later I realized I had a very real problem with many of the automatic negative thoughts. There’s the “All or Nothing Ant”, “Just the Bad Ant”, “ Fortune Teller Ant”, “Mind Reader Ant”, and “Blaming Ant”,
The questions you’re supposed to ask yourself when dealing with your inner critic aka ANTS are simple, “Is this thought true?” “Are you 100% sure it’s true?” Sounds silly, but by slowing down, checking in with your mind, and asking these questions you can stop the catastrophizing. You can stop the cynical, critical mind from becoming a mountain of an obstacle on the road to joy and contentment, while working hard in the arena. They work, if you’re willing to give them a shot. I can tell you from experience, you may feel silly when asking these pretty obvious questions in the midst of a negative mind rant. But they can help elevate your thoughts and mitigate the inner critic. Get the book and read it if you want more insight into the different types of automatic negative thoughts to see if any are polluting your mind.
Last thought, if you’re a parent and a business owner the life lessons come at you like water through a firehose. Stay committed to learning and maturing. It’s a daily decision and it’s worth it!
