The Philosophy of Silence the Mindcluck®
This philosophy guides both my life and my work as a coach.
Have you ever noticed…
…that sometimes you do already know, deep down, what you want to do, but something keeps getting in the way?
Your mind tells you all the reasons it won’t work.
It replays old conversations.
It imagines worst-case scenarios.
It worries about disappointing other people.
It analyzes every option until they all start to look the same.
The more you think, the harder it is to figure out your next step.
I call that mindcluck.
I believe everyone experiences it.
It can make even simple decisions feel much harder than they need to be.
What purpose does mindcluck serve?
By working on this extensively in my own life, I have come to see mindcluck as a useful signal for deeper exploration, rather than something to fight, get aggravated by, or ignore.
When your mind fills with worries, doubts, or endless analysis, I’ve found that approaching it with curiosity often reveals useful information.
You may discover some kind of internal friction that blocks the clarity you seek, like…
- a limiting belief
- a fear
- a boundary that you struggle with
- another person’s opinion that keeps coming up
- an internal conflict between wants or needs
- a past experience that influences how you feel today
By exploring the roots of your mindcluck, you give yourself the opportunity to examine whether those beliefs, fears, or assumptions are true and relevant to the situation you are facing. In my experience, often they are not.
When you recognize that what is driving your mindcluck is not true or no longer relevant, it’s easier to quiet that mental noise. As the mental noise recedes, clarity often emerges naturally, making it easier to tune into your own inner wisdom. You can then take action aligned with that wisdom.
Recognizing Your Wise Self
I believe that everyone has a wise self. It’s that deep inner wisdom of what is true for you. For example,
Have you ever viscerally known what your next step was?
Have you ever felt completely secure in your stance even when others are trying to convince you otherwise?
Have you ever noticed that once the mental noise quieted, the answer became surprisingly obvious?
I consider these to be examples of the wise self in action. You might call it something other than wise self…gut sense, inner knowing, inner wisdom, etc. Whatever label works best for you is great.
I believe that the wise self is always there, and that it is dynamic. It is continually expanding by integrating life experience and what we learn.
The challenge is that the wise self is often obscured by mindcluck.
For whatever challenge you face, I consider my role to be helping you silence the mindcluck to access and use the wisdom that is already within you. I draw from my own life experience, knowledge, intuition, and perspective to ask insightful questions, offer observations, and help you recognize what is getting in the way. From there, we build practical strategies that align with your wisdom, and that you’ll actually put into action.
Take Aligned Action
It can be easy to reach an “aha” moment and think, “Now I know what’s true for me in this situation,” only to find yourself wondering how to move forward. Sometimes that uncertainty can even bring on another round of mindcluck.
I’ve found that the key is breaking whatever you’re trying to accomplish into small, doable action steps; steps you’ll actually take rather than avoid or procrastinate on.
In some situations, it can also be helpful to think of that step as an experiment. You can take one step, notice whether it still feels true to you, and then decide what to do next. This gives you the opportunity to adapt as you go.
As you move forward, it can be helpful to pause from time to time and ask yourself, Am I still acting according to my own wisdom? If the answer is no, it’s an opportunity to become curious about what has shifted and to check in with your own wisdom before taking the next step.
Silence the Mindcluck Is an Ongoing Practice
A practice of becoming curious rather than reactive.
A practice of quieting the mental noise.
A practice of recognizing what is true for you.
A practice of integrating new experiences and what you learn into your own wisdom.
A practice of returning to the wisdom that is already within you.
A practice of taking action that is aligned with that wisdom.
Life is guaranteed to bring new challenges, crises, decisions, opportunities and transitions. Each one is another opportunity to tune into and act from your own wisdom.
Fostering Internal Security
I’ve found that the ongoing practice of returning to the wise self gradually changes your relationship with mindcluck. Rather than being derailed by it, you become better able to recognize it, become curious about it, and return to your own wisdom.
Over time, this practice fosters a deep sense of what I call internal security: the ability to easily access and trust your own wisdom.
As your internal security grows, it becomes easier to live from your own wisdom more consistently, even when doing so feels difficult.
If you’re ready to silence the mindcluck, let’s talk.