The ObservatoryTalk to yourself in the third person
When the feeling boils — swap "I" for your name, and see how much clearer it becomes.
How it works
- Take something that chafes right nowWrite
- Swap out the word IWrite
- Give yourself the advice you'd give a friendWriteChoose
- Take the trick with youWrite
Think of something that gnaws — a worry, a conflict, a decision you keep turning over. The kind of thing that easily starts rumination when you're alone with it.
Exercise in 4 steps, about 9 minutes. Doing it is part of Premium, which you try free for 7 days with no card. With Premium your answers are saved so you can pick up where you left off and look back at what you wrote.
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Why does it work?
Reflecting on yourself in the third person lowers emotional reactivity and improves self-control — and seems to require relatively little cognitive effort. Kross et al., Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (2014); Moser et al., Scientific Reports (2017).
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