Monday, March 23, 2009

Talk to Yourself Out Loud, Outside and Often

It all started when I walked outside and saw the murals on the chain link fence across the street. They’re new, big pictures of trees, streams and wildlife. One has a cityscape on it and there are clouds floating in between the panels. They reflect our city and have a larger impact than what the creators may have expected. I’ll likely visit the principal and tell her how much I appreciate the children’s artwork that now decorates our neighbourhood and hearing the kids playing at recess. Our neighbourhood is filled with energy because of the school, children, teachers, activities and creativity they share. I stand outside and talk to myself out loud, smiling and asking questions into the blue sky.

Have a look around, what’s right in front of you that you connect with or may be overlooking? Listen to the landscape and sounds you’re surrounded by. We may all listen to our inside voice; positive, analytical, critical whatever it may be, we most often hear the chatter inside our head. What about your outside voice? Talking out loud to ourselves in public is often linked with mental illness. Call me crazy but talk to yourself out loud and outside because it’s not necessarily due to a chemical imbalance, it’s freeing. We all do it, it gives us another perspective. It adds another dimension to our thoughts.

I find interesting ideas, get unstuck moments, and clarity when I’m outside and talking to myself out loud. Talking out loud helps solve tough problems even, as a fellow out loud talker put it, “it seems like the things I'm most likely to say out loud are the key phrases.” Talking out loud helps in preparation for marketing pitches, difficult discussions, and to decipher complex situations.

You may talk to yourself out loud more when you’re by yourself so why not in public? Social stigma, self-consciousness, many things hold us back from opportunities. Whatever the reason here are a few tips on talking to yourself out loud and outside:

1. First of all the outside part. Start in your own backyard or on your balcony. If you don’t have either open the window, stick your head outside and start talking. It’s similar to stream of consciousness writing that many writers, creativity gurus and reflection specialists tout as being a great way to bolster creativity. Start talking.

2. How long? Start with a minute working your way up to 3-5. You’ll likely find yourself moving from your outside voice to your inside voice, consciously move back again. Talk yourself through the silence, you never know what you’ll come up with.

3. Once you’ve mastered the backyard talk, try it when you’re walking to your destination, could be on the way to your vehicle, on your daily walk or it could be during your daily commute. If you ride transit you may want to start with a cell phone up to your ear so that you won’t get the, well I guess you may still get a funny look because I usually don’t appreciate the loud cell phone talkers in public spaces. Watch your volume.

4. To get the full benefit, build a ritual with your outside, out loud talk. If it’s first thing in the morning, at lunch, driving home or in the evening, decide when you’ll integrate this into your daily routine. It’s a talk out loud break. Making it a daily occurrence gives you an opportunity each day to open a space for something new to emerge, solutions to build and creative connections to happen. Ya it might sound a bit nutty but give it a go.

5. Rocket science it is not, after sharing an idea, a piece of artwork, or a plan we ask others what they think. We want their opinion. Continue to ask and continue to share what you think out loud and move to an outside space. Being outside adds another perspective, it may take you to fresh insights. Moving outside expands your sense of space, seeing more than 4 walls or inside places changes your brain patterns helping you to connect and utilize both hemispheres.

6. Be alert to the next person you SEE thinking and ask what they’re thinking. It’s like showing your work on paper, this is your thought process on how you arrive at your idea. Sharing it involves others in the way you develop and arrive at your ideas. It provides others an opportunity to build on what you’re thinking.

7. This open sharing of thought inspires your inner thoughts to be more congruent with your outer actions, it’s a space for creative idea generation, a method to build solutions, it builds connections as well. When you share your process the motivation is exposed and exposing your motivation will build trust. Give it a try.

8. Share your inspiration and celebrate with others you catch talking out loud. Encourage others to grow through talking out loud, outside. You might inspire others who hear your discussion. More than once I’ve relayed a conversation overheard between 2 people or 1 person when in discussion with themselves. Everything we do has impacts that are greater than what we might expect.

Consciously talk to yourself out loud and outside.

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