How to get out of your own way! For good!
Learn the simple tool that helps you escape negative thought spirals before they sabotage your day, or worse your life!
Hi Dreamers!
Writing this from the edge of my bathtub, semi darkness, my pink laptop balancing on my lap. Just finished watching Marie Forleo being interviewed. She admitted to so much dysfunction while also coaching others. How refreshing!
Water’s warm. My thoughts? Not so much.
One minute I was relaxing. The next… I’m spiraling about how I “should” be further ahead. That I am not making good progress. That I am somehow behind.
That’s my most common thought…
That’s what brought me career success pushing further faster than my peers
that also got me to burnout.
But that whole negative monologue… It’s not the truth…
It’s called an “ANT”.
Not the picnic pest type. The mental kind.
The kind that quietly poisons your self-trust. Bad thoughts born out of fear.
pssss….There’s a surprise at the end. FYI, but keep on reading you’ll need that for the next phase.
What Are A.N.T.s?
Automatic Negative Thoughts.
They’re like background apps running on your mental operating system.
Draining energy.
Repeating worst-case scenarios.
Loud enough to paralyze you-but subtle enough that you think,
"This is just being realistic."
Spoiler: It’s not.
It’s fear, dressed up in logic.
The 4 Most Common A.N.T.s?
Let’s meet the usual offenders:.
All-or-Nothing A.N.T.
“If I’m not perfect, I’m a failure.”Mind-Reader A.N.T.
“They didn’t reply. They must be mad at me.”Blame A.N.T.
“It’s my fault. I should’ve done more.”Fortune-Teller A.N.T.
“This will never work. Why even try?”
Sound familiar?
You’re not broken. You’re human.
How to Deal With A.N.T.s (The Long Version That Actually Helps)
ACKNOWLEDGE the A.N.T.
Say it out loud or write it down.
“I just had the thought: I’m falling behind and I’ll never catch up.”
Naming it pulls it out of the shadows.Ask: Is it TRUE?
Not “Is it possible?”-almost everything is.
But:
Is this always true?
Is it universally true?
Would a friend say this to me?
Ask: How does this thought make me FEEL?
→ Anxious? Helpless? Small?
Your feelings are a clue:
Most real truths don’t make you shrink.Ask: How does it make me ACT?
→ Do you procrastinate?
→ Spiral?
→ Cancel your plans and hide under a blanket?Ask: What’s the OUTCOME of believing it?
This is big.
Often, believing an ANT just… keeps you stuck.
And the stuckness “proves” it was right.
(It’s a trap.)Flip it: What’s the Opposite Thought?
“I’m falling behind” → “I’m allowed to rest and still grow.”
“I’ll never figure this out” → “Every expert started as a beginner.”
Now don’t just say the opposite thought:
Close your eyes. Feel it.
Imagine living from that belief for 2 minutes.
How does your body respond?
If you feel even slightly more open, hopeful, or free…
You’ve just stepped into a new mental neighborhood.
🎯 Next-Level: Rewiring That Sticks
Dr. Joe Dispenza calls this mental rehearsal.
You’re not lying to yourself.
You’re practicing a better truth until your brain accepts it.
Want to go deeper? Try this:
Write the ANT on one side of a page.
On the other side, write:
An opposite belief
One tiny thing that supports it
One action you could take today to reinforce it
Example:
ANT: “I’m too behind to start a side hustle.”
Opposite: “I can begin messy and still make progress.”
Supporting truth: “Everyone starts somewhere.”
Action: Sign up for that 30-min workshop I’ve been bookmarking for months.
Repeat this practice every time an ANT shows up.
You’re not being “delusional.”
You’re being deliberate about your mindset.
My Bathtub Moment
So there I was, bathing in hot water, but freezing in self-doubt.
The thought?
“Nobody cares or reads what you put out here. It doesn't matter to anyone but you! You're delusional if you think this will work out!”
But then I asked:
Is it true?
→ No. I’ve done so much. Did amazing things! People like it. At least my husband and a few other people for sure enjoy it.
How does the ANT make me feel?
→ Sad. Disappointed. Overlooked.
How does the ANT make me act?
→ Frenetic. Throwing myself into work to make it not be true.
What’s the opposite thought?
→ “You need to shout into the void for the echo to return to you.”
→ “What I have to share matters.”
→ “There’s plenty of people that care.”
I breathed that in.
Let it land.
And when I got out of that tub-
I didn’t work harder.
I went slower. Took my Me Time with a side of nutella.
And still got this written.
Final Thought:
You don’t get rid of ANTs by force.
You get rid of them by awareness, compassion, and repetition.
That’s it.
That’s the work.
And it works.
Rooting for your peace of mind, always,
Noemi 🎈
P.S. If your brain has a whole colony of ANTs right now-you're not alone.
For paid subscribers, Office Hours are open if you want to sort through them together.
SURPRISE GIVEAWAY!
If you comment and share your most persistent ANT in the below, you can win a 1:1 session with me. We can talk about anything from growing your business, T&Cs, coaching, ANTs, how to cultivate joy YOU NAME IT!