Do you mind?

I woke up the other day with a note written on my phone. Two words. 'Call Ken.'

My initial thought was 'Who's Ken?' As far as I'm aware, the only Ken I know is my dentist and as reputable a practice as he runs, I very much doubt I would be requesting his services from abroad.

So back to the drawing board. Who was Ken? And why did my semi-conscious stupor put him in my head?

We are all aware of this conversation in the head moment but the real question is why does it happen? The true answer to this is far too scientific and complex to wrap my head around, let alone write about, so I'll stick to the brief version for sanity's sake.

A long time ago a man called Vygotsky developed the term 'private speech,' referring to the inner dialogue that takes place in your mind. One of the best depictions of this is the Pixar animation 'Inside Out,' which offers a day-in-the-life snapshot of the working of our brains. It gives a voice (literally) to the emotions and sensations that we all experience, in a user-friendly and comedic way. The characters (Joy, Fear, Anger, Disgust and Sadness) explain the complexity of the mind through the emotional interactions in our subconscious.

Pixar's character bio for the film explains this more succinctly (nb: see below)!

Joy - lighthearted, optimistic, determined to find fun in every situation. Sees challenges as opportunities.

Fear - protection and safety. Constantly on the lookout for potential disasters, evaluates danger and risks.

Anger - fair, fiery spirit, explodes when things do not go as planned. Overreacts, impatient.

Disgust - opinionated, honest. Good intentions, high standards.

Sadness - misunderstood by other emotions. Difficult to find positivity, offers emotional release.

These emotions are present within everyone, although to varying degrees, and come together as part of our inner dialogue.

So, how can we control this inner dialogue? The simple answer is, we can't. It is impossible to prevent thinking and so inner dialogue is an unavoidable part of being a cognitive human. Of course, people are affected in different ways by these thoughts, some more than others. The real matter is the extent to which we internalise it, and that is up to you.

#life