Negativity in a positive world

So the negative self-talk thing. I know how to solve it; you just start being nicer to yourself. You repeat good phrases, like when Adam says, "I am lovable and capable." You just can tell yourself something good instead of something bad. But why do we do it?

"Sometimes we initiate negative self-talk because we are afraid of a new experience or a scary or uncomfortable situation." Scary and uncomfortable is definitely where I start to tell myself the bad things. But I know I can't control anything, which is probably why I'm scared.

When Erin talked the other day she said, "When I was drunk I wasn't afraid of anything or anyone. And then when I got sober I realized that really, I was afraid of everything and everyone." I'm not scared of anything, I thought, but I am really scared of being jobless for a long time. I don't want to do it, and the longer it takes to find a job the more down on myself I get. I worry that no one will want me; that it's obvious I can't do the position. This is all just negative self-talk, I know.

But, "The first step toward change is to become more aware of the problem." I'm already there, which has to be a good sign.