Inner Critic Quiz

When I’m about to start a brand new project I’m most likely to be thinking Am I doing this right? I wonder what my friends/colleagues/family will think about this? How quickly can I get this done - there are several other projects that I’m also keen to get stuck into Is this something I really should be doing? I’m not sure I know what I'm doing... maybe I’ve bitten off more than I can chew Have I covered absolutely all the possibilities? I really need to get this right from the start I hope this will turn out as good as what I saw her/him do - that was amazing...

You've been invited to a business related event and when you get there you realise you don’t know anyone but the host. What are you thinking? This is going to be really uncomfortable, everyone knows everyone, I’ll just stay out of the way and leave as soon as I can What can I do, how can I help and how can I make sure the host know I really appreciate the invitation? Arrghh, I cannot believe I am wearing this, look at how everyone else is dressed, I knew I should have worn xyz…… Wow, lots of people here, time to work the room, to talk with as many people as possible, you just never know who you might meet if you make an effort! Ok, there’s lots of people here, right, what am I going to say when people ask me what do I do? I’ve practiced this…. but let’s just have a wee final run through first...

You are in a restaurant with friends and when your meal arrives it doesn't match your order. You are most likely to: Immediately ask for the waiter and check with everyone at the table to ensure they are 100% happy with their meals as well before you have yours replaced Just eat it anyway, it’s no big deal and you don’t want everyone else to feel they have to wait for you. See if anyone else has noticed or if anyone else is complaining about what they have received and follow their lead Immediately ask for the waiter to have the meal replaced, you know what you ordered and are entitled to have it presented correctly Quietly accept the meal, you were finding it hard to choose anyway and this is probably what you should have chosen

A friend calls, excitedly sharing their news about reaching a big business goal. It's similar to something you’ve been working towards. How are you likely to react? Genuinely celebrate with them and then work out how you can best support them to make the most of this achievement Start to make a list in your head of all the ways in which what you’re working on is different, better or not as good as hers and oscillate wildly between feeling really good and really bad…. Resign yourself to the fact that she was always much more likely to succeed than you in this area because she had so much more experience, skills and qualifications Immediately work out how you can adjust your goal and also focus on some additional ideas and objectives that will mean the end result is even better than you first planned. Focus on where her achievement, although great and no doubt highly satisfying for her, has some obvious holes which your idea will fix and redouble your efforts to get it finished ASAP

You’ve been feeling a bit run down lately because there is a lot on your plate. You are most likely to: Just redouble your efforts, there’s so much that you want to achieve at the moment and you know that feeling tired is just part and parcel of a busy life Feel impatient and a bit cranky with yourself - everyone you know has to juggle a lot, you’re no different and should be able to cope Get straight to your naturopath, doctor or kinesiologist – they’ll be able to help you get on top of things Begin to feel that you are just not cut out for the demands of business and begin to wonder if you should let it go and get a "real job" Simply accept it, there’s a lot of people relying on you and you’ll get a chance to rest when these projects are out of the way…

When you consider where you have got to in your business and life so far, how do you feel? I can see that I am definitely making good progress but there is just so much that I want to achieve I’m both excited and overwhelmed It’s really important that I consider the impact choices I make have on my family and other significant people around me as I move forward There are so many people that I am aware of in my field/industry/social circles and I oscillate between feeling inspired and deflated by what they are doing! A lot of what I’ve achieved so far has been really fortunate – I’m lucky to have been in the right place at the right time Overall I’m quite happy but I can get frustrated that there are some things that just haven’t turned out exactly how I expected or planned

When you have the opportunity to talk about what you do, how are you most likely to respond? Downplaying my achievements – I think it’s a bit arrogant to talk about things like that Only talking about the things that I feel I have really excelled in – no one wants to hear about things that aren’t really successful Referring to what others are doing in my industry or network to give context to what I am doing Quickly turning the conversation around to the other person – it’s more important to show an interest in others than it is to focus on yourself Finding it really difficult to condense all the things I am up to in a short time space!

If people were describing you to someone what do you think they would be most likely to say? She never seems to stop and has so many goals and ideas - I don’t know how she juggles everything! To be honest I’m not exactly sure what it is that she does - she doesn't really talk about it a lot She is really detailed, organised and incredibly reliable, you can always count on her She is so thoughtful and considerate, nothing is ever too much trouble for her – she is just such a lovely person She always seems to know exactly what’s happening in the business/online world, what everyone is doing, she's really got her finger on the pulse