I am letting go of all the self-criticism.

The voice that grades you turns out, if you listen for it, to have an accent. A teacher's phrasing. A parent's timing. Something absorbed at nine years old and never updated since.

It believes it is helping. It thinks the harshness is what stops you getting sloppy, which is why arguing with it head-on goes nowhere — you end up criticising yourself for being self-critical.

Easier to notice it as borrowed. That verdict about not being good enough was never yours to begin with, and you are under no obligation to keep repeating it on someone else's behalf.