Natalie Golberg on Taming Monkey Mind
By: Beth Bruno
Tags: Writers On Writing, Writing, Writer, Writers Block, Writing Tips

Natalie Golberg on Taming Monkey Mind

Learning to quiet the inner critic by giving it its say

Photo by Jamie Haughton on Unsplash

I am taking a writing course from Natalie Goldberg. As the course has heated up, she began to notice that a lot of our questions were about our doubts and fears about our writing. She gave this some thought and when we were together again, she said she realized what was happening was we were writing more and the “monkey mind” was getting busier and busier.

The part of our mind that keeps us uptight and rigid with fear and doubt is what Natalie calls “the monkey mind.” I think of this part of our brains as the most ancient part — the part that evolved to keep us safe from man-eating jaguars and giant condors that could just pick us up and carry us off. This part of our brain has not kept up with the changes in the landscape of our lives.

Our minds grasp onto worries and fears, keeping us small and limiting our ability to create and put ourselves out into the world. Our minds need to be open and relaxed to create. When monkey mind is in residence, we can feel paralyzed, unable to create anything.

Natalie says that as you keep working, writing more and more, monkey mind gets louder. It gets louder because it’s scared. It’s afraid you are going to take off, expose yourself, do what you want to do, be out in the world, be who you are. “Monkey mind’s job is to keep you safe and small.”

We assimilate a lot of voices that tell us how to stay small —voices from parents, teachers, bosses, friends, partners and society at large. “So we try to keep ourselves safe, but it’s not fun,” Natalie says.

When monkey mind seems to get louder and louder it’s a sign you are working, going deeper. You’re onto something and as it gets louder, that’s your signal to keep going.

Everybody has that voice in their head — whether you call it monkey mind, the censor, the inner critic — what have you, it’s there and we recognize it when it starts in on us.

Natalie says if it gets too painful, just give monkey mind its five minutes. Pick up your pen, say “OK monkey mind, say whatever you want. Go.” And then write for five minutes whatever your mind is telling you in its attempt to keep you small. “Let it rip,” she says. “If you’re like me, it doesn’t have that much to say.” She went on to say her monkey mind says “You’ll never amount to anything, anyway.” This is pretty funny since she is one of the most accomplished authors and writing instructors alive today. She says “Monkey mind doesn’t even stay current!”

I have taken Natalie’s advice a few times and let my monkey mind just regurgitate all its nasty bile on the page. Here are a few of the things my monkey mind says to me as I’m trying to write. Or in this case, it woke me at 4 AM and started in on me.

“You’re pathetic. No one wants to read your stories anyway. And what’s with baring your soul? Are you sure that’s smart? It makes you look pathetic, that’s what. Your writing is ok but nothing out of the ordinary. Maybe you should just give this writing thing up. You’re spending an awful lot of time on it. You should be doing other things. If you write a book only about 100 people will read it so you might as well sort your photos instead.” And on and on.

Another time when I did this exercise, monkey mind was all wound up about having to do a book tour if I write a book. “You are an introvert! You will hate it! How exhausting! And what if no one shows up for your readings? How humiliating! I think it’s a bad idea to write a book.”

This makes me laugh because while a lot of this is true, I would say my monkey mind is putting the cart before the horse. I have to write the book first, then we will cross all those bridges.

And so it goes. Monkey mind wants us to stay safe and small. And monkey mind has such a mean voice. Like Natalie said, cowing down to it and keeping ourselves safe and small is not fun. Let your monkey mind have its say and then say “Thank you for your input. I am going to write now.” And then write, write, write. Don’t let monkey mind win. Stand up to it and say I hear you, but I am going to write.

You don’t have to write something amazing. Just write. Natalie says “I’m free to write the worst junk in the world.” Don’t let monkey mind sit over your shoulder and tell you what you are writing stinks. Just keep writing.

That voice inside us, in the form of our monkey mind, can paralyze us. If we get used to it being there and learn its tricks, however, we can overcome its nastiness and just get on with it. Monkey mind will never leave, even though it will quiet down a little as we develop some muscle and learn to ignore it.

With practice, we can learn to see it for what it is — the part of us that wants us to stay safe and small. But we get to decide if we want to stay safe and small. And if we don’t, we are just going to have to get used to that voice. It can’t stop you if you don’t let it.

Natalie says “ If you are not afraid of the voices inside you, you will not fear the critics outside you.”

Then, when you put your work out there in the world, you will have developed a tough skin and you will be better able to withstand the critics outside you. I know for me, no one could be nastier than my own inner voice that tells me I suck.

When Natalie is teaching writing practice, she gives you a topic and then says “10 minutes. Go.” Don’t let monkey mind stop you. The world needs your voice, no matter what that inner critic says. GO.