Chatter: The Voice in Our Head, Why It Matters, and How to Harness It

Chapter 2 explores how negative internal dialogue can undermine one’s performance, relationships, and physical health. Kross begins with the story of Rick Ankiel, a promising baseball pitcher whose career spiraled after throwing several wild pitches during a playoff game in October 2000. Despite his remarkable talent, Ankiel’s mind became flooded with negative thoughts—what he called “the monster”—that disrupted his automatic pitching skills. This case illustrates how excessive self-awareness can interfere with well-practiced abilities, a phenomenon Kross terms “unlinking.”

Kross explains that high-level skills like gymnast Simone Biles’ triple-double function as linked, automatic behaviors that operate without conscious direction. When anxiety triggers excessive analysis of these movements, it breaks down the seamless chain of actions, resulting in analysis paralysis. This disruption can devastate performances in sports, public speaking, and other high-pressure situations.

The negative impact of internal chatter extends beyond automatic behaviors to affect executive functions—the brain’s ability to focus attention, reason effectively, and exercise self-control. These functions, primarily controlled by the prefrontal regions, have limited capacity (for instance, people can handle only about three to five units of information simultaneously). When negative thoughts consume these resources, one’s ability to perform complex tasks deteriorates significantly. This explains why reading after an argument or taking tests while anxious becomes extremely difficult.