It had been a rough morning. Inse felt his stomach twist as he slammed his locker shut. His teacher had moved his seat in class, and now he was stuck next to a classmate who always interrupted him. Frustration boiled inside him.
This isn’t fair! Just tell the teacher you won’t do it! Yell if you have to! the voice of insecurity urged.
Curity, walking by, noticed Inse’s tense shoulders. “Hey,” she said. “What’s up?”
Inse crossed his arms. “Ms. Taylor changed my seat, and now I’m next to Ethan, who never lets me talk. It’s making me so mad.”
Curity nodded. “That sounds frustrating. But Inse, what’s making it worse right now—the problem or the way the voice of insecurity is reacting to it?”
Inse blinked. He hadn’t thought about it like that before.
Curity continued. “You know today’s lesson: 1 TFM – Ignore the Voice of Insecurity. That voice wants you to react without thinking. But you don’t have to. You can choose calm instead.”
“How?” Inse asked, still tense.
Curity pointed to a quiet spot in the hallway. “Come with me for a second.”
They sat down on a bench. “Close your eyes,” Curity said. “Picture your anger like a balloon. Now imagine letting it go.”
Inse hesitated, but then he tried. In his mind, he saw a red balloon floating up, up, up into the sky. His breath slowed.
When he opened his eyes, Curity grinned. “How do you feel?”
“Lighter,” Inse admitted. “Less mad.”
Later in class, Ethan interrupted him again—but instead of snapping, Inse ignored the voice of insecurity telling him to react. Instead, he waited for a pause, then calmly spoke up.
To his surprise, Ethan actually listened.
After class, Curity met him with a high-five. “You ignored the voice of insecurity, and it helped you stay in control. That’s real strength, Inse.”
As Inse walked home, he smiled. Maybe ignoring that voice wasn’t so hard after all.
The story highlights 1 TFM – Ignore the Voice of Insecurity, showing how Inse learns to control his emotions by choosing not to listen to the negative inner voice! 🚀
