My opinion on this is that alot of people associate pain with negativity. And this is the stumbling factor.
The problem with trying to override negativity with positive statements is that it doesn't eradicate the negativity. It still lingers there.
Negative self-talk, I think comes from a fear of failure. (I might be wrong, but hey I'm still young and inexperienced ok) That means you may have lots of goals, but you haven't started going out to really achieve them yet, because you're not sure if it will work, or you're bogged down in other things, etc.
To really address negative self-talk, you have to understand that fear of failure and change it into a learning experience. Just as Michael Jordan didn't make first year high school basketball or something like that, he didn't say "Damn, I'm not very good at basketball. I don't seem to have a natural talent for it, so I might as well not try."
Or when a toddler tries to walk. When he/she falls the first time, he/she doesn't say "Gee, I fell. That probably means I can't walk."
Failure shouldn't be taboo in your life. It should become an everyday enjoyable experience, that you can draw from, and use it to make more failures, and ultimately successes.
I can't remember where I got this quote from, but it sums it up.
Progression, not perfection is the key to success.
-Hope this helps-
Chris
