Hi,

Let me tell you a story.

One afternoon, while I was still learning to kiteboard, I went out for a session. The water was still pretty calm, just a few ripples on the surface. It was late in the season, and I heard there were sharks in the bay. I was the only one out. I put my kite up in the air and started practicing my jibes (turns).

Then I saw it. It was big and following me closely.

I turned around. It followed me again. I panicked and crashed.

Now is your chance to come and eat me, I thought to myself.

Nothing happened. I launched my kite again and looked down. It was still there.

Then it hit me. The “shark” I saw was the shadow from my kite.

I laughed. Hard.

​

Our mind can play tricks, turning harmless shadows into imagined threats. This tendency isn’t random—it’s rooted in our biology.

Our brains are literally hardwired to scan for threats. Early humans needed this hypervigilance to survive; those who stayed alert for predators lived to pass on their genes. This ancient programming, negativity bias means we have dedicated neural real estate for producing and processing negative thoughts and emotions. Think of it this way: our ancestors' brains needed to care more about the rustle in the grass that might be a tiger than the beautiful sunset on the horizon. This survival mechanism, while once helpful, now keeps us stuck in self-sabotaging thought patterns.

Negativity bias can make you feel guilty about taking time off, fearing you’ll fall behind. You may overlook the toll overwork takes on your mental health. You may struggle to appreciate positive achievements or moments of joy chasing some distant goal into the future. Negativity bias can lead to overly cautious decisions, driven by fear of failure. You end up stuck in a job you hate for too long, don’t speak up in a meeting, and fear change because what-if it doesn’t end well?

This mechanism creates a tendency to:

• Focus on failures rather than successes.
• Overemphasize criticism and downplay compliments.
• Amplify feelings of inadequacy when comparing oneself to others.

We’re more afraid of our own shadows than the threats that truly exist. Our minds play an endless loop of fears, doubts, and "what-ifs" that keep us trapped in patterns of anxiety and fear. The brutal self-talk always running in the background, encourages self-criticism and harsh inner dialogue, fear of rejection and comparisons, and scarcity mindset. One negative comment can outweigh 10 positive ones, reinforcing a narrative of failure or inadequacy. Our brain is constantly focused on what we lack—time, money, status, or accomplishments- reinforcing a sense of unworthiness. The result we always need more to prove our value - to ourselves and others.

I call this internal, cyclical broadcast the Radio Me Station.

In the context of Hustle Culture, you may recognize it as:

You're falling behind.
​ You need to do more.
​ Don’t be lazy.
​ You're not enough, unless…

Constant chatter. Constant noise. Constant self-sabotage. The hustle mentality is a noisy radio station, and changing the dial is a revolutionary act of self-love.

As long as you know it’s just a station, you can change the frequency.

Here’s the simple formula: Thoughts →Beliefs → Feelings → Experiences.

Until the next time.

​
-Milena

​

P.S. Ready to go deeper? I'm starting a small intimate cohort of 8 rebels in Feb to go through the 10-week deep dive Unhustle journey in my program, Harmonia. Schedule a free call here to see if it's a good fit.

​​​​​​​​​

​

​