(ThyBlackMan.com) A heckler is a person who interrupts a performer or public speaker with derisive or derogatory comments or abuse. One of the most famous public hecklers in American culture is a man named Robin Ficker. Ficker was a passionate fan of the NBA’s Washington Bullets. He is most famous for his storied picture heckling behind Michael Jordan and for Charles Barkley flying him in for the 1993 Western Conference Finals to get into the head of the Chicago Bulls.
Ficker was an external heckler. But did you know that we each have an inner heckler? It is that voice of derision, abuse and pessimism that keeps many people from reaching their potential. Our inner heckler poisons our dreams, stifles our courage and causes us miss our appointment with destiny; it pokes fun at our ambitions.
If this sounds like you, here are three ways to mute the inner 
heckler and reclaim your brand-new future.
Seek the Repose of Silence
Without question, the best place to confront your inner heckler is in the Silence. This would appear to be counter intuitive. One would think that seeking the place of noise would be the most effective remedy for drowning the heckler’s voice. Consider, however, the words of the great orator Pythagoras, Silence are better than unmeaning words. It’s important that you master the Silence and allow the Silence to master you. Initially, your thoughts will race wildly about, but with concentration and focus, you will begin to train your heckler to obey your command – as opposed to the other way around.
We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness, wrote Mother Teresa. Indeed, when we find God in Silence we conquer the noise of the heckler.
Focus on the Good
Focusing on the good stifles the voice of the heckler. This requires mental discipline. Our brains are inundated with negative sensory information daily. It requires hard, mental discipline to conquer the voice of the inner heckler.
Much of how we respond to our lives is shaped by the way we have been taught to view it. Former United Nations Ambassador Andrew Young once admitted that his parents taught him that life is a burden. Through hard work and determination, though, he came to realize that if you take it one day at a time, it’s an easy burden.
Your job is made much easier when you focus your thoughts on the good things happening in your personal life. Well you might say ‘There’s nothing good happening in my life!’ I’d disagree. If you are alive, breathing, able to walk and talk; if you have a gift or skill, if you can think and rationalize – you are already ahead of the game!
‘Good’ can be discovered in personal victories, quality relationships, meaningful work and connections to the community.
You have a brain, a nervous system and opposable thumbs. You have the stuff for success!
Share your Power
Former NBC News Anchorman, Tom Brokaw once offered some great insight on the value of education. He said: You may think of it as the ticket to the good life. Let me ask you to think of an alternative. Think of it as your ticket to change the world.
We are part of something bigger. Do not make the mistake of focusing exclusively on selfish motives. When you expand your vision of yourself to include the plight of others, you do much to banish the inner heckler. Your inner heckler becomes lost in the symphony of bigger ideas.
Share your power, as opposed to seeking to consolidate it. Those are meager words in a hyper-competitive society that seeks to extract every ounce of energy from the person dispossessed of true understanding.
If you master the Silence, focus on the good happening in your life and share your power, you will do much to mute the inner heckler.
Staff Writer; W. Eric Croomes
This talented brother is a holistic lifestyle exercise expert and founder and executive coach of Infinite Strategies LLC, a multi-level coaching firm that develops and executes strategies for fitness training, youth achievement and lifestyle management. Eric is an author, fitness professional, holistic life coach and motivational speaker.
In October 2015, Eric released Life’s A Gym: Seven Fitness Principles to Get the Best of Both, which shows readers how to use exercise to attract a feeling of wellness, success and freedom (Infinite Strategies Coaching LLC, 2015) – http://www.infinitestrategiescoaching.com.