Speaking to yourself in the third person makes you wiser
The most damaging advice I ever got in my life was to talk to myself.<p>I have always thought in mostly visual&#x2F;symbolic terms. This made me really good with math early in my life, but it started failing when I began proof writing. Then I got the advice to &quot;explain the problem to yourself and the solution will come naturally&quot; from a friend who is really gifted at mathematical proofs. (And also later received similar advice in programming in the form of &quot;rubber duck debugging&quot;).<p>Surprisingly, it works remarkably well and probably increased my problem solving skills tenfolds, or at least my ability to communicate the answer. I started using it for everything.<p>But it comes with the side effect of gaining a voice in your head. And that voice is a fucking vicious asshole to me. In the recent years the thoughts even started subvocalizing and I have to forcefully remember to make it stop. It&#x27;s super embarrassing when there are other people around you.<p>I am sure this problem is unique to me because I have never heard someone describe it (other than partially matching symptoms of schizophrenia or tourette). But I am certain in my case when the voices started and I am not sure the superpower problem solving skills are worth the trade.