What are affirmations and why do we use them?
From Positive Psychology, Neuro-Linguistic Programming and manifestation, we are taught that our thoughts have power. With this understanding, we can choose our words more carefully to cultivate a positive internal and external environment for ourselves.
Positive affirmations are often called a tool, whereby we create statements (or mantras) about who we want to be, positive traits, situations, or outcomes. I would argue that affirmations are completely natural to us; we could consider all the thoughts we've had today as a form of unconscious affirmations. These uncontrolled thoughts solidify and maintain our self concept and our lives in the current state that we observe. Our thoughts turn into beliefs, intentions and desires, which then lead our actions. As a result, changing your mindset can be seen as the key to making a lasting change in your life.
A large amount of research shows that applying self-affirmations as a positive psychology intervention can decrease stress, while increasing an individuals wellbeing, academic performance and making them open to behavioral changes. In situations where a person feels scared or threatened, affirmations can also have a beneficial effect.*
Affirmations may support and affirm your self-worth, strengths, and values widening your perception of yourself.
Here's 30 affirmations to shift your mindset and change your life:
I am healthy, happy and completely lovable
Good things are always happening to me
Everything always works out perfectly for me
I am successful, my life is full of opportunities
I am abundant
Isn't it wonderful
I radiate positivity and happiness
Happiness is my natural state of being
I am creative, good ideas flow easily to me
I am confident and successful in everything I do
I do what I love and I am experiencing abundance
I believe in myself and I am capable of everything
I am respect, appreciated and cherished - everyone loves me
Every area of my life is thriving
I am happy, fulfilled and loved
Everyday in every way my life gets better
Somehow some way I can have what I am
I am good enough, exactly as I am right now
I am grateful for...
I am the best version of me
I can achieve anything I desire
Love is easy for me
I am peaceful, I let go of fear and worry
I always have everything I need, there is always enough
I have a 100% success rate
My body is calm and my mind is at peace
I can do, be and have anything I want
This too shall pass
I am safe, I am secure and I am loved
I am magnetic, I attract positive experiences into my life
We don't need to repeat affirmations like parrots to see their benefits. Simply saying affirmations when the topic pops into our mind can bring success.
Adding feeling words can also be a great way to support the subconscious mind in embodying the new state. For example, I feel so relieved that everything has worked out for me. A key question to ask yourself when deciding on an emotive word is "If I had what I wanted, how would I feel?". The word that automatically arises is from your subconscious mind and represents the most accurate description of how you would feel. You may find if you ask the same question over and over again for the same topic...the emotive word that you get is the same.
Go with affirmations that feel natural and authentic to you. They will support you on your journey to being the best version of yourself
Incase you want to look at some research, these two articles were used in the research section above.
Citation:
Cascio, C. N., O'Donnell, M. B., Tinney, F. J., Lieberman, M. D., Taylor, S. E., Strecher, V. J., & Falk, E. B. (2016). Self-affirmation activates brain systems associated with self-related processing and reward and is reinforced by future orientation. Social cognitive and affective neuroscience, 11(4), 621–629. https://doi.org/10.1093/scan/nsv136
* Cohen, G. L., & Sherman, D. K. (2014). The psychology of change: Self-affirmation and social psychological intervention. Annual review of psychology, 65, 333-371.