The power of positive affirmations

“Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t – you’re right.”

Henry Ford

Have you ever thought you’ll never succeed? Brought yourself down and compared yourself to others because you are not doing “as well” as them?

Most of us have negative thoughts, which influence our mood and confidence. The problem with negative thoughts is that they can become self-fulfilling prophecies.

Instead of making yourself feel less, why don’t you try and bring yourself up?

This is where positive affirmations can help change your life!

What are positive affirmations?

Positive affirmations are brief phrases designed to encourage feelings and attitudes of happiness and self-confidence.

The word “affirmation comes from the Latin affirmare which means “to strengthen” or “to make steady”.

Have you ever faced something scary and felt the need to give yourself a little pep talk like “I can do this!” or “I can pass this exam.”?

Positive affirmations are like that but a little more organized.

The benefits of using positive affirmations

Positive affirmations have scientific backing! If you train yourself right the benefits can be quite powerful. [1]

They are a great tool to help you change yourself for the better.

Here are just a few benefits to positive affirmations:

• Positive thinking

A lot of us have become more cynical and realistic in this modern age. Mental health issues are rising everywhere and it’s becoming more and more difficult to see the bright side of life. We are more connected than ever before and yet we are more isolated as well.

You need to believe in yourself to be your best self.

• Improve self-confidence and self-esteem

Telling yourself “I can do it!” can really boost your confidence. This is rooted in psychological theory. The more you believe in something, the realer it feels, the more achievable your goals are.

Actually speaking the words aloud to yourself can make a huge difference.

A coach saying the right words can help his boxer win the fight.

A soldier will fight better and be braver if his leader gives a rallying speech.

Words and thoughts have power, so why not use your own to help yourself?

• Control negative feelings like frustration, anger and impatience

A lot of people have low self-esteem. It’s hard not to. Whenever you look at your phone you see hundreds of other people seemingly enjoying the most amazing lives. Looking especially good or traveling or finding love.

It’s human to want these things but you also need to remember that a lot of the stuff you see is just the “social face” people put on.

Having the confidence to be yourself can be daunting. But you don’t need to burden yourself with wishing for someone else’s life when yours is the one you can actually influence.

• Reduce stress and live a better quality of life

We all know that stress and self-doubt can be crippling. Training yourself to stay positive will weaken the stress response and help you move on more easily.

With less stress, you are less likely to have health problems related to it (like heart diseases, headaches and stomach pains).

• Better productivity and help in reaching your goals

Do you want to get something done? You have to believe you can do it first. A lot of self-help books, professional psychologists and even a song or two tell you that “Believing is half the battle”.

Just by setting a goal and giving yourself a deadline, you can help motivate yourself to finish a task. [2]

• A good way to unlearn bad habits

You can learn to stop sabotaging yourself by setting different patterns and repeating the same things over and over.

The managers at your job probably use similar tactics to get people to work better together. [3]

Do positive affirmations really work?

Yes. It’s scientifically proven and the practice is based on well-established psychological theory.

Your brain is adaptable and very flexible. You can learn new things and change your behaviors by repeating certain actions or phrases the same way you can train a muscle to be stronger.

This is called Neuroplasticity – and you can read more about it here!

Creating a pattern of positive thoughts will alter your mind and overwrite the negative ones.

Visualization is also a powerful tool because your brain is not very good at telling the difference between reality and imagination. [4]

Change yourself by changing the narrative of your brain!

References:

[1] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25646442/

[2] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6796229/

[3] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11143157/

[4] https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/12/181210144943.htm