HOW TO UNLOCK THE POWER OF POSITIVE AFFIRMATIONS
Let’s about the power of positive affirmations and how changing our thoughts can have a huge impact.
Ok so this week did not get off to the best start, on Monday I swear between me and Lynn we felt like it was all going wrong... every single piece of equipment and machinery was playing up and having a moment. You may have seen my huge fallout on instagram with my sticker machine... (we’re besties again now!)
When something goes wrong and we face a new challenge that seems impossible to solve, it can be difficult. It’s so easy to spiral, think ‘I can’t do this’ and find yourself laid on the floor curled up in a ball... (I’m speaking from personal experience here!)
Our behaviours and actions are directly impacted by our thoughts. Think ‘I can’t’ and you won’t - think ‘I can’ and you’re halfway there.
My favourite affirmation for facing challenging situations is this,
As I take on new challenges I feel confident and powerful.
Saying this to yourself and believing it transforms your thoughts, which transform your actions.
This is actually one of the affirmations in our new postcard, print and sticker set.
In the new mini range I launched this week, I pulled together all my favourite and most impactful affirmations that have helped me, and continue to help me face challenges and reach my goals.
There are a few things that can make affirmations more powerful and impactful though, so here are my top tips for using them to actually get results...
1. Meaning and connection
The more you connect to the affirmation the better. In particular, understanding the beliefs that are holding you back and then being able to rewrite and reframe them with your affirmations is so powerful.
For example - you may believe that you never stick to fitness plans, if you believe that you are far less likely to stick to the new plan you are starting. So reframe this belief to be something like, ‘I love fitness and I am disciplined person who always follows through’. It doesn’t even have to be true yet, fake it til you make it.
2. You have to believe it
You can say any affirmation to yourself, but if in the back of your mind you think ‘whatever, I don’t really believe this’ then it won’t be as impactful - or let me rephrase it’s a waste of time. Feel the words and believe them!
3. Repeat, so the thought pattern becomes a habit
Forming new thought patterns is like forming a new habit, repetition helps to make it stick. So say it over in your head many times, make it the first thing you look at when you get up in the morning, write it in your journal. Repeat, repeat, repeat.
To take the story I told you at the beginning as an example, we’re training ourselves so that when a challenge arises we have a positive thought pattern in place to overcome them.