Building A Winning Mindset - “Using Positive Affirmations to Combat Stress”
Hello BDC Readers!
This is the second blog in our “Building a Winning Mindset” series. Over the next few weeks I will dedicate a blog post to helping you #buildawinningmindset. This week’s post focuses on “Using Positive Affirmations to Combat Stress”. I was a huge fan of Being Mary Jane and one of the things I took from the show was her post-it notes of affirmations and sayings she would hang all around her house. I have implemented that same thing in my home and my office. It is also something that I suggest to my clients when we are working on positive self-talk, trying to work towards a goal, or they are combating some issue. Affirmations can be a very powerful thing. They can help clear your thoughts, and help you restructure the way you think about something. Let’s jump into this post!
Many people use affirmations for personal development and to help them meet their life goals. Affirmations are positive reminders that can be used to encourage and motivate you. It is an excellent way to empower yourself through words, overcome self-sabotage, and negative thoughts. But did you know you can use affirmations to build resilience and combat stress as well? Whether it's a one-off stress like having to give a presentation or an ongoing stressful issue, you can create the right affirmations to support you through. Affirmations will help you deal better with current stress, and over time, prevent future anxiety. We all know that we should think more positively. But, it’s not easy to change our thinking. Our thought processes quickly become habits that are challenging to change.
Use these ideas to make the most of affirmations:
As previously stated, affirmations are one way to take control of your thinking. Not only are you thinking something positive when you repeat an affirmation, but you’re also avoiding a negative thought at the same time. That’s progress!
You might think that you know all about affirmations, but many of the common assumptions are incorrect. There’s no point in wasting your time with affirmations that are doomed to fail. Educate yourself about affirmations before spending any time and energy on them.
The effective use of affirmations can have a positive effect on your thoughts and behavior.
Understand the characteristics of an effective affirmation:
The affirmation must be in the present tense, such as, “I eat healthy food each day.” A poor affirmation is: “I will eat healthy food each day.” That statement is in the future tense.
An affirmation must be positive. “I don’t eat unhealthy food,” is an example of our same affirmation stated in the negative, which doesn’t work effectively either.
List your current weaknesses. The lower-rated areas of your life are dragging you down. It’s best to create affirmations that address your weaknesses. Make a list of what you consider to be your weaknesses as a first step.
Which weakness is causing you the greatest trouble? Which one would you choose to turn around if you could?
Create 3-5 affirmations that address your greatest weakness. There are thousands of affirmations you can find online, or feel free to invent your own. Make a list and then choose a couple that give you the greatest emotional boost when you read them.
Avoid engaging in negative thought patterns. Negative thoughts undo your positive thoughts. It’s like baling water from a leaking boat. You can’t make real progress until you stop the leaks. When you notice you’re having a negative thought, stop yourself and repeat your affirmations to yourself.
Use your affirmations in different forms. Avoid just thinking your affirmations to yourself. There are many other options. Use them all. Cover all the bases and you’ll be more likely to experience success.
Read them. Speak them aloud. Record and listen to them. Visualize yourself acting as if the affirmation were reality. Repeat them to yourself silently.
Use your affirmations throughout the day, but also use a schedule. Set aside five minutes, three times each day, to repeat your affirmations. You can do this during normal alone time in your life. You might repeat your affirmations in the shower, driving to work, your lunch break, driving home, or in bed at night.
Be prepared to change your behavior. Affirmations ultimately produce changes in your life when your behavior changes. Affirmations aren’t a form of magic, but they can change your focus and beliefs. Be ready to use those changes to facilitate changing your behavior.
Combating Stress Specifically:
Know Your Negative Enemy - Identifying your negative thoughts is the first step in working out the best affirmations for you and your situation.
Take a moment to think of all the beliefs that come up when you think about your stressful event. Do you worry about not knowing what to say at a party, or freezing while you try to give a presentation?
Write down every negative thought that pops into your head. Make the conscious decision to move away from those negative beliefs.
Turn the Negatives into Positives - Now you have your list of negative thoughts; you can take each one and turn it into a positive. Make strong positive statements and remind yourself of times in the past when you coped well in similar situations.
When you develop your affirmations, tie them back to times when you have succeeded in the past. If you can't think of any, ask your partner, friend, or colleague to help you.
Likely they'll have a much more positive view of your skills and achievements than you do! Write down some encouraging phrases to get you through, like 'I'm feeling stressed, but I will be ok,' 'I can do this,' 'When this is over, I will be so proud of myself.'
Keep Your Affirmations Realistic - Affirmations are not magic. Keep your affirmations in proportion to what you can do and how you feel. If they are too ambitious, they can make you feel more anxious than before. And if you have a misstep or you fail, then you'll feel even worse than before.
Anxiousness - Maybe you get anxious about public speaking, whether it's giving a presentation or having a job interview. You could use affirmations to help you even more if you know you have done everything possible to be prepared.
If you worry about getting stage fright or going blank, prepare every aspect of your speech or presentation. Remind yourself that you know how to do this, you know your subject.
Anticipate what might go wrong and work out strategies to prevent or deal with it, from having spare notes in case the technology fails to have a glass of water nearby if you feel faint.
Affirmations can be an effective way to begin changing your life. Affirmations can be effective if they are structured properly, address your weaknesses, and are used consistently. Give affirmations a chance to work for you. Use the process to create a few affirmations and use them for 30 days. Notice the changes you experience!
Here are some of my favorite affirmations
Great Day to Be Alive (Got this from a very good friend - shout out to Scepter Brownlee! from my Georgia State University Days!)
FEAR = False Evidence Appearing Real
I control my happy
I am beautiful
I am superior to negative thoughts and low actions
I have been given endless talents which I begin to utilize today
I will not allow 5 minutes of anger or irritation to impact my entire day
My business is growing, expanding, and thriving
I control how I react to others
My peace is my priority
Hopefully, these tips will help move you closer to thinking more positively. Our next blog will focus on “Self-worth”.
XOXO,
Keisha J. ~ Boss Lady
Founder/CEO, By Design Consulting, LLC
Certified Emotional Intelligence Coach
