What are Affirmations, and Do They Work?
Affirmations are positive statements that can help you to challenge and overcome self-sabotaging and negative thoughts. You might consider affirmations to be unrealistic “wishful thinking”. But try looking at positive affirmations this way: many of us do repetitive exercises to improve our physical health, and affirmations are like exercises for our mind and outlook.
For example, evidence suggests that affirmations can help you to perform better at work. According to researchers, spending just a few minutes thinking about your best qualities before a high-pressure meeting – a performance review.
Self-affirmation may also help to mitigate the effects of stress. What’s more, affirmations have been used to successfully treat people with low self-esteem, depression, and other mental health conditions. For example, if you’re worried that you eat too much and don’t get enough exercise, using affirmations to remind yourself of your values can spur you on to change your behavior.
How to Use Positive Affirmations
You can use affirmations in any situation where you’d like to see a positive change take place in your life. These might include times when you want to:
- Raise your confidence before presentations or important meetings.
- Control negative feelings such as frustration, anger, or impatience.
- Improve your self-esteem.
- Finish projects you’ve started.
- Improve your productivity.
- Overcome a bad habit.