Affirmations and Self-Talk

​I fill my mind with positive thoughts that create positive outcomes.
 
What are affirmations? Affirmations are expressions that can transform your life by influencing the way you think about yourself, others, and the world around you. When you change how you think, you change how you speak and how you act, and the results can be immensely rewarding.

Today, I will concentrate on taking one step forward, however small it might be.
 
“An affirmation is a strong, positive statement that something is already so.” -Shakti Gawain
 
Today I will be the best me that I know how to be.
 
Following is the ‘formula’ first used at the clinic of psychologist Émile Coué in Nancy, France. What he called his ‘formula’ was an affirmation, which he prescribed to his patients, to be repeated by them 15 to 20 times in the morning and again in the evening of each day:
 
“Every day, in every way, I am getting better and better.” -Émile Coué (Émile Coué de la Châtaigneraie (1857 - 1926)): “How to Practice Suggestion and Autosuggestion” (1923)
 
A limerick may provide further insight:

On Monsieur Coué

This very remarkable man
Commends a most practical plan:
     You can do what you want
     If you don’t think you can’t,
So don’t think you can’t - think you can.
 
by Charles Cuthbert Inge (1868 - 1957): “The Week-end Book” (1928), page 217
 
I am intelligent and capable of success in any endeavor which I may choose.
 
“As long as you know what it is you desire, then by simply affirming that it is yours - firmly and positively, with no ifs, buts, or maybes - over and over again, from the minute you arise in the morning until the time you go to sleep at night, and as many times during the day as your work or activities permit, you will be drawn to those people, places, and events that will bring your desires to you.” -Scott Reed
 
I have confidence.
 
New opportunities are calling to me and I am ready to answer the call.
 
You can create your own affirmations, or select affirmations from those found in this topic that you believe best apply to you and your particular circumstances. Write your affirmations on a piece of paper, and place it where you will be sure to read it daily, as for example, on your car dashboard, on your refrigerator door, or on your bedroom mirror. You could also type affirmations into your cell phone or other device. If you keep a diary or journal, consider challenging yourself to write a new affirmation in it for each day.
 
What I have done before I can do again, even better.
 
“I am optimistic and confident in all that I do. I affirm only the best for myself and others. I am the creator of my life and my world. I meet daily challenges gracefully and with complete confidence. I fill my mind with positive, nurturing, and healing thoughts.” -Alice Potter
 
I like fresh salads.
 
“It’s the repetition of affirmations that leads to belief, and once that belief becomes a deep conviction, things begin to happen.” -Claude M. Bristol (Claude Myron Bristol (1891 - 1951)): “The Magic of Believing” (1948)
 
I can accomplish anything I set my mind to.
 
“I am - the two most powerful words in the world, for whatever we put after them becomes our reality.” -Susan Howson
 
I am worthy of the respect, attention, and love that I receive from others.
 
“You are what you think about all day long.” -Robert H. Schuller (Robert Harold Schuller (1926 - 2015))
 
I feel good about myself.
 
I am good enough.
 
“Change your thoughts, and you change your world.” -Norman Vincent Peale (1898 - 1993): as quoted in Richard Shea, editor: “The Book of Success” (1993)
 
I see the best in myself and others.
 
I have the confidence to try new things.

​I am stronger than everything that happened in the past. 
I am stronger than my present circumstances.
I am strong today and will be even stronger tomorrow.
 
“Affirmations are a form of thought training - training oneself how to think, just as running every day conditions an athlete to compete in a footrace, or studying every day prepares a student for a test.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)
 
I appreciate and acknowledge the participation and contributions of others.
 
I love who I am and what I do.
 
“Talk to yourself positively all the time. Keep repeating, ‘I can do it! I can do it!’ until your fears disappear.” -Brian Tracy (born 1944)
 
I can face my fears and work to overcome them.

“I believe in pink. I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles.” -Audrey Hepburn (1929 - 1993)
 
I focus on what I can do right now.
 
“What we continually think about eventually will manifest in our lives.” -Robert Collier (1885 - 1950)
 
“I’m not here to be average, I’m here to be awesome!” -Author Unknown
 
The ghosts of my past can no longer haunt me.
 
I enjoy saving money and investing money.
 
“I really like who I am.” -Author Unknown: as quoted in “Star Trek,” ‘Loud as a Whisper’ (9 January 1989); line of fictional character Geordi Laforge portrayed by actor LeVar Burton
 
I will remain confident and unaffected by negative attitudes around me.
 
Life is good and getting better.
 
“I think I can. I think I can. I think I can.” -Watty Piper (pseudonym of Arnold H. Munk (1886 - 1957)): “The Little Engine That Could” (1930)
 
I am patient with myself.
 
I begin working on tasks the moment the thought of the tasks occurs to me.
 
“What we achieve inwardly will change outer reality.” -Otto Rank (1884 - 1939)
 
I can live my life without knowing all of the answers.
 
“As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.” -attributed to Solomon: as quoted in “The Bible,” ‘Book of Proverbs,’ chapter 23, verse 7
 
I feel happiness and joy just from being alive.
 
“If my mind can conceive it and my heart can believe it I know I can achieve it.” -Author Unknown
 
I am able to relax and maintain good form when around strangers or in unfamiliar situations.
 
I can help others without expecting them to give me anything in return.
 
I am at peace with myself and the Universe.
 
“Affirmations provide a way to inoculate against negative thinking.” -Author Unknown
 
I will live as if my dreams are possible, and work each day to make them happen.
 
Every word you speak and every thought you think is an affirmation for your future.” -Cheryl Richardson at http://www.cherylrichardson.com/
 
I like who I am becoming.
 
I speak with confidence and calm assurance.
 
What is self-talk? Self-talk is simply another term for affirmations. You can choose to say affirmations aloud, or say them silently to yourself, or write them on paper or read them.
 
I keep myself in excellent physical condition.
 
I always have time for my friends.

​I am a good person.
 
I am in charge of my feelings, and today I am choosing happiness.
 
“Talk to yourself like you would to someone you love.” -Brené Brown
 
I feel great when I go on a walk.
 
I am a responsible person.
 
“The most influential person who will talk to you all day is you, so you should be very careful about what you say to you!” -Zig Ziglar (Hilary Hinton ‘Zig’ Ziglar (1926 - 2012))
 
Today I am planting the seeds of new beginnings.
 
I am a friendly person.

“Whatever we plant in our subconscious mind and nourish with repetition and emotion will one day become a reality.” -Earl Nightingale (1921 - 1989)
 
I am doing pretty good - how can I do better?
 
I seek new adventures.
 
“I am in the right place, at the right time, doing the right thing.” -Louise L. Hay (Louise Lynn Hay (1926 - 2017)) at www.louisehay.com
 
I can learn how to live with pain so that I can get what I want from my life.
 
“My life is my business. I don’t let somebody else run it.” -Author Unknown
 
“Any idea, plan, or purpose may be placed in the mind through repetition of thought.” -Napoleon Hill (Oliver Napoleon Hill (1883 - 1970))
 
I am too blessed to be stressed!
 
If we are what we think about, what should we think about?
 
“Watch your manner of speech if you wish to develop a peaceful state of mind. Start each day by affirming peaceful, contented and happy attitudes and your days will tend to be pleasant and successful.” -Norman Vincent Peale (1898 - 1993)
 
I am a good listener.
 
I am divinely guided in all that I do.

“Our minds can shape the way a thing will be because we act according to our expectations.” -Federico Fellini (1920 - 1993)
 
I will imagine the best and focus on that.
 
I am living in the present moment: the here and now.
 
“Say affirmations ‘as if’ they were already a reality.” -Author Unknown
 
I can enjoy leisure without guilt and anxiety.
 
I am ready to begin moving forward in the direction of what my heart desires.
 
“An affirmation is simply a positive declaration of something you believe to be true or something you expect to become true and desire to live by. Affirmations transform your thinking, your attitudes, and finally, your behavior. Their impact on attitudes and behavior help to produce the results you desire.” -Paul J. Meyer (Paul James Meyer, Senior (1928 - 2009)) at https://pauljmeyer.com/
 
I can handle criticism with ease.
 
Today I view my childhood without shame.
 
“Affirmations are not bound up in rules. An affirmation can be long or short, poetic or plain. If you love a phrase and find that it helps you, that is a valid affirmation.” -Eric Maisel
 
I am a friend to myself. I love me.
 
I am ready for a fresh start, a new perspective, and an ‘I can do it’ attitude.
 
At MFOL! our affirmation is, “We are funny today, and we will be even funnier tomorrow!”