The Secret To How Affirmations Work
Have you tried affirmations and found that they don’t really work?
Most people feel that way, but is it because they’re ineffective, or is there another reason?
In recent years, study after study has shown that affirmations are effective in creating changes in all different areas of people's lives:
- A study at Gronigen University in the Netherlands found that when executives who were experiencing powerlessness used affirmations, their feelings changed and they were able to see themselves as “sufficiently capable of carrying out goals despite their outcome dependency.”
- David Cresswell of Carnegie Mellon University studied people under chronic stress who had impaired problem-solving ability because of it. When they used self-affirmation, they were able to decrease stress and increase their problem solving ability. Students who were underperforming were able to actually improve testing and increase their GPAs.
- A study published in the journal Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience used MRI to show the effect affirmations have on the brain. It showed that self-affirmation activates the reward centers of the brain, and can increase happiness, positivity and the ability to maintain balance while facing challenges.
So if studies are consistently showing that affirmations have a clear impact on our thinking and behavior, why is that?
According to Rick Hansen, a fellow at UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center “Intense, prolonged, or repeated mental/neural activity—especially if it is conscious—will leave an enduring imprint in neural structure, like a surging current reshaping a riverbed. In the saying in neuroscience: Neurons that fire together, wire together. Mental states become neural traits. Day after day, your mind is building your brain.”
So if affirmations haven’t worked for you in the past, it is because it wasn’t prolonged, intense or repetitive enough.
#1 Prolonged: Consistency is key
Affirmations have to be said consistently over time in order to stick. Saying it for a day, a few days or even a week isn’t enough. You have to be willing to say it until it's second nature, it’s part of who you’ve become.
#2 Repetitive: More is required
Saying an affirmation once in a while won’t create new neural pathways or belief systems because you are thinking so many other more repetitive thoughts. Thinking or speaking your affirmation multiple times during the day is necessary to make it stick.
#3 Intense: Feeling is believing
The key to effective affirmations that a lot of people miss is how it makes you feel. When you are saying your affirmation and actually feeling it as truth inside of you, it amplifies the affirmation. An energetic shift happens. You quickly begin to feel like the person you affirm yourself to be and start to change your behavior to reflect that.
But how do you know what affirmations to use?
I have three affirmations that cover pretty much everything you need and if you just choose one, it can completely shift your reality.
Three Affirmations That Can Change Your Life
#1 "Every day in every way…
19th century French psychologist Émile Coué found that patients who used this affirmation three times a day had much better results in creating better health than patients who didn’t.
You simply state “Every day in every way I’m getting better and better.” I’ve found that it doesn’t just improve heath, it improves EVERYTHING.
#2 "I am so happy and grateful now that…"
Any affirmation under the sun becomes more powerful when you begin with "I am so happy and grateful now that…" because when you have your desired outcome you will feel happy and grateful.
So by embodying happiness and gratitude upfront, you actually become an energetic match to your desire and accelerate your result.
#3 "I am" statements
When you state “I am” such as “I am energized and feeling great”, “I am more abundant than ever before” I am worthy, loved and at peace” your subconscious mind assumes it as a truth about you.
94% of our habitual behavior is subconscious, so when you give your subconscious mind a new story about you to believe, your behavior will change and your life will reflect that.
Choose an affirmation that really speaks to you, that sparks something in you, that you would love to say to yourself throughout the day.
Let yourself really feel it and keep it up for a minimum of 30 days, until it feels normal, like it IS who you are.
This is a powerful practice, and I look forward to hearing about your experience!