The Power of Self Affirmation- Love You Can Learn from Yourself

Do you know the power of self-affirmations?  Just the practice of telling yourself that you are powerful and that you CAN do something is a very useful tool in getting things done successfully in your life.  A study showed that by the time we reach the age of 17, we have heard the word “No” 150,000 times, while we have heard the word “Yes” only 5,000 times.  

This is an example of the negative reinforcement that we each grow up with.  In that kind of environment, is there any wonder why people have self-doubts.  Self-affirmations will turn these negative, self-doubts around to useful, empowering tools. 

John Maxwell writes in his book 15 Irrefutable Laws of Growth, “Whether you know it or not, you have a running conversation with yourself…

Do you encourage yourself?  Do you criticize yourself?”  This is an extremely important question to ask of yourself but it is even more important to be aware of the answer. 
I know that I personally fight this demon all the time.  

Up until a couple years ago, my self-image was pretty low.  I would constantly call myself an idiot under my breath or tell myself that I couldn’t do certain things.  This caused me to not even try things that were well within my abilities. Worst thing was that I wasn’t aware of the damage that these thoughts were having on me.  I still got through life and still achieved some great things.  

The question is how many more great things could I have done.  Now that I am aware that I have these self-doubts, I can counteract them with self-affirming thoughts, ones that pump me up, not bring me down.  Since I have been doing that, I have made some significant changes in my life for the better.  I am taking strides and gaining momentum every day.

In her book Presence, Amy Cuddy discusses research using college students and random sample groups. Self-affirming exercises were proven, through laboratory testing, to reduce cortisol, a hormone we secrete when we are stressed and adrenaline, our fight or flight hormone. 

College students performed better on their exams when they were given self-affirming exercises and their cortisol and adrenaline levels were lower.  
The results were repeated within the random sample groups when they were put in situations designed to raise stress and anxiety.  Without the cocktail of hormones coursing through our veins we are able to perform better cognitively.  This brings about better decisions and in turn a better outcome.

Self-affirmation will help you physically, emotionally  and cognitively. 
If you haven’t already begun to practice Self-Affirmation, the time to start is now. 

Who of you will step up to make your life better through self-affirmation?  Who of you will rise up and become the most powerful person that you can be?  Contact me to start and STAY on a path of positive self-affirmation and get ready for life changes.

Guest Post by Paul Ledebur