Positive affirmations – hmmm 🤔 the term can sound a bit New Age but, positive self-talk has never been more important.
But if the term ‘positive affirmations’ sounds too pretentious and New Age Hippy-ish – just think of it the way I do – it’s simply saying nice things to yourself.
(Please note there are two positive affirmation free printables available at the end of this post.)
These two fridge magnets were for a private project but I decided to put them in my etsy shop.
See a YouTube short about the free printable and the fridge magnets here.
They were never intended for me to sell but after I made them, I realised just how important positive affirmations are for us all.
Why? Because we need a way of combatting the effects of that negative gremlin who sits on our shoulder telling us we are stupid, ugly and worthless etc.
If you don’t have a gremlin on your shoulder – you are very lucky.
So many of us do and using positive affirmations every day can help silence that voice.
And what are the effects on society as a whole if large numbers of people are feeling bad about themselves?
Positive affirmations are actually very powerful if you use them every day.
If you have these word cloud flexible magnets stuck to your fridge, you will be getting a powerful subliminal message every time you look at them.
The fact that the words are randomly placed does seem to have a much stronger effect on me – I have two sets up!
You don’t have to stand in front of a mirror repeating out loud – ‘I am beautiful – I am enough’ or any other similar statement.
Of course, you can if you want to but if you don’t feel comfortable doing that, just say them inside your head.
Or just let the regular exposure to these words on your fridge take effect.
The way you choose to use positive affirmations will work, even if it is only inside your head.
Why do I say that?
Well think about the destructive power of negative thoughts. We don’t have to say these awful things out loud for them to cripple us – we just think them.
Sometimes, I do catch myself making an awful comment about myself out loud but usually, it’s just a thought.
If I make a mistake, for example, I may blurt out, ‘oh you idiot, what did you do that for!’ But most often, I just think it.
I can be really hard on myself but sometimes, that is ok.
Being hard on yourself is fine as long as you do it in a kind, constructive way – such as the way you might encourage a friend.
If a friend was struggling to understand a math problem – you wouldn’t say (I hope!), ‘OMG! You are so dumb! A child could figure that out!’
And yet that is how we often talk to ourselves in our heads.
How would you speak to a friend who is ‘useless’ at math? How would you encourage her?
We should be encouraging ourselves the same way.
Positive affirmations can counteract the constant negative affirmations inside our heads.
And we really should get into the habit of using them much more than the negative ones if we are to develop healthy self-esteem.
So many of us hold negative self-beliefs that have come from our childhoods.
For example, I grew up ‘knowing’ I was clumsy. What an absolutely horrible word to use in relation to a child!
How many times did I hear negative affirmations from my family? Lots!
‘She’s like a bull in a china shop!’ was something often said in front of me.
Really? I was simply very enthusiastic about life – I was also a child.
‘Why are you so clumsy!’ was another thing I heard a lot.
And I never questioned it. I accepted it as fact. It wasn’t fact. It was a part I played after being told I was clumsy.
So I still struggle with that voice now. If I knock something over or walk into someone, my immediate internal response is ‘clumsy!’.
But now, there is another voice which follows immediately. It’s a much kinder voice that says, ‘everyone has those moments, it’s not just you.’
I have trained myself to stick up for me as soon as that critical gremlin voice pipes up. It is second nature now after years of positive self-talk.
With the help of being nice to myself and thinking things through, I have totally changed the viewpoint that was forced on me at age seven.
It wasn’t done maliciously I hasten to add – just in the normal course of life as it was for many of us.
Intsead of feeling ashamed of my alledged clumsiness, I am outraged that the word was ever applied to me – I didn’t deserve it.
What didn’t you deserve? What traits do you think you have just because someone told you that you had them during childhood?
And if you conclude that any negative traits you were labelled with were justified – you still need to be kind to yourself about them.
It is possible to know your faults and deal positively with them without beating yourself up for having them.
If you have read this far – I have a present for your lovely self 🤩
If you don’t want to buy the flexible fridge magnets from my etsy shop, I have two positive affirmations designs you can print off and put somewhere prominent.
It’s just one sheet of A4 to print off. You will find the free printable here.
Thank you for reading this – I will be back very soon with a new YouTube video and more free printables to go with it.
So go over to my YouTube channel and subscribe so you will know when my new videos come out.
And I would be very happy if you subscribe to this blog as well. You can also find me on instagram and follow me there.
There are lots more free printables to choose from here on my free printables page.
Hope you have enjoyed my positive affirmations post and remember to be kind to yourself and think the best at all times! 😍