Have you ever told yourself, ‘You can do this’ before a tough moment? Or felt that surge when someone says ‘You got this!’? Did it help?
These little affirmations we whisper under our breath—and encouraging words from others—exist for a brain reason. Even when we know things could go sideways, our brains benefit from affirmation. Your brain doesn’t want to feel depressed, disappointed, and scattered. It wants to feel happy and alive, with a good shot at thriving.
To thrive, you have to do more than just trudge through life, miserable inside. You have to open new paths to the person you know you SHOULD be or WOULD be if only you could find that path.
Affirmation is One of Many Paths
Like mindfulness, meditation, hypnosis, chanting, and other techniques that quiet the ego’s critical voice, affirmations can take you on a profound and transformative journey.
As I have repeatedly witnessed in my practice, people who embrace affirmations make significant changes. People who think it’s silly or pointless and only do it grudgingly don’t get much out of it. It’s understandable. They’re not right or wrong, it’s just not a path that calls to them, and that’s ok!
Other adults can’t affirm themselves. They have too many fears and emotions about complimenting themselves, especially in front of others. Or they think it’s some kooky new-age thing. I get it—it sounds hokey. Actual affirmation practice—the kind that creates lasting change—is fundamentally different from casual positive self-talk.
It’s grounded in neuroscience. Practiced correctly, affirmations can strengthen neural pathways associated with positive self-perception.
The Science: Your Brain on Affirmations
Neuroscientists have documented actual structural changes in the brain through practices involving focused repetition and self-affirmation. Research published in Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience demonstrates that self-affirmation activates the brain’s reward centers and strengthens neural pathways associated with positive self-perception.
When you do consistent affirmation practice, you’re not just thinking pleasant thoughts. You’re experiencing neuroplasticity, your brain’s ability to form new neural connections throughout life.
A landmark study from Stanford University demonstrated the profound impact of values-based affirmations. Research showed that students who completed affirmation exercises at strategic intervals experienced remarkable outcomes. The repetition element was key, as students practiced affirmations multiple times throughout the academic year. Real, measurable change occurred—the intervention reduced the racial achievement gap between African American students and white students by nearly 30% and improved GPAs over two years.
Repetition creates neural pathways. In fact, the mechanism is straightforward. If you repeatedly focus on specific affirmations, you’re essentially training your brain to default to these patterns instead of negative thought loops.
How to Practice Affirmations
Your natural, authentic self has been here all along, waiting to be recognized. Through repetitive affirmation practice, you give your brain permission to see what’s always been true.
However, the key to success is repetition and genuine focus. By concentrating intently on a specific affirmation, you occupy your conscious mind entirely. Therefore, while your conscious mind is busy with the words, your brain creates space for unconscious processing. That’s where the changes can come on a deeper, more lasting basis.
Try This
Here’s how to do it seriously. Begin by taking a moment to center yourself—consciously sweep away stray thoughts and focus on the present moment. Finding a space where you can safely talk to yourself out loud is helpful! Then get into a comfortable position, whether seated, lying down, or standing. Please close your eyes, take a deep breath in, then let it out completely.
Saying it out loud is more effective because you also hear the words. Using your voice strengthens the neural encoding. Try to start softly and then build volume and enthusiasm by the fifth repetition. Don’t let your mind stray from the words (which you can also read aloud, of course). Take your time. You may feel nothing or, maybe after a few hours or a few days, you might notice the world seems a tiny bit brighter. If you do, you are an ideal candidate to keep doing them for a few weeks and see where that journey takes you! (However, if you don’t, try again perhaps with something you really want!)
*or make up your own affirmation
Affirmations Are A Gift
Give yourself the gift of this science-backed type of mindfulness practice. Let me know how it works for you. If you follow the directions above, I foresee some positive transformations ahead for you!
Hey, guys! Are you struggling with self-image? I’ve got FREE Affirmations for you to test in my free ebook! Manfirmations will rev up your life!
References
Stanford University Values-Affirmation Study: Cohen, G. L., & Sherman, D. K. (2014). The psychology of change: Self-affirmation and social psychological intervention. Annual Review of Psychology, 65, 333-371. https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/insights/value-values-affirmation
Brain Systems and Self-Affirmation: Cascio, C. N., O’Donnell, M. B., Tinney, F. J., Lieberman, M. D., Taylor, S. E., Strecher, V. J., & Falk, E. B. (2016). Self-affirmation activates brain systems associated with self-related processing and reward and is reinforced by future orientation. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, 11(4), 621–629. https://academic.oup.com/scan/article/11/4/621/2375054
photo credit: Teslariu Mihai on Unsplash
