Affirmations Are Countermeasures to Negativity

Billboards, Bars, and Bad Bosses

On the sides of the roads in the town I live in, there are numerous billboards. They tower over most of the buildings. Proudly displaying phrases such as: “Hurt at work?”, “Car accident?”, or “DUI?”. These benevolent advertisers help keep various mishaps and traumatic life situations in the forefront of everyone’s mind.

Billboards take advantage of “repetition in advertising”, which basically means: the more a person is exposed to an ad, the more likely they are to remember it. And hopefully–for the advertisers–to also store it subconsciously. Leading to more purchases of whatever is being sold, without the nuisance of conscious thought.

The dreary messages on our commute might be only a small fraction of the messages received on a given day. Add in unhealthy doses of negative radio programming and news events, and toxic workplaces; and you have a recipe for mass psychological disaster.

With all of the negative messages surrounding us these days. Having methods to counteract them becomes useful or even necessary. Affirmations, though hokey to some, are one such method. And there is a growing body of research supporting their effectiveness.

Self-Advertising With Affirmations

Affirmations are like ads we can use to sell ourselves positive and uplifting messages. Used consistently, they can reverse the affects of negative subconscious programming. They can be specific to goals we have, or they can be generic.

Susan has the goal of being a better writer, she comes up with the following affirmation: “I am an amazing writer.” She begins saying the affirmation to herself on a regular basis. Any beliefs contrary to her affirmation will start to be negated. She has basically created a personal marketing campaign to help her believe in her own writing abilities. This is an example of a goal oriented affirmation.

A general affirmation is “I am alright right now, all my needs are always met”. This affirmation is a great way to remind ourselves that we’re okay. It’s especially useful when we’re going through rough patches.

Affirmations alone may not completely free us from negative programming. And they won’t save us from the need to work towards achieving our goals. But, at the very least, they are something to hang on to throughout our day.

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4 Affirmations I Use Daily

• “I am alright right now, all my needs are always met.”
• “I am filled and thrilled with positivity.”
• “I am filled and thrilled with creativity.”
• “I am filled and thrilled with opportunity.”

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The first one is a reminder that I’m okay. And it’s a way to shake off a little anxiety or depression I might be experiencing about anything happening in my life.

They may seem a little simplistic, but that’s one of the reasons I like them. They can also be chanted rhythmically quite easily.

I say them to myself every morning as part of my morning routine (and also throughout my day). 

I do a negativity burn first, and then move on to mind mapping or some variation of flow writing. 

Once I’m done with that, I already feel a little “above the day”. I then move into more physical things, like weightlifting and yoga.