The way you feel about your dreams and goals has a direct impact on whether or not you’ll actually achieve those goals. If you approach a goal from a negative mindset of fear or desperation, for instance, you are far less likely to be able to accomplish what you’ve set out to do than if you approach it with a sense of excitement and joy, because the energy you’re sending out into the Universe is what tends to come back to you.
Finding ways of keeping yourself in a feel-good place when it comes to your dreams is, therefore, critical; especially if it’s a longer-term goal that might take some time for you to achieve! One of the most useful tools I’ve found to help me maintain this all-important mental and emotional focus and achieve my own dreams is the use of affirmations.
What are affirmations?
Affirmations are deceptively simple positive phrases that actually pack a really powerful punch when it comes to shifting your thoughts and feelings about your goals. They help you to reprogram your subconscious mind and put an end to all those sneaky negative thoughts that your inner critic tends to subject you to.
Why is all of this important? Because if there is something that you really want, but at the same time you don’t really feel or believe that it’s possible, you will not achieve it because you will subconsciously sabotage your own efforts to get there at every step. You cannot make a change in your life if you don’t believe that you are capable of it or that you deserve it.
How to create affirmations:
At this point you might be feeling a little overwhelmed, but not to worry; making that kind of mindset shift is not as hard as it might seem and creating powerful, vibe-shifting affirmations to help you do it is actually very simple! All you need to do is follow this three-step process:
- Get clear about what you want. What is it that you are trying to create or manifest in your life? For example, do you want to travel the world? Meet Mr. or Ms. Right? Be more successful? What is it that you want for yourself?
- Turn it into a statement. Once you’re clear on what you want, create a few short statements or sentences that define that vision for you in a positive way. For example: “I believe that I can ace this exam” or “I am getting closer to my ideal weight every day.”
- Be realistic, but stretch yourself. Your statements are designed to help you shift your beliefs about what is possible but they still need to feel realistic to you, or that inner critic may pop up before you’ve even started. For example, if you’ve been feeling very stressed lately, “I am always peaceful and relaxed” may be too big of a leap to be believable for your current situation. If that’s the case, then try something like, “I am learning to become more relaxed.”
Finally, repetition is the key to making your affirmations work for you because you’re trying to change your feelings and beliefs about what is possible for you and your own reality. I always recommend writing your affirmation downs on sticky notes and posting them in places where you will see them frequently. A belief is just a thought that you have formed into a habit of thinking, so if you change that habit, you will change your belief and the feelings that go with it. And in changing your beliefs and feelings, you really can change your whole world!
