I can do that.
I love public speaking.
I am ashamed of my behaviour. I will change it.
I am smart enough.
How many times did you tell yourself a positive affirmation? And how many times it turned out that that affirmation did not work?
The truth is, affirmations sometimes do not work and instead of adopting positive habits that will make you turn a new page in your life, you end up completely lost and in the worst position than you’ve been before.
The main problem when it comes to affirmations is that they are just the surface and the cover to all the negative beliefs and behaviours that lay underneath.
What are affirmations?
Positive affirmations are, as stated by the Psychology Dictionary as „brief phrases, repeated frequently, which are designed to encourage positive, happy feelings, thoughts, and attitudes.“
They are very helpful to avoid negative, self-sabotaging, or unhelpful thoughts.
They can help you to:
- Increase positivity
- Increase self-confidence
- Improve self-esteem
- Control negative feelings such as frustration, anger, or impatience
- Reduce stress (which leads to better health)
- Improve productivity
- Improve academic achievement
- Increase ability to overcome a bad habit
- Help in achieving goals
Why your positive affirmations do not work?
It’s very clear that affirmations don’t always work. Here are the seven most often reasons why they sometimes do not work.
You are just going through the motions
Affirmations should be reviewed monthly and yearly and adjusted if you see that they do not have the same effect they had before.
Simply, by repeating the same words over and over again, we – humans, start to recite them automatically and they lose a sense and meaning.
You do not want that affirmation to be true
As Josh Steimle says, the problem with affirming something about yourself is that you’re committing yourself to action, and you may not really want to do what you’re committing to do, and so you may feel that affirmation is insincere.
The best way to avoid situations like this is to say to yourself that you want to want something.
You are not being honest with yourself
Affirmations cannot work if you are lying to yourself. This way you are only blocking yourself from seeing the real effect of affirmations. Even when you’re thinking that you are being honest, your subconsciousness knows that you are lying.
So what to do?
The first step is to admit to yourself that you are not being honest. With honesty comes acceptance but action too. You have to take action to correct your bad behaviours and you have to be committed to achieving that goal!
You are doing too much
Your affirmations don’t have to be perfect. You do not have to wait for the perfect moment to start with them.
Being a perfectionist is negative behaviour that will lead you to anxiety, disappointment or guilt if it doesn’t turn out the way you wanted.
Being a perfectionist and waiting for the right moment can just block you from achieving.
The key here is to really work on achieving what you want and showing up as real you.
You are doing it wrong.
One of the reasons why your affirmations may not work is that you are saying them correctly. Many people start their affirmations with „I am“ or „I will“, but the truth is, scientists say, that using „I will“ leads to more results.
Also, using questions instead of statements can lead to many positive results, scientists claim. Using questions as an affirmation may be a good thing if you don’t see an effect in making statements.
Affirmations are outnumbered
In order for them to work, you really have to give them a chance to affirmations.
What does that mean? Well, you have to create a mental trigger that will stop you from saying bad stuff about yourself to yourself and instead adopt more positive self-talk.
Just by saying positive words to yourself, you won’t do much for yourself and your self-esteem if you do not start with adopting a more positive and healthier mind.
You are not doing anything
Yes, affirmations are there to help you live a better and more positive life. They can make it easier to you to change your behaviour and uplevel your life. But the truth is that they won’t do much if you just sit and believe in the „law of attraction“. We don’t say the law of attraction is bad but that you should take some action and do something to change your life and behaviour.
Affirmations should be accompanied by goals, plans, programs, schedules, and other tools that will help make those affirmations a reality.
You are surrounded by the negative affirmations
The affirmations don’t have to be positive to be called an affirmation, We are every day surrounded by negative thoughts and behaviours that we tend to repeat over and over again. Because of that, we cannot focus on positive things.
How to make affirmations work for you
There are a couple of things you can do to make your affirmations really work for you:
Use positive words – you must know that positive affirmations need to be written down or said in a certain way – they need to be positive.
Use The Present Tense and try to set your affirmation into the present.
Say Your Affirmations Mindfully – Positive affirmations need to be said with feeling, clarity and with the vision of where you actually want to be and how you want to feel.
Repeat You Affirmations Often – If you say an affirmation just once and you don’t repeat it, you’re just saying it from your conscious mind, and it’s not sinking into your subconscious mind.
Believe Your Positive Affirmations Are True – If you repeat a positive affirmation, but you’re actually thinking this won’t work, it’s not going to work.
Repeat Your Affirmations In The Right Setting – You must repeat your affirmations when you’re in a sleepy or relaxed state for the affirmations to work most effectively.
Learn How To Use Your Affirmations Correctly.
