Today, I woke up and declared, “This is going to be a great day!” I didn’t have any particular reason for saying that. Today wasn’t special. Actually, it was quite ordinary. And that was the point.
One of my resolutions this year is to start each day with a positive affirmation. It’s a modest goal, but often small goals are the best. And given enough time and repetition, modest changes can have big results. At least, that’s what I’m hoping.
What specifically am I hoping to achieve with starting my day with a positive affirmation? A few things:
- Improve my mood and energy levels. If I say something positive out loud, my brain is more likely to believe that things are going in the right direction.
- Remind myself to exercise, as Viktor Frankl puts it, “the last of the human freedoms” to choose my own attitude, no matter the circumstances, and take charge of how I approach life and the world.
- Inspire myself to make the positive affirmation come true by putting in the work necessary to achieve my goals.
- Prove that I can keep my promises to myself. I told myself I would start my day with a positive affirmation, and lo and behold, I am.
Not every day has to begin with the same affirmation. Some days I might start with “today, I will write a post for my blog” or “today, I will show more love to my dogs” or “today, I am grateful for my health and the health of my family.”
The specific words aren’t what’s important. What’s important is saying the words, with a positive spirit, every day, like I promised myself I would.
To help keep myself on track, I’ve set a recurring reminder on my iPhone to ping me at the same time every morning. If I missed my daily affirmation when I wake up, I have a second chance to recover. It’s a simple system, but it works.
I encourage you to work positive affirmations into your daily routine and fill your affirmations with your best aspirations for yourself. At worst, you’ve lost a few seconds of your day to a silly saying. At best, you’ve set yourself up for a happier, more fulfilling day, and if you string enough happy, fulfilling days together, that can add up to a pretty good life. No guarantees, of course, but it’s a gamble that seems like a good bet to me.