Sunday Serenities – A New Affirmation to Start Your Week
Each week we will be sharing a new affirmation. The introductory information will remain the same, but if you are new to affirmations, please check out the first two sections on “What is an Affirmation?” and “How to Practice Your Affirmation.” If you regularly read our weekly article or already do affirmations, feel free to skip to the section titled “Read Today’s Affirmation.”
What is an Affirmation
Many have heard of affirmations, but if you haven’t tried them yet, you are missing out! Simply put, an affirmation is a statement you use to affirm yourself – you know, to say something positive. There are many different types, and as long as they are positive, there really is no wrong way to do an affirmation.
Affirmations can be a simple phrase, a list of related statements, or a focused paragraph. All of these work well depending on the situation you are working on, the time you have, and your intention – your intention being the most important part of the equation.
Do Affirmations Work?
According to an article by Catherine Moore, Psychologist, MBA in PositivePsychology.com “There is MRI evidence suggesting that certain neural pathways are increased when people practice self-affirmation tasks (Cascio et al., 2016). If you want to be super specific, the ventromedial prefrontal cortex—involved
in positive valuation and self-related information processing—becomes more active when we consider our personal values (Falk et al., 2015; Cascio et al., 2016).
The results of a study by Falk and colleagues suggest that when we choose to practice positive affirmations, we’re better able to view “otherwise-threatening information as more self-relevant and valuable” (2015: 1979).”
So the bottom line is yes – affirmations work. It’s not a magic bullet. You do have put in the time and effort to practice them regularly. Do some research and find the affirmations that resonate with you, then begin to put them into practice. You can begin your search with the affirmation for today.
How to Practice Your Affirmation
Here is how to practice today’s affirmation. It is not original – but it is so good, I had to share (with permission of course and the promise to keep the originator anonymous). If you are comfortable with the idea, I like to recommend that people do this in front of a mirror. Read the affirmation a phrase at a time, then pause after each phrase. Take time to look yourself in the eye and then repeat the phrase back to yourself aloud. When you are finished with the affirmation, take time to breathe and reflect.
Finish your time by answering the self-reflection questions below. You can answer them any way you like, but I prefer to have a journal where I can have both my affirmations and the answers to my questions together. You may be surprised when you look back at them one day and discover the answers may be totally different.
Read Today’s Affirmation 
I am able to focus on what is important
I give thanks daily for my focus in life.
I am confident in my ability to achieve my goals. Each day, I live with presence and conviction and, therefore, make good on my dreams. For this, I am intensely grateful.
I know that I can have what I want! All I need to do is focus. I put forth my intention and my dreams and desires are made manifest.
Focus is the biggest secret to my success. I pay close attention to what I want and then devote my energy to accomplishing my dreams.
Sometimes, achieving my goals requires greater effort than at other times. When this is the case, I am particularly thankful for my focus. Sustained effort requires motivation and motivation requires remembering why I am willing to put in some hard work. But when I focus on my goals, motivation comes easily.
If I feel distracted or scattered, I take a few moments to close my eyes and just breathe. I notice the sensations of my feet on the floor and my hands resting on my lap.
This simple exercise renews my focus by bringing me into the present moment. And when I am fully present, I feel gratitude for where I am and how far I have come.
Today, I make time to contemplate my many accomplishments. I am thankful for my focus in life, which enables me to have all that I want.
I seek out opportunities to cultivate this gratitude by paying attention to my deepest desires and pursuing them devotedly.
Answer the Self-Reflection Questions:
1. What are some of the things I have accomplished in the last year?
2. To what do I attribute these successes?
3. Are there aspects of my life that could benefit from greater focus?
I hope you enjoyed this issue of Sunday Serenities. It is my mission to help provide you with the tools you need to have a more peaceful life so you can:
Find your purpose – Find your joy!