By Tyler Bray. CEO, owner, & founder of The Trailer Parts Outlet.
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As leaders, we can’t manage people and organizations if we can’t first manage our own mindsets. Affirmations are a powerful tool that orient your subconscious mind, and therefore your behaviors, to your aims. Since we are all overwhelmed with distractions, affirmations can orient you and prevent a situation where you’re “looking one way, but running the other” in business and in life. I want to demystify this practice, illuminate its value and talk about where I began with affirmations. I hope these can start you on a journey toward higher confidence and more effective habits.
The Affirmation To Start With For Entrepreneurs
If you’ve never done an affirmation before, consider beginning with this one: “I am in control of my own life.” It’s a powerful feeling to give voice to that idea. Naturally, we don’t often realize this or feel this way. We may feel trapped by where we live, who we live with, physical setbacks, debts or even darker problems like addictions or mental health issues. Why, then, do I encourage this statement? It has to do with how affirmations are properly done, and how they can ignite a chain reaction of mindsets and habits that follow.
How To Format Your Affirmations
When you use affirmations, make them in the present tense. Rather than “I will earn one million dollars,” write “I have one million dollars.” Even if you’re not in control of your own life and behavior (yet) write, “I am in control of my own life.” It opens up your mind’s paths to how you can gain a little more control of your own life. It’s not going to happen overnight, but it does put you in the driver’s seat, at least in your mind, and for some of us who feel overwhelmed, overcommitted or overdrawn, that can be a powerful thing.
The Second Affirmation For Entrepreneurs
After the powerful sense of ownership that emanates from saying “I am in control of my own life,” write to yourself: “I can do or achieve anything I set my mind to.” Pro tip: It doesn’t matter if you’re wrong here! What’s the worst that could happen? In private, you said you could do something and couldn’t, or, at least, you couldn’t do it yet. This affirmation can start filling a wellspring of confidence that is so important since entrepreneurs face setbacks from all sides constantly.
Make Your Affirmations More Specific
Again, in writing and in the present tense, state what you want more specifically. That goal can be oriented around physical or mental health, revenue or profitability goals—anything. You can develop a mental habit of ownership by taking charge of your life, and you can develop confidence through the second affirmation.
My final note is about realistic expectations. These affirmations are about unifying the competing voices in your mind and quelling self-doubt or limiting beliefs. They are not magical replacements for the work you need to do. There is nothing to be lost by taking a few minutes out of each day to try them. Good luck and enjoy!
