Start Your Day With a Bang Instead of a Whimper
How to play games with Affirmations and make them more interesting
I’m not a serious Sam. I like to start my day with play.
But when someone told me about affirmations, I just followed their strait-laced instructions. I tried the regular old way of using them but failed big time. I couldn’t get into it.
That’s why I made a game out of it.
The classic affirmation method of repeating a phrase repeatedly is too simplistic and really damn boring. Also, if your subconscious thinks you’re lying to it, it puts up roadblocks. You gotta be subtle when you come at the subconscious: No frontal attacks. Slip in the side door.
I don’t beat myself over the head with these affirmations. I don’t write them ten times, say them out loud ten times, or anything like that. I play with them. I make it fun. I hide them, send them to myself, toy with them.
Now affirmations are fun for me, not work. Who knows how I’ll use them next?
Example: I grab one of these (or make up a new one just for that day), write it down on a Post-it note, and then put it inside my laptop before closing it. I forget all about it until later.
When I get to work or later in the day, when I open it up again at home, the affirmation is peeking out at me. I grab it, stick it in my journal, and close the pages. Later, unsuspecting, I open it up, and BAM! Afirrmafied.
It Doesn’t Always Help, Or Does It?
Research shows that affirmations do have an effect. But it’s hard to say how much an affirmation really does for you in concrete terms.
I know I get a big burst of energy, happy feelings, and optimism when I find one of them unexpectedly on my handwritten note. It definitely changes my inner landscape.
How much difference can that make?
If I’m happy and along comes troublesome Sideways-Susan, her snark won’t bring me down.
If I’m optimistic and go into a video meeting, I look bright-eyed instead of apprehensive. It changes the entire interaction.
If I’m encouraged by my hand-written affirmation, I will give that extra 10% and try just a bit harder to get my work project right. When I pass it to the client/boss/editor, it’s shinier and makes them react positively.
These “tiny” adjustments to your day can make all the difference between a life worth living and one where you want to throw in the towel.
How to Plant an Affirmation Surprise
I’ve experimented with all of these. I never use the same one too long to avoid getting into a boring rut. Why not give it a go?
Write positive words on a Post-it and put them on the bathroom mirror, toilet seat, or other must-use location- the night before. When you get up, there it is!
A Post-it on the screen of a phone or tablet is a nice a-ha moment for you.
Get a greeting card at the dollar store. Address it to yourself. Write a few affirmations inside, and wish yourself the best. Then mail it to yourself.
Leave a letter to yourself on the seat of your car. The content is, of course, affirmations and a little self-love.
Leave post-its in random locations around your house that you’ll find later. Inside a book that you’re reading, near the end. On the second dish down in the stack. Inside a cupboard door. Under a loaf of bread.
If you have a favorite affirmation or quote and access to a label maker, make a label and put it on your coffee mug, journal cover, or some other place you’ll see it.
When you see your affirmation pop up, go out of your way to stop and read it with a smile. Make it into a game. Leave so many of them that you don’t remember them all, so they really are a surprise.
“My favorite affirmation when I feel stuck or out of sorts is: Whatever I need is already here, and it is all for my highest good. Jot this down and post it conspicuously throughout your home, on the dashboard of your car, at your office, on your microwave oven, and even in front of your toilets!” — Wayne Dyer
If you live with other people, they will think you’re crazy. So what? Have fun with it. Gamify affirmations. If nothing else, your life will be brighter and more playful!
Give it a try. Turn your life into an easter egg hunt.
Affirmative!
Try these on for size:
I’m gonna make the rest of my life the best of my life.
I’m brimming with energy and overflowing with joy!
I will never let somebody waste my time twice.
I radiate happiness like the sun gives off light. Better put on sunglasses, baby.
I release all disease from my body and welcome health, love, and happiness into my life.
Oh, yes, I certainly fucking can.
I find peace, joy, and opportunity around every corner and through every door.
I persevere. I am relentless. I keep going. The prize is just over the hill.
Each day, I feel blessed to be alive.
I’ve got what it takes, and I’m gonna kick some ass today!
I love taking good care of myself.
I can, and I will. The universe will help me.
I am fabulous, funny, and giving.
Feelings are just visitors. I let them come and go.
I know I can always upgrade my life.
I’m smiling all the way to the bank because life is writing me a big check.
In every moment of my day. I radiate calmness & tranquility. I am still within myself.
Every day is fun, playful, and productive.
Take a second to think about how blessed you are.
I create the reality that I want.
Today is rich with opportunity, and I open my arms wide to receive everything I deserve!
I’m putting on my positive purple pants and my happy Hawaiian shirt.
I am the architect of my reality. I’m going to choose what I create.
I have all it takes to make this day worthwhile.
It’s my pleasure to be alive!
Health is the natural state of my body, and I feel myself healing today.
I believe in myself and trust that I am headed in the right direction.
I decide how I feel, other people don’t.
I love every cell of my body.
By being myself, I bring happiness to the world.
Today is going to be a real, really, really good day.
I have come this far, and I’m proud of myself and my life.
I am a powerful force for positive change.
My mistakes might be blessings, and everything leads to what I want most.
I am adventurous and open to new things.
I choose positive things and happy thoughts.
I love it when the coffee kicks in, and I become an adorable badass!
I patiently allow my body to heal and transform with ease.
Being me is my superpower.
Every dollar I spend comes back to me, bringing its friends.
The world is better with me in it.
You might not be convinced that affirmations do anything. Well, why not make it into an experiment? Pick a few of these, write them on sticky notes, and scatter them around.
“I figured that if I said it enough, I would convince the world that I really was the greatest.” — Muhammad Ali
When you find them, check how it makes you feel. If it makes your day even better, you’ve raised yourself up.
You've raised yourself up if it makes you just a little happier.
If it makes you treat one person even a little nicer, you’ve raised yourself up.
Wouldn’t that be worth it?
Resources
Thinkup: Positive Affirmations App
The Most Powerful Book of Affirmations Ever Written, by Sheldon T. Ceaser MD
Thank you, Tim. I've been journaling a lot more in the last few weeks and found myself a lot more patient than I would've been if I hadn't been journaling. I imagine throwing more affirmations into the mix would 10x that phenomenon.
What a fun and original post on affirmations! I do believe they are powerful, but the auditory form doesn't do it for me (reciting, repeating, etc.) I follow Henriette Anne Klauser's Write it Down Make it Happen: Knowing what you want and getting it! I notice that your games all included a written note. Thanks for sharing some great ideas!