But what is a positive affirmation and how can it benefit you within the workplace?

What Is a Positive Affirmation?

Simply put, a positive affirmation is a mantra or statement which you can use to motivate or encourage yourself and others around you. This can be as simple as reminding yourself before you start a task that you can do it, or taking the time to encourage a colleague before they begin a new challenge. A positive affirmation can be used by anyone and at any time. It doesn’t even have to be something that you say out loud. It can be a sentence or phrase which you repeat to yourself when you are feeling overwhelmed, or as part of your daily routine. Many people find that a combination of daily and reinforcement affirmations helps them to feel more confident in their skills and abilities.

Why Use Positive Affirmations in the Workplace?

There are many reasons why people choose to use positive affirmations in the workplace. Some of the most common reasons are highlighted below.

Reduce Stress

Finding affirmations that work for you can reduce feelings of stress and anxiety. This is because they remind you of your strengths as well as of the person you want to be seen as. Sometimes, this reminder is all that is needed to refocus and tackle a challenge.

Simple Is Often Better

When you are stressed, complex relaxation techniques can feel ineffective because they take time to work. If you are feeling pressured, taking time out for a relaxation technique can seem like a waste of time. A positive affirmation is a simple sentence or phrase which can be repeated in seconds to remind you of your strengths and abilities.

Boost Your Confidence

We are often our own worst critics and will talk ourselves down or out of a challenge if we aren’t feeling confident about it. Taking a few moments to remember some positive affirmations can boost your confidence and remind you that you are more capable than your self-doubts would have you believe.

Increase Motivation

When you are struggling with motivation, it can remind you of your purpose and ambitions. Positive affirmations can be a good way of doing this. They refocus your mind and remind you of what you want to achieve.

Fake It ’Til You Make It

This phrase can be used as an affirmation in itself. Sometimes, when you feel overwhelmed by a new challenge or increased responsibilities, positive affirmations like this can help. It can change your mindset so that, although you may not have the skills required at that time, you can learn as you go and complete the tasks required of you. Sometimes, pretending that you are confident or optimistic can help those traits to develop in real life. You eventually become the person you were pretending to be.

Examples of Positive Affirmations

By turning the negative into a positive, it can change your mindset and help you to find new ways to overcome the challenge. Use this affirmation when: unexpected challenges arise in the workplace or something happens which causes you to rethink your strategy. This is especially true in the workplace where it can be tempting to spend too long thinking about where you want to be, without acknowledging just how hard you have worked to get to where you are. Use this affirmation when: you feel as though you will never reach your goal or when you feel as though you haven’t done enough to reach your dream position. Reminding yourself to breathe first can give you the space you need to respond calmly rather than through anger. Use this affirmation when: there are conflicts between colleagues or you are dealing with a difficult manager. By using this affirmation, you are reminding yourself that you are the only person with your particular set of skills and are therefore best placed to do your job. Use this affirmation when: you feel that you are not as good as your colleagues or when you think that others would do better than you at your job. In reality, the ability to acknowledge the need for assistance shows that you are willing to accept when you need more expert input from others who know more than you do. Use this affirmation when: a challenge arises which means that you need to ask for help, when you are working as part of a team and need to choose individuals to handle specific tasks, or when you are unable to solve a situation yourself and need to ask advice from other staff members. However, it is important to take time out from work, to rest and recharge. Without this, you are unable to perform at your best and there is no work-life balance. Use this affirmation when: you are feeling overwhelmed with work and exhausted or when it is your day off but calls, messages or emails from work come through. In this situation, an affirmation can refocus your mind on your own potential rather than allowing yourself to feel limited. Use this affirmation when: someone you work with is offered a promotion which you had hoped for or you see someone achieve something which you had hoped to achieve yourself. After all, they are what others think of when they think about you, not your qualifications or job title. Use this affirmation when: when you don’t get the grade you wanted in a qualification or the pitch you submitted for a project is turned down. You should never feel pressured to say yes to something that you don’t want to do or that doesn’t feel right. Sometimes, saying no means that you are taking care of your wellbeing and leaving the door open for different opportunities which would fit better with where you see yourself. Use this affirmation when: you are asked to take on a project which would add little or no value to your career or when someone asks you to take on extra work on top of your usual workload which would leave you over-stretched. Affirmations are a really useful tool when it comes to reminding yourself of the value that you can bring to a role. Use this affirmation when: applying for a job that might be a little above your current level of experience or starting a new position in a different sector.

Final Thoughts

When positive affirmations are used regularly and correctly, they can adjust your mindset so that you look at life from a more positive angle. There are also benefits such as stress reduction, conflict resolution, work-life balance and many others. Everyone will face frustrations and difficulties in the workplace at some point in their career. Positive affirmations can offer a helping hand in overcoming those issues, giving you the tools you need to get past them and move forward.