An Affirming Mindset

30 Nov An Affirming Mindset

There’s a viral video of a curly-haired 3-year-old girl named Jessica starting her day by giving herself affirmations in the mirror. Dressed in her matching pajama set, she stands on top of the bathroom counter with her face inches from the mirror. Her legs straddle the sink in a wide, strong stance. She punches her arms out toward the mirror for emphasis with each self-affirmation she shouts excitedly: 

I can do anything good

I like my whole family

I like my hair

I like my pajamas

My whole house is great

I can do anything…

Full of optimism, does a twirl and a little dance, jumps off of the counter and rushes off to begin her day. 

When we remind ourselves of our strengths and celebrate and savor the good things in our life, it tends to give us a lift. It is like a mental breakfast, where we set the tone for our day with positive thinking.  

The challenge is that we tend to be much better at searching for problems and deficits in ourselves and some of us might feel self-conscious about climbing onto our bathroom counter and shouting affirmations in the mirror. 

So, I thought I would share a more self-reflective and structured way that can be helpful in identifying and affirming your own enduring positive qualities. Have a look at the list of adjectives below and find a few that describe you. Then think about how they might help you accomplish the things you need to do in the day ahead:

…or you can always stand on top of your bathroom counter and let the mirror reflect the good in your life.

Regardless of what approach you take, choosing to intentionally focus on your strengths is like the gift of a new pair of glasses that help you look out with clarity and see what is strong and good in you.