You may have come across the idea of "affirmations" before: short, positive statements that you repeat to yourself regularly.

I'll be totally honest: when I first heard of this concept many years ago, I thought it was kind of silly. Perhaps I'd come across some rather overblown affirmations, like the classic, "Every day, in every way, I'm getting better and better!"

I can't take that kind of affirmation seriously. Every day? In every way? It just doesn't ring true.

Much more recently, though, I read Soundtracks by Jon Acuff. He doesn't really talk about "affirmations" but about the "soundtracks" in your head.

And soundtracks, I could definitely understand. Because negative soundtracks are very like the inner critic that all writers are familiar with.

Those negative soundtracks are often things like:

• You're not good enough.
• People will laugh at you if you publish this.
• You'll never make a living from writing.

Positive soundtracks – or affirmations – don't have to be exaggerated or pompous. But they can help replace these negative thoughts, giving you more enthusiasm and motivation for your writing.

How to Use Affirmations

First, you need an affirmation. I have a bunch of them that I try to read over once or twice a day. Here are a couple of writing-related ones I wrote:

• I am making the time I want to write.
• All the right people are cheering me on with my goals.

Those affirmations counter negative thoughts that I have. Sometimes it feels like I don't have much time to write (even when I know I could prioritise my writing time more). Sometimes I worry that certain people will think my goals and ambitions are silly or even wrong.

Those affirmations encourage me, but you might find others you prefer. Here are some you might try on for size.

• I am a writer.
• I am constantly coming up with new ideas.
• With every word I write, I get a little bit better.
• Nothing I write is wasted. I'm always learning.
• There are new opportunities around every corner.
• I can beat resistance and write.
• My writing is important to me.

Then, you need to repeat your affirmation regularly to help it stick. 

Personally, the whole idea of loudly declaiming affirmations to the mirror makes me cringe ... I just read them silently in my head. It still helps! You might prefer to write yours out by hand. Some people record their affirmations and listen back to them each morning when they wake up. Whatever works for you is fine.

If you've never tried using affirmations before, I'd encourage you to give it a go. Yes, it might seem silly or strange ... but you might just find it really helpful.

Happy writing,

Ali

P.S. If you missed last week's blog post, you can find it here:

Seven Masterful Techniques to Build Tension in Your Fiction (With Examples)