Today's post was written by health coach Carol Egan. Although geared towards wellness, the strategy she outlines applies to anything in life. I thought it was so well written that I asked for permission to reprint it here. It was originally posted at Carol-Egan.com under the title, "1 Super Simple Strategy to Look and Feel Amazing." Enjoy!
You want to lose weight. You want to ditch sugar cravings. You want to get to look and feel amazing — and your tired of the yo-yo get-healthy struggle with no lasting success.
What do Michael Jordan and Muhammad Ali have in common with Jim Carrey, Oprah Winfrey and Jack Canfield in creating success? ONE simple strategy.
Affirmations.
All used affirmations to create success! Why would we not use affirmations in our get-healthy goal setting? Makes no sense not to, right?
You’ve likely heard Muhammad Ali’s signature affirmation in his “I am the Greatest” speech:
Maybe you’ve heard Michael Jordon say, “If you quit ONCE it becomes a habit. Never quit!!!”
But do you know that Jim Carrey used affirmations to obtain work and make a name for himself as he struggled to become an actor, to then garner his first 10 million dollar role in Dumb and Dumber?
Or that Oprah Winfrey used affirmations as she rose from poverty and being told no over and over as a black woman in a largely white male dominated profession, to hosting the highest-rated television program of its kind in history?
How about Jack Canfield, co-creator of the “Chicken Soup For The Soul” series?
He used affirmations to keep him going, though ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY publishers rejected his book idea on after another, before he found one publishing house to print his manuscript.
Without affirmations, without believing in themselves and all that they knew they were capable of achieving, how could Muhammad Ali, Michael Jordan, Jim Carrey, Oprah Winfrey, or Jack Canfield and so many others have created success in the face of years of seeming failure and rejection?
So WHY on earth would YOU not use affirmations to achieve your get-healthy goals, when you now know they’re effective? I mean, c’mon, they literally work! Actually, why would any of us not capitalize on any strategy that is super easy, like affirmations in any area of life, especially in the get-healthy game that leaves so many often without lasting results!
The purpose of an affirmation is to push the edges of what you think is possible.
But if you don’t think it’s possible for you to look and feel better than you ever have, OR if you believe that “you’re too old,” “too busy,” “too tired,” or worse, some cockamamie limiting thought like “Americans don’t eat like that,” or “my family and friends don’t eat like that,” without affirmations and shifting to a more empowered mindset, your sunk. Doomed. Stuck in thoughts that could keep you at a weight you hate, feeing disempowered, exhausted, addicted to unhealthy food — and looking far less radiant than your best self!
Why not try affirmations? It’s a no-brainer. Right?
But let me let you in on an important insider’s secret, the effectiveness of your affirmation depends on how you FEEL when you say it!
When I help my 1:1 clients create affirmations, we always go by how they FEEL!
Do you feel excited, like, I’m not sure this is possible — I’ve never achieved this before, but I LOVE the whole idea of creating this result, then you’re on the right track!
Does it leave you flat? Unexcited? If yes, it’s likely not the right affirmation for you.
Do you feel indifferent, like it feels good, but it’s not really a stretch for you to achieve? It’s probably not inspiring enough to pull you forward.
I mean, c’mon, if you seriously want to look and feel amazing — IF you really want to lose weight, reverse health damage and INCREASE anti-aging benefits, then you need an affirmation that will pull you into action, pull you forward when everyone is saying, “Lighten up, go with the flow.” (READ: Lighten up, go with the flow = follow me to ruin and demise! Ha! ’Tis true! Statistics of chronic disease are NO joke today!)
To create your affirmation use the Hammer Approach or the Butterfly Effect.
The Hammer Approach is when you pick one affirmation that you want to deeply integrate into your subconscious and conscious mind. I LOVE this technique. It’s like motivation on steroids because it helps me focus and create solid, tangible results repeatedly.
For example, my current affirmation is, “I am SO pumped to consistently set and achieve meaningful and extraordinary results today!”
This affirmation says it all for me. It’s all encompassing. It covers my commitment to my physical, mental, emotional, Spiritual AND professional goals and needs! I pick affirmations that are expansive, to include all I want to achieve in all areas of life!
It’s the Hammer Approach because you nail down ONE affirmation everyday so it becomes part of your life!
The Butterfly Effect is when you create a new affirmation everyday. I LOVE these too, and include them daily. For example, if you want to practice saying YES to choosing healthy food choices everyday, I say things like:
I am SO pumped that the healthy food choices I make today feel FUN and taste delicious!
I am SO pumped that my skin RADIATES from the healthy food choices I make today!
I am SO pumped by how my clothes just slip right on from the healthy food choices I make!
Remember, when creating an affirmation, you want how it makes you FEEL to guide you!
And it’s not an either or approach!
You can hammer down one affirmation that you know will help you move closer to achieving your BIG, WILD AND EXCITING health goals everyday, AND you can create daily affirmations that you know could help you on any particular day!
To get started, think about something that you think is flat-out not possible, but something that you flat-out would LOVE to have happen in your life, and create a Hammer Approach affirmation. Repeat that one every day. Then, create a few Butterfly Effect affirmations pertinent to the day, to keep you moving toward you exciting goal!
Let’s try it:
WHAT health goal seems impossible to you, seems to allude you up until now, but would be way cool to achieve?
Create your goal into an affirmation.
Write them out and post them below in the comments section. Let’s power them up together!
Feel stuck? Tell me what you’re thinking, where you think you could be stuck, and let’s move your thoughts in an empowering way about a health matter that’s limiting you.