Daily Affirmations for Positive Living

Speaking in front of a group of people is one of the most uncomfortable things we may ever be called upon to do; and most of us will not be completely relaxed in this situation.

Once, I knew a person who suffered from panic attacks. Whenever he needed to stand up and speak in front of a group of people, his nerves just seemed to get the better of him and, they were so bad that eventually he would be completely unable to speak.

Well, he first learned how to control the inner panic with the use of affirmations. Then eventually, he was able to completely free himself of the problem. The affirmation technique can be very powerful indeed, so let's take a closer look at how to make use of it.

Affirmations can be used to achieve any state of mind you want; including coolness, confidence, calmness, and so on - just the thing for preparing to speak in front of a group. To use affirmations you select the state you want to invoke, for example 'confidence' and then repeat over and over in your head - or even aloud, if it is practicable - 'I am confident'.

Amazingly, if you do this over and over, your subconscious mind will just accept that you are confident and will produce that state in your brain so that when you begin to speak, you will indeed be confident. The person I am referring to used the following affirmations, to great effect, before each of his talks:

I am Calm

I am Confident

I am in Control

Personally, I find it interesting to note that in making use of an affirmation, you are literally using the name of God - I AM. So you might even think of each affirmation as a kind of prayer.

Once the person in question finally recognized that he was able to control his mental state by the use of this technique, he was able to relax more before each talk. Then one day, when he realized that he had no more need for the nervousness that he usually felt, he prayed a simple prayer; completely dismissing the nervousness and anxiety from his mind for good. Since that day, he has never felt nervous before giving a talk.

Affirmations do work - and they can work for you too! Simply select the kind of affirmations that reflect the mental state you wish to invoke. Write them down and use them whenever you need them. I remember Norman Vincent Peale recommending that you repeat each affirmation three times - and that, I think, is a good recommendation.

It is also useful to remember to use them periodically, throughout the day. Use them when you wake in the morning; use them before important events in your life; and use them before you go to sleep. If you have never used them before, you will be amazed that such a simple procedure can produce such dramatic effects.