Starting an Affirmation Journal

You may already use positive affirmations to influence your outlook. Also, writing them down will help you organize your thoughts and give you better control over them. The process of journaling your affirmations brings awareness to your thoughts and helps those positive statements stick.

How to get your affirmation journal started

• First things first: Find a journal. You can use an inexpensive spiral notebook, or a fancy decorative journal. It doesn’t matter. There are also workbooks and journals on the market that include daily prompts or inspiring messages. You may even choose to use our confidence notebook for this purpose. 
• Set your intentions. Think about your goals in keeping this journal. Write those down at the beginning and go back to them often to reinforce the purpose of creating your journal.
• Determine how you will write the affirmations. Ask yourself these questions: 
• Will I simply write affirmative statements, or will I write short paragraphs to expound about my feelings about that statement?
• Will I create my own positive affirmations, or use a resource to guide me? Or will it be a mix of the two?
• Schedule a time to journal. Make affirmation journaling a part of your routine. Incorporating something new into your day takes commitment. If you set aside a certain time each day, you’ll more likely make it a habit. It’s recommended to write your affirmations first thing in the morning so that they remain at the forefront of your mind throughout the day. You might choose to set that alarm just a few minutes earlier to make sure you make time to start your day off positively!

Tips for affirmation journaling

• Keep them bold, clear, and positive. 
• Use present tense as though what you’re affirming is already true. 
• Be creative. You aren’t limited to simply writing phrases and memorizing them. Maybe you enjoy doodling and want to express your affirmations more artistically.
• Try prompts. If you’re not sure where to start, write the beginning of a phrase like, “I am” and then fill in the blank with a positive attribute. Or, you could ask yourself these questions:
• How do I want to feel?
• What do I want to improve upon?
• What are my strengths?
• Harness emotion. It’s important to feel what you are saying. The purpose is to motivate, encourage, and empower you.
• Let ideas build. As you reflect on a particular topic, allow your thoughts to transform and inspire additional ideas.
• Expand. Affirm more than just one area of your life: relationships, career, habits, goals, etc.
• Record the changes. As your affirmations begin manifesting into positive outcomes, record those! This will encourage and empower you to keep journaling.
• Avoid distractions. When you take time to journal, try to find a silent place so you can focus with clarity and peace.
• Reframe. Are you having negative thoughts? Reframe them with positive statements.

Remember that journaling your affirmations is a process; it may take some time to get in the groove. The goal of affirmation journaling is to incorporate positive statements into your life so that ultimately, you make positive changes to your mindset and life. 

To bring your daily affirmations from your head to your toes, notes to self® has everything you need for your own private reminder or a message to share with others or send as a gift.