Step 5. Anchoring your motivation. Part 1: Affirmations

Now this sounds like fun doesnt it?
The thing with motivation is that we dont always have it available when we need it the most.It is relatively easy being motivated to lose weight when our tummy is full or when we are feeling great about ourselves, but how to stay on track when the going gets tough?
Hence the concept of anchoring. So what does an anchor do? When we throw an anchor on a boat (from a boat sounds better!)we are fixing where we want to be. At times the current, the tide, the wind may take the boat a little bit off track, but the anchor ensures that we come back to where we want to be. And that is also what anchoring our motivation will do for us.
So how can we anchor our motivation?
The two most common ways are by affirmations and visualisations.
Today we shall take a look at affirmations.

An affirmation is a word, a sentence, maybe a few sentences, that mean something to you and that you repeat to yourself so much that they become your self-talk. A few rules need to be obeyed. An affirmation needs to be:
- positive
- present
- personal

By positive I mean stating what you want and not what you are moving away from. Our brain does strange things with "donts".Our brain does not operate with negatives,they don't exist,so it wipes them out. So where does all your attention go? Sure enough: to that which you do not want."Don't think of a red car": we automatically do. So when we say: "don't smoke" to ourselves, our brain registers: " smoke, smoke". As philosopher Jung said: "What we resist persists", so do not give all your attention to that which you do not want.

Present:State your affirmation in the present tense and start acting the part now.Fake it till you make it and start developing now the qualities of the person you want to become.

Personal: this is about you and you must feel deeply spoken to by your affirmation so make it personal:
I am fit, firm and focussed. I am organised and in control. I am a great Mother. I am positive and motivated.I am great at what I do.

Whatever works for you as long as the three "P"s are respected.

Then REPEAT it all the time, in your head, out loud, write it on colourful cards. Affirm it to yourself as often as you can, till your message to yourself becomes fully ingrained in your sub-conscious.This will keep you focussed, keep you anchored to the destination you have chosen.

That is enough for us to focus on today, so why wait? Think up a word or a sentence which is your goal and start boldly telling your brain!

Good luck and more next week with anchoring by visualising!
Let's make it happen!