Looking for 10 positive affirmations to boost confidence and self-esteem? Luckily for you, I have put together the top 10 positive affirmations you can say every day to help you look and appear confident, even if you feel anything but.

Some background

I first came across affirmations when I read Louise L. Hay’s You can heal your life.  It was the first time that I felt like I could actually have some control over how I felt, over my past and my current reality. It was powerful stuff. I was also doing cognitive behavioural therapy at the time – and both use affirmations to help you change the way you think. CBT helps you recognize the way you speak to yourself – and think about yourself.

Why you need to say 10 positive affirmations to boost confidence

Are you the kind of person who constantly self-flagellates? Says words like “should have”, or “if only” and it generally feels like nothing you ever do is good enough? Then you’ll know that negative self-talk isn’t exactly helping you in life.

Positive affirmations can rock your world. They can make you happier and more in tune with yourself – even if you don’t actually believe them*.  Another study proves that they can even increase your problem-solving ability.

You can also say positive affirmations that help you accept who you are. This helps you practice self-love and can even motivate you to practice self-care.

The key is to keep it simple. Don’t try and say 100 positive affirmations. You need to have 5 – 10 that you say repeatedly to yourself instead of the ones like “I’m so stupid”, “I’m so clumsy”, “I’m such a mess” and more (you’ll probably have your own long list!).

Turn negative statements into positive affirmations

The word affirmation comes from the Latin affirmare, which means “to strengthen and make steady.” Instead of saying negative statements to yourself, which you strengthen and make steady, turning them into beliefs, you can start thinking, and saying the opposite -and make these steady, turning them into positive affirmations and beliefs that boost your confidence.

When you really start getting good at it, you’ll reframe negative statements/thoughts into positive affirmations almost immediately. Like if you tell yourself that you’re overly sensitive (and this makes you weak) you’ll change this to a positive – I am sensitive because I care so much and being able to show my emotions and vulnerability is a strength.

When you feel unworthy, you’ll say “I am a smart and capable person with much to offer.” It takes time to get here, but won’t it feel great when you do?

These 10 positive affirmations for confidence can help change negative thought patterns

Affirmations help you reprogram your mindset, and in so doing, can change your behaviour. Positive affirmations are used in counselling approaches like cognitive behavioural therapy to help break negative thought patterns.

Positive affirmations, much like exercise, can actually increase our amount of feel-good hormones by activating the reward system in our brains. Positive thoughts result in positive emotions, which research shows can change our physiology and improve our mental, emotional, and physical health.

Here are my Top 10 positive affirmations to boost confidence:

1. I am succeeding in life – this works well when you’re busy telling yourself how useless you are
2. I can achieve anything I put my mind to
3. I am grateful for the abundance I have and the abundance that’s coming to me
4. I am strong and powerful
5. I radiate confidence
6. I am enough
7. I am in charge of my life
8. I love myself
9. Confidence is my birthright
10. I can do this!

You can also try this breathe in positivity and exhale negativity exercise!

Of course, you can also write your own affirmations using the above 10 as an example. It’s more important to have affirmations that work for you, and that feel true for you.

If your statements don’t ring true, start with affirmations that reflect what you want to believe. Such as: “I am working really hard to believe in myself.” Or: “Every day I think of one positive thing about myself and my capabilities.”  It should feel authentic and move you in the direction of what you’d like to do, feel or be.

Here’s how to do it the Blue-footed Booby way.

Blue-footed Booby Success Formula: How to use these 10 positive affirmations to boost confidence

1. Choose your own positive affirmations, always making them in the present tense and using I or me – the more personal they are, the more likely they are to work for you
2. Identify some negative thought patterns and replace them with positive statements. For example, the phrase “I’m not good at anything” can change to “I can always be relied on.”
3. Start saying your affirmations first thing in the morning to get you in a good frame of mind for the day
4. Implement these into your daily routine and read them, say them aloud, or even just think about them several times during the day
5. If you hate the idea of positive affirmations, choose a positive memory to focus on when you’re feeling nervous. Instead of saying an affirmation, think about a time you genuinely felt proud of yourself and enjoy those feelings before going into the situation you are anxious about.

Using affirmations as a daily practice helps you recognise and change your thoughts.

Repeatedly saying these 10 positive affirmations for confidence, or ones you came up with yourself, will help release negative thoughts and over time, could even transform your cognitive patterns. “Thoughts become things, choose the good ones,” says Mike Dooley, author of the New York Times bestsellers Leveraging the Universe and Infinite Possibilities and founder of the philosophical Adventure’s Club.

So, the more you can consciously choose your thoughts, booby flock, the better your life will be. I look forward to seeing you soar.

If you liked our take on “positive affirmations to boost confidence,” feel free to leave us a comment below, and please go ahead and share it.

Lastly, remember to join the blue-foot flock! We’re always looking for thinkers, dreamers, and adventurers like you to be part of our little clan.

*Note: Affirmations can be ineffective if they don’t align with what you believe about yourself. Remember to use words that are accurate and authentic to you and that feel encouraging in a way that is consistent with your truth.

Before I leave you, here are a few more quotes to think about:

“I am the greatest. I said that even before I knew I was.”– Muhammad Ali

“Nothing is impossible. The word itself says ‘I’m possible!’” – Audrey Hepburn

“I’m better than I used to be. Better than I was yesterday. But hopefully not as good as I’ll be tomorrow.” – Marianne Williamson