Write a list of 5 values that are important to you, e.g.
- Family
- Self-care
- Creativity
- Learning
- Build a business
Next, write 1-3 sentences about each either in present or future tense. Each sentence should convey a sense of active action. For example, instead of
I’m successful in my business.
you could write
I’m building a successful business every day.
When reading the affirmation, you should yourself understand and be able to visualize what it means, even if vaguely. In other words: you should be able to link the affirmation (building the entrepreneurial mindset and constructive emotional state) to your practical daily and weekly plans (implementation steps). So ask plainly:
What does this sentence mean this week?
When this affirmation is true, what follows from that?
Next, list the sentences on a piece of paper and record yourself reading them out loud using the sound recorder on your phone. Read each sentence 3-5 times out loud, with a slight (say 5 second) pause in between them to let your mind visualize the outcomes.
Now you have a personalized mp3 recording that you can use anywhere to help strengthen your mindset. You can try listening to it before going to sleep, first thing in the morning, while driving, or in the gym.
You can condition yourself for challenging situations and try listening to the recording during and after physical exercise, e.g. during a challenging set in the gym. This helps to mentally connect the affirmations to physical stress, which can assist in other stressful situations as well.
This post was inspired by Dr Nate Zinsser’s The Confident Mind: A Battle-Tested Guide to Unshakable Performance (Penguin Books, 2022).