In the leadership program I run for primary school students, I not only teach them leadership tools but also share concepts to live their best life.
It may seem silly, but many of the ideas that resonate with these young people also resonate with seasoned leaders who are struggling to fit living in with their overflowing bucket of work and stress that leaves room for little else.
These affirmations are not hard to remember, nor are they hard to understand, but they are definitely powerful.
Four Affirmations to Live Your Best Life
Be the Remote (not the TV)
The average American household has access to nearly 200 TV channels. When you sit down in front of the TV and turn it on, you’re not at the mercy of whatever’s on the screen, right? If your child was watching SpongeBob earlier and then left the room, what do you do? You pick up the remote and change the channel.
If you’re the TV, you’re at the mercy of whatever’s on the screen. In your life that could mean staying in a soul-sucking job, sticking with a partner who treats you poorly, or keeping your dreams on the back burner until you magically have time for them.
When you’re the remote, you’re in control. In life that means you get to take action to change your story. You can start a job search, a side hustle, hang out with new people or whatever you want.
Be the remote.
Take off the Lid
Bullies and others try to shove you and squeeze you into boxes, and you willingly jump into many more on your own – especially the “victim” box. The worst is when you get stuck in there and start to believe the hurtful words that you hear from yourself and others.
You get criticized, so you hop into the “I suck” box.
Passed over for promotion and it’s the “I’m a loser” box.
Your teen screams at you about how you’re the worst, so you get into the “worst” box.
“Unworthy”
“Stupid”
“Unsuccessful”
On and on.
It’s time to take off the lid and step out.
You decide who you are. You don’t suck, are not a loser and are not the worst.
Taking the lid off is more than thinking out of the box – it’s standing up for yourself and standing strong in your personal leadership.
Boxes aren’t for people. Take off that lid once and for all.
I’m a Mirror
It’s a concept that too many miss. We’re taught that other people should respect us or make us happy, but that’s not all there is to it. We expect other people to do for us, but we forget our end of the bargain.
A mirror reflects, and if you want a happy, connected, robust life, you need to be a mirror.
The more you show respect, the more you get it.
The more you’re angry or yell, the more you’ll get that back too.
The more you’re joyful, the people around you will be too.
Be mindful of what you’re putting out in the world and make sure it’s what you want to experience in return.
Never forget, you are the mirror.
The Force is Within Me
I can remember seeing Star Wars when it came out in the theaters in 1977. Of course, we all know the quote, “Luke, use the Force.”
Instead of simply using the force, what Obi-Wan taught Luke was “The Force is within you.” Imagine that your lightsaber is there for you 24/7 but here’s the catch, only you know it’s there. You don’t use it to take out the bad guys but to create the life you want.
The power is within you. You hold the power.
In the movies, not everyone is equally skilled at using the Force, but in your life, there’s no one stronger, better prepared or more adept than you.
The next time you’re face to face with an obstacle, challenge or excuse, be the Force. If you want to live your best life, never doubt that the Force is within you too.
[Tweet “”Whether I fail or succeed shall be no man’s doing but my own. I am the force.” ~ Elaine Maxwell #quote”]
Quick Tips for Affirmations:
- Pick the one or two that resonate most with you
- Say it out loud
- Repeat it to yourself
- Put copies in places where you’ll see it
- Create a visual to go with the affirmation to activate your brain in new ways
- Repeat the affirmation to yourself whenever you need a boost to kick your negative thoughts to the curb
[Tweet “Affirmations impact your attitude and your attitude determines your impact. #life #leadership”]
Do you have any favorites you’d add that you use to help live your best life?
Hi Alli,
These affirmations are so creative and powerful, it’s hard to pick just one! So I am going to take two — “Take off the lid” and “the Force is within me.”
The first one frees your true spirit and the second keeps it going. Together they are unstoppable.
Great post. Loads of inspiration here. Will share with others.
Kate
Thanks, Kate! Love the two you picked. Stepping up with self-confidence and strength is a powerful combination!
Many thanks,
Alli
Yes, ma’am, I surely do love these affirmations. My quick response is, as I am telling myself this moment about a meeting I proposed today, “take control.” More on that later if you’re interested. Secondly, there are times, too many recently, when it seems like “sometimes life sucks” but it doesn’t mean that I do. I have to do what I can to help change that for others. Third, I like using a mirror both for myself and for others. Can give you more on that too. And finally, I know I can be a force and one that may need a little moderation at times as I can be a provocateur of some significance on occasion. It’s always been hard for me to accept the status quo. Be the force for positive change.
What I love about your comments is that you challenge my thinking… helping me to make it broader. I’m with you by the way – let’s all be the force for positive change!
Grateful,
Alli
Wow! I loved this article, Alli…I especially liked your comments about how easy it is for folks to default into “victim” mode. Even worse, today’s society encourages us to be victims. If something isn’t working, find someone else to blame. Be a victim. That is load of crap…as you point out: we should all take responsibility for who we are and then do something about it if we don’t like what we see. The buck stops with us, not others. Great inspirational article….
The victim response isn’t helping anyone. Without learning to take responsibility for our lives, we’ll never get far. I know a few people who LOVE to paint themselves as the victim and struggle to see how they play a part in failure, success, happiness – you name it. Time for a change.
Thanks, LaRae!
Alli
What a lucky group of young leaders to have you run their leadership program!
I love all the affirmations you created but the one that really resonates with me is – The Force is Within Me. I think when we feel empowered we can accomplish so much more and connect with others in a deeper way. I find that when I am feeling confident I have an easier time working with others hearing their perspectives.
Thanks Alli and will share!
You make a great point, Terri. Feeling self-confident actually doesn’t have to mean arrogance – it can be a pathway to listening more deeply and maintaining an open mind because we have nothing to prove.
Thanks!
Alli
As with most of the others, I like all four. But my favorite is “Be the Remote.” Your use of the TV Remote vs. the TV is so helpful; it really makes clear what the contrasts are – AND why each of us should CHOOSE to ‘Be the Remote.”
I’ve moved on from one of my passions, Considering how to facilitate Effective Learning in formal education settings (though Effective Learning – along with problem solving, communicating, and working in groups is so important to lifelong learning which is in turn important to Leadership, another of my passions) for the most part.
But one of the very few remaining connections to formal learning is my participation in the Twitter #OklaEd chat. For any educators reading this I highly recommend your checking it out – most Sunday evenings beginning at 8PM Eastern time. The topic this past Sunday was the EdCamps that are becoming so important to formal schooling success. Check it out, again if you’re an educator.
Why did I bring up this Twitter chat? One of the discussion questions related to the “Two Feet” rule. I.e., if you choose a session that wasn’t as related to your desire to improve learning facilitation as you expected, the “Two Feet” rule states that you should stand up and leave the session … for another session. Knowing the rule is operational, no one including the session leader should be offended.
Back to “Be the Remote” then: Because the consequences and responsibilities involved have bigger implications, “Be the Remote” is not immediately the same as initiating the “Two Feet” rule I don’t believe. How about a corollary? I suggest the “Consider Two Feet” rule: Staying with “Be the Remote”, IF the CHOICE you’ve made turns out to have serious / critical issues, carefully Consider all the implications of moving on; IF these Considerations support changes, use your Two Feet to make a change!!!
John – I love that!! The “two feet” rule makes tons of sense and works well with “be the remote” too.
I recently told someone about a class I took in college. I got my lowest grade out of any for all four years and it impacted my overall GPA. Plus, I didn’t like the class at all – the topic or the approach (even today, I’m not sure what we learned). The first day of class the professor invited us to leave if we didn’t want to play by his rules and weren’t up for what was ahead. My gut told me it was a bad fit but I decided to stick it out – after all, not everything should be comfortable. The next class session only about 1/3 of the students remained for the term. Those that used the “two feet” rule made a better choice than I did! Not every opportunity to challenge ourselves with discomfort is the right one.
I understand pulling back on old passions but still finding ways to share your wisdom on #OklaEd chat. In many ways, that’s what being the remote is all about!
With gratitude,
Alli