21 Powerful Positive Affirmations for Confidence and Self-Esteem 

 

Why would you need positive affirmations for confidence and self-esteem?  

It’s a fair question.  

A lot of people think affirmations are useless, that they don’t work, and that you are just paying lip service to something you don’t believe anyway.  

And, honestly? Fair enough.  

If you are merely repeating positive statements over and over without believing them or making any other changes in your life, all those Negative Nancys are right.  

Simply saying something over and over will not make it true. Goodness knows we see enough proof of that in the media and social media every day.  

But what has been shown is that believing something does indeed make it true.  

Even better? Knowing something makes it true.  

We call them “miracles,” but really, it is thought in action. 

How do you switch from being someone with little or no confidence and self-esteem to someone full of confidence and self esteem?  

You must change what you know. 

So easy?  

No. Not so easy.  

It takes a lot of work.  

But, of course, like with anything that takes a lot of work, it’s worth it.  

Affirmations for Confidence and Self-Esteem: It’s a Thought First 

Building confidence begins with a clear understanding that every single thing in existence is a thought first.  

All the way back to the beginning of time, first, there was only consciousness – pure, loving energy with an idea for creation.  

From that idea sprung the universe as we know it – stars, moons, planets, suns, galaxies, etc.  

Earth was an idea before it came into creation, then plants, then animals, then humans, an evolutionary process that was begun millions of years ago, from an idea, a thought.  

We call the consciousness that thought of earth and life Source Energy, God, Universe, Spirit, and so on.  

It is an infinitely powerful, infinitely wise energy that sees all and is all present. It is a part of all of us.  

We are extensions of that Source Energy, and we create from thoughts, always, just like Source does.  

And whatever we can think, we can create, from pyramids to empires to war to confidence.  

We are all powerful, just like source.  

We just have to remind ourselves of this reality, which is where positive affirmations come in.  

But it can’t be all positive affirmations. The words don’t make you believe it. You believe it, and then you repeat the words as reminders.  

So, what makes you believe it?  

How do you shift from negative beliefs to a positive mindset?  

It is both simple and complex, both easy and extremely difficult: you make positive changes in your life.  

Positive Changes Lead to Affirmations for Confidence and Self-Esteem 

I’d say one of the greatest failures of the most recent generations in the western world is the insistence that everyone gets a trophy no matter what.  

You’ve done nothing but show up, and sometimes you haven’t even done that, but still you get a pat on the back. You get a trophy. 

And certainly no one can call you out for not actually putting in any effort, for being lazy or listless, for refusing to participate in life. 

Because that might hurt your feelings.  

We have become so obsessed as a society with not hurting feelings, that we have raised generations of children and now adults who don’t have any sense of grit, any concept of toughening up, of overcoming, of building an interior of self-esteem despite challenges.  

Indeed, we have removed all challenges. We have created safe spaces and soft landings for people to the degree that they now have no sense of building themselves up, overcoming difficulty, and creating a life worth being proud of.  

Jordan Peterson addresses this issue in his book Beyond Order: 12 More Rules for Life.  

In the chapter “Don’t Bother Children When They Are Skateboarding,” he outlines how children need to be left to their own devices in much of their life, rather than overprotected.  

It’s not an easy lesson to learn for mother, but as I watch my kids, the more I pull back and let them engage in calculated risks, in failing and falling, in getting their feelings hurt, I watch them become stronger and more proud of themselves.  

Out on a date with my husband recently, I got a message from my kids, who were at home with my mom. “Can we play on the rings? Grandma says to ask you.”  

I clenched up immediately.  

My husband has set up a kind of obstacle course in our garage, with rings that hang from a beam. My kids love to swing and flip and twirl on these rings.  

But the rings are over the concrete garage floor!  

And all the what ifs ran through my head.  

I consulted my husband, and he instantly responded “don’t bother children while they’re skateboarding!” 

Yea yea, I know. Easier said than done.  

But I gave them the go ahead and just made sure Grandma was outside on the property within hearing distance.  

And you know what? They were fine. Better than fine. They were thrilled, filled up, and they had a great day – a much better day than they would have had kept inside a house with padded walls and endless screen time.  

And they become more confident and more independent each time I give them freedom to care for themselves in these small ways.  

Make Positive Changes  

So you were either overprotected and coddled or you were traumatized and damaged in life, so now you have low confidence.  

Negative self-talk is now deeply ingrained in your subconscious.  

The good news is, it’s not over for you.  

You now must enter the phase of life called “reparenting yourself.”  

Now you get to be that encouraging, supportive, loving parent for yourself. You challenge yourself, you put yourself to the test, and you measure yourself every day against yourself,  

The only test? Did you do better today than you did yesterday?  

No? Try again tomorrow.  

Yes? Keep going and do it again tomorrow.  

In this way, you can show yourself that you are worthy of love, that you are capable of great things, and that negative thoughts are merely commercials in the television of life that you can allow to come and go and then get on with the business of living.  

A bad event does not have to become a bad day. A bad day does not have to become a bad life.  

Begin to make small positive changes in your life, and your self worth grows by leaps and bounds.  

Positive Changes and Their Mantras 

Make positive changes in your life incrementally. As you do, you will be gradually building confidence and self esteem, which in turn will encourage you to make more small positive changes, which will then build more confidence and self esteem.  

And you have now created a positive cycle that is very hard to break, which is what you want.  

That is the power of positive affirmation: you say something you actually believe, and it reinforces your confidence and self esteem.  

Exercise 

The absolute most powerful way to build confidence and self-esteem is to create a daily routine that includes exercise 

You don’t have to kill yourself at CrossFit or do HIIT training. You don’t have to go hard every single day, or any day.  

Just move your body, preferably outside, preferably in the morning, every single day.  

Get some kind of movement for at least 30 minutes.  

Ideally, you will build up to moving throughout your day, so that your body is doing what it was designed to do: move.  

Regular exercise, like a walk, yoga, swimming, biking, will make you feel almost instantly stronger, more confident, and more capable.  

Positive Affirmations for Confidence and Self-Esteem to Repeat after Exercise:  

I am strong. 

I am capable.  

I am up to the challenge.  

My body supports me; I can support my body. 

My body is amazing. 

Diet 

Once you’ve mastered getting regular exercise, your diet naturally comes next.  

Eat your fruits and veggies – 8 a day.  

Eat lean proteins from animals that eat plants.  

Drink lots of water.  

Don’t overeat.  

Get lots of herbs and spices into your diet.  

Food is life.  

Food is fuel.  

I love the advice from fitness guru Jordan Syatt, who says “eat a big ass salad every day.”  

Yes, because when you eat a big ass salad, it’s really hard to stuff yourself with a bunch of crap the rest of the day. It also maximizes your nutritional intake.  

Eating well makes you feel clean and healthy, and what you eat is a major contributor to your mental health.  

Good food leads to a healthy mind.  

Positive Affirmations for Confidence and Self-Esteem to Repeat After Eating:  

My body is a temple. 

I am what I eat. 

I am healthy. 

I take care of my body.  

I am worthy of nourishment.  

I take good care of myself.  

Good food makes my body strong. 

Sleep  

Sleep is a critical piece in the foundation of overall wellness, which contributes to your confidence and self-esteem.  

When you eat well and exercise, you sleep better. So these three legs make for a better overall you. 

Aim for 8 hours of sleep a night; that way, if you fall short, at least you’ll land on the minimum recommended 7.  

Positive Affirmations for Confidence and Self-Esteem to Repeat After Waking:  

I am worthy of rest.  

My body is better for my rest.  

I am stronger for having rested.  

I am more capable of meeting my goals from a place of rest.  

Rest makes me happier and healthier.  

I have cared for myself by sleeping well.  

I am more useful to others when I sleep well.  

Just implementing those critical pieces of health and wellness will make you naturally more strong, confident, and full of self esteem.  

Repeat each of these mantras after you conduct the element, or pick and choose the ones you love the most.  

Happy Manifesting!