Posts Tagged positive self-talk

Use Positive Self-Talk to Reduce Stress

On June 11, 2020 / Stress Management

Positive self-talk is vital for stress reduction. In fact, I often say that it’s important to master your mind if you want to reduce stress. But what exactly does that mean? In short, it’s about using positive self-talk to focus your expectations. Do you expect success? Or do you expect failure? While most people claim to expect success, the reality is that their self-talk is setting them up for failure, which in turn leads to stress.

When you expect failure, you communicate your expectations to your subconscious mind. Your brain accepts the notion and prompts your mindset as if you will fail. You actually program yourself in a negative way to do the things that will lead to failure. This … >>>

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Beware the Power of Words

On April 6, 2017 / Blog, Stress Management

The power of words may seem obvious but the fact is that most of us, most of the time, are not mindful of the effect of our words. We often choose our clothes more carefully then we choose our words. What we say—both to ourselves and to others—is critically related to the reduction of stress.

Here is an exercise to help you determine how much control you have over the language you use. For the next 24 hours, resist saying any unkind words about or to anybody—including yourself.

If you believe that you can do this, then a wonderful opportunity awaits you for improving relationships and for reducing future stress. However, if you believe the exercise is too … >>>

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Help Students Feel Safe

On December 29, 2015 / Effectiveness

All students have two questions when they first enter any classroom:
(1) Will I fit in?
(2) Will I succeed?

Following are two simple ways to empower students so that their self-talk will be in the affirmative.

For the first question (Will I fit in?), reduce anonymity. Start the class by having students share the name they would like to be called and have them share one personal fact about themselves. It can be a hobby, a special interest, how they enjoy spending their time, a favorite movie, a special song—anything that others in the class can relate to about each student.

For the second question (Will I succeed?), use an empowering approach. Start an assignment or give a test … >>>

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Positivity Builds Self-Esteem

On July 15, 2014 / Effectiveness, Parenting

Self-esteem is a person’s sense of self-worth and is manifested in large part by a person’s self-talk. One of the advantages researchers report about positive self-talk is that it encourages persistence—a key characteristic for success.

Negative self-talk creates a negative mindset that can lead to avoiding failure rather than reaching for success.

The more young people are encouraged and are talked to in positive ways the greater chances are for their own self-talk to be positive, which will greatly reduce discipline issues. As a teacher or parent, you have a tremendous opportunity to promote positive self-talk in young people. If you’re dealing with a child who is at-risk and needing frequent discipline, realize that these youth focus more on the … >>>

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Seek Out the Positive

On November 11, 2013 / Effectiveness, Relationships

An old saying tells us: “If you can’t say anything nice about a person, then don’t say anything at all.”

That’s great advice, not only for your communications with others, but also with yourself. In other words, if you can’t say (or think) something nice about yourself, then don’t say (or think) anything at all … unless you can exert the discipline to turn it around to positive self-talk.

The practice of positivity—with others and yourself—is so important that it’s the first practice of the Discipline Without Stress model. The opposite, of course, is negativity. In building relationships with children and adults, negativity is the biggest enemy.

Don’t allow negative ideas that pop into your mind to direct your thoughts. … >>>

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Make Positivity Your Habit

On November 26, 2012 / Effectiveness, Parenting

Making positivity a practice both in your self-talk and in your communications with others begins with awareness. Listen to yourself. Become aware of the number of times you say something negatively that could be phrased positively. Continually ask yourself before speaking, “How can I say this so it will be perceived in a positive way?”

Using positive phrases can turn what would have been a negative into a positive. The result is dramatic. The more you practice phrasing communications in the positive, the sooner it will become a new habit. A simple approach is to focus on what you want your children to do rather than on what you don’t want them to do. Eliminate disempowering, negative words such as … >>>

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