Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
Remember Stuart Smalley? You know, the guy on Saturday Night Live who'd gaze in the mirror and, with a plastered smile, recite aloud, "I'm good enough. I'm smart enough. And, doggone it, people like me." Don't let this spoof put a bad taste in your mouth about using affirmations: They really do work--when you do them properly.
Ask Ken Gootnick, 36, president and founder of It's All Greek To Me, a Simi Valley, California, company that develops imprinted products for promotional, collegiate and souvenir markets. Gootnick regularly uses positive affirmations to cultivate a mind-set that pushes him toward his goals. "When you repeat affirmations, you feel more positive about your life and the day ahead," he says. "You foster self-esteem and a feeling of confidence, and people want to be around you. Everything begins to come together."
"Come together" it has for Gootnick, who started his company at age 19 as a sophomore at UCLA. He's since grown it into an enterprise with 230 employees and projected 1999 sales of $30 million. He gives a lot of credit to his own consistent use of affirmations.
Talking Points
How do you create affirmations that work for you? Ron Guzik, amotivational speaker and business consultant in Glendale Heights,Illinois, and author of The Inner Game of Entrepreneuring, abook that shows readers how to achieve the various psychologicalqualities entrepreneurs need to succeed, offers the following fourtips:
1. Make affirmations personal. The purpose of usingaffirmations, according to Guzik, is to reinforce a personal traitthat you want to see developed or changed in your life. Forexample, if you're a chronic procrastinator, repeat to yourselfsomething like "I'm on top of things, and I follow up onprojects with energy and attention to detail."
2. Use the present tense. "Many of the people who dobrain research today believe your day-to-day actions come out ofyour subconscious mind," says Guzik. "Positive,present-tense affirmations are about trying to encourage, reinforceand build the subconscious beliefs you want to have in thefuture."
3. Be specific. Guzik likens using affirmations tosetting goals. "You don't want generic or vaguegoals," says Guzik. "You want a specific targetyou're aiming for; then you focus your consciousness andattention on that target. It's the same thing with youraffirmations."
4. Invoke feeling. "Many times when people havegoals, what they really want are the feelings they get when theyachieve their goal: the feelings of pride, satisfaction andaccomplishment," Guzik observes. "When you useaffirmations, try to bring those [feelings] into theprocess."
Mirror, Mirror
When should you use affirmations? The most critical time is whennegative thoughts start to creep into your mind. "Often thethings we say to ourselves are not encouraging, not supportive, andthere's a lot of feedback from the outside world that,generally speaking, is not positive," Guzik notes."Affirmations are a way of counteracting [negative self-talk]with positive things you're moving toward--things you'retrying to achieve."
Guzik also suggests planning time in your day to reciteaffirmations, preferably three times a day: morning, afternoon andevening. This way, you stay focused on what you want to achievethroughout the day.
Stuart Smalley aside, Guzik admits he always repeats hisaffirmations in front of a mirror. Whether you choose to say youraffirmations in the shower or in the car as you commute to and fromthe office, the main thing is that you do it on a consistent basis.To that end, Guzik advises, "Choose a routine that works withyour life."
Mirror Mantras
New to affirmations and don't know where to begin?Motivational speaker and business consultant Ron Guzik suggestsrepeating the following "starter" affirmations toyourself:
- I'm doing something every day to move my businessforward.
- I learn from everything that happens around me and to me.
- I retain my power when I take responsibility for myactions.
- I am more productive when I focus on solutions rather than theproblem.
- I fail only when I stop trying.
- My limits are largely self-imposed; I can change that.
For more affirmations, consult Guzik's book, The InnerGame of Entrepreneuring (Upstart, $18.95, 800-829-7934).
Sean M. Lyden (seanlyden@mindspring.com),owner of The Professional Writing Firm Inc., writes frequently onleadership, motivational and sales issues.
Contact Sources
It's All Greek To Me, (805) 584-0777, kgootnick@iagtm.com
What psychological obstacles to success are you trying toovercome? Tell us at bsumag@entrepreneurmag.com
