18 Positive Self Talk Examples

The power of positivity!

Something I’m certain you’ve heard of, but so many struggle with… and we want to talk about why!

Our thoughts influence the way we see ourselves and the world around us more than you might think they do. We all have an internal narrative we hold about ourselves. In fact, our inner voice is constantly telling us things and unfortunately, more often than not, they are negative. 

When we neglect to practice self-awareness and intentional, positive self-talk, we are left with the negative thoughts we have about ourselves, and focusing on only those will leave us feeling depressed, worthless, and even disappointed. Those negative thoughts actually keep us from living a full, joy-filled life and love, risk, adventure, and meaningful relationships. But we are in control of our thoughts, which means we can always choose to redirect and change those narratives from negative to positive ones. 

Here are some examples of negative self-talk:

• Why did I do that? I’m so stupid.
• I’m never good enough.
• I’m ugly. No one finds me attractive.
• I can’t do anything right.
• I’m a failure.
• Once I have money, then I’ll be happy.
• I’m not confident enough to do that.
• I’m a terrible mom/dad.
• No one likes my ideas.
• If I stand up for myself, I will be an inconvenience.

Are you guilty of thinking any of these thoughts?

If you answered ‘yes’ then you know that you have an opportunity to learn how to practice more positive self-talk. 

What’s amazing about our brain is that you can actually ‘trick’ it. It’s true! You can start to rewrite your internal script by speaking positive self-talk often. Think of them as little reminders that a best friend would tell you if you were feeling down.

Here are some examples of positive self-talk: 

• I have the power to change my mind.
• I have permission to change my mind.
• Attempting to do this took courage and I’m proud of myself for trying.
• I love myself for who I am.
• Fear is only a feeling, it cannot hold me back.
• I forgive myself for any past mistakes.
• Even though it wasn’t the outcome I hoped for, I learned a lot about myself.
• I’m a deserving human being.
• I have many qualities, traits, and talents that make me unique.
• I might still have a way to go, but I’m proud of how far I have already come.
• I am capable and strong and I will get through this.
• I trust in myself.
• Tomorrow is a chance to try again, with the lessons learned from today.
• I will give it my all to make this work.
• I can’t control what other people think, say or do. I can only control myself.
• This is an opportunity for me to try something new.
• I can learn from this situation and grow as a person.
• I have the strength to make my dreams come true.
• I am proud of myself for even daring to try.
• I’m allowed to be a different and better version of who I was yesterday.
• When I get through this, I will be able to empower, help, and inspire others.
• I can use my strengths (list a few!) to work through this. I don’t have to be good at everything and I can use these strengths to my advantage to achieve my goals here.
• I will be better on the other side of this experience. I can do this!

Our encouragement is to write these out and put reminders all over so you can have a visual reminder.

Making positive self-talk part of your daily life is ensuring that you’re practicing self-care. And people who practice self-care are usually happier, healthier and more confident.

Written by Meygan Caston and Anna Collins