10 Reassuring Affirmations for Confidence in the New Year
At the beginning of every new year, not unlike most of you, I reflect on the past year and develop new intentions for the new year. Honestly, I don’t make resolutions anymore because I’ve never kept them. But in recent years, I’ve discovered if I move forward with intentions during a new year, I am more successful.
Intentions help me develop and maintain a mindset for success that encompasses many more aspects of life than specific resolutions. This year, I intend to work on confidence. Therefore, I am starting with simple affirmations for confidence in the new year and I thought I’d share for anyone who may be feeling a lack of confidence, too!
Don’t forget that confidence is a major aspect of personal development and growth that we ALL need in order to reach our goals, accomplish our dreams, and be our very best in life!
Why Do I Need Affirmations for Confidence?
I would not typically be described as someone who lacks confidence. In fact, a few years ago I was accused of demonstrating a veiled arrogance in my work life. Okay — yes, that hurt. But I’m retired now and I’ve been struggling with something deep inside that feels like a lack of confidence. It’s difficult to describe because it’s new for me (obviously, if I was described as possessing a veiled arrogance, right?). I’m not clear exactly what it is but it’s definitely connected to a lack of confidence.
It feels like my lack of confidence is aligned with an inner peace that I can’t quite grasp. My mind is always busy thinking of ways to be more useful, more helpful, more valuable, more worthy — that kind of sounds like a lack of confidence, right? But it also feels like I’m missing the inner peace that I thought I’d have during a life of retirement. Hhhmm… I just can’t put my finger on everything it encompasses.
So after much reflection, I’ve decided to go in search of whatever I need to find my confidence and my inner peace to fill that void in my soul. I don’t know exactly what an answer will look like yet, but I know I need to start with affirmations for confidence in the new year that help me remember that I will certainly figure it ALL out.
My brain needs to stop actively searching for something that fulfills my inner peace and simultaneously boosts my confidence — because I’m driving myself crazy — so I hope these affirmations for confidence in the new year get me started on the right path to settling down my mind and spirit beginning January 1!
Characteristics of Confidence
Briefly before we move on to the affirmations for confidence, I want to share some easy behavioral characteristics of confidence. These are little things we can do to feel and look more confident.
Even if we don’t feel self-confident every day in every situation, we can appear to be more confident to the world! And we can fool our brains into behaving like we have all the confidence in the world!
Look over this list and reflect on how easy these 10 behaviors can be demonstrated to help you feel and appear more confident:
- Wear a SMILE on your face.
- Maintain your posture. Hold your shoulders back and walk with pride.
- Generously offer compliments to other people.
- Stop apologizing for being you.
- Embrace your individuality.
- Look others in the eyes.
- Maintain a positive attitude.
- Speak clearly.
- Present yourself as clean and neat.
- Be KIND.
There’s nothing hard here, right? Use these confidence-building activities and behaviors to help you get started on the road to greater self-confidence.
Affirmations for Confidence
Affirmations are *I* statements that help train your brain to believe what you are telling it. Yes — it really works! I was a Special Educator for 20+ years and taught my students to use positive affirmations to feed their brains. We frequently used affirmations for confidence, as well as affirmations for anxiety.
Positive Psychology defines affirmations as “…positive phrases or statements used to challenge negative or unhelpful thoughts.” They recommend using positive affirmations to help you stay motivated and combat negative self-talk.
You might also hear people refer to positive affirmations as self-affirmations. However, they are most often used interchangeably. Just so you know, positive affirmations are technically broader and can be used by anyone while self-affirmations are more specific to your core values, identity, and how you hope to show up in life.
Affirmations are also like inspirational quotes that we often use in our daily lives for everything from confidence... to love… to depression… to adventure. But they are written as *I* statements because they are personal — for you and about you.
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Here are 10 simple affirmations for confidence I have written to use daily in the new year.
1. I have unique talents and gifts that make me special, and I cherish those talents and gifts.
2. Yesterday may not have been a good day but I will make today a great day because I am worthy.
3. I am worthy of the amazing opportunities that are out there for me in every aspect of my life.
4. I can achieve my goals and dreams because I work hard and have a positive attitude.
5. I am doing the best I can with the knowledge and experience I have obtained in life so far.
6. I radiate self-confidence through my positive attitude and smile.
7. I have great potential within my soul and love my highest self.
8. I make a difference by showing up every day and doing my best.
9. I may not feel peace every day but I know there is peace to be found.
10. I am positive and optimistic so I trust that things will always work out for me this year.
Please feel free to use and modify these affirmations in any way that would benefit you. I wrote them based on my own personal needs right now. Of course, some of them are similar to others I’ve seen elsewhere on the Internet but they cannot be attributed to anyone in particular — including me. These are OURS to share and use as beneficial.
You’ll likely notice that these positive affirmations will also support your mental health in many other ways too — affirmations for self-love, affirmations for self worth, self esteem affirmations, success affirmations, and more. Keep an open mind to the many ways these affirmations can change your life.
FAQs about Affirmations for Confidence
Do you still have questions about affirmations? Here are five of the most common questions people ask about affirmations. I hope they help you feel comfortable writing and using your own affirmations.
Q1. Do affirmations increase confidence?
Researchers from the American Psychological Association have found that self-affirmations have positive effects on people’s general well-being, social well-being, self-perception, and sense of self-worth & confidence. Affirmations may also reduce negative feelings such as anxiety and negative mood especially when turned into self-affirmations that are specific to you.
Q2. What are the 5 Ps of affirmations?
The 5 Ps of affirmations are usually referred to as Positive, Present Tense, Personal, Powerful, and Precise. Affirmations must be written using positive terminology in the present tense. They are personal to you, powerful, and written in very precise language.
Q3. How do you tailor affirmations to yourself to make them more personal?
- Identify the negative thoughts that you want to change (confidence).
- Reframe the negative words to positive words. (“I have no self-confidence.” –> “I radiate confidence through my smile.”)
- Keep them short and simple.
- Be creative with your word choice so they are not boring. (“…have…” –> “…radiate…”)
- Practice them consistently, multiple times per day.
Q4. Do affirmations have to be said out loud?
Affirmations can be said aloud to yourself (in front of a mirror is particularly effective), written down in a journal-type practice or on sticky notes, or repeated to yourself silently during a meditation-type practice. But I always recommend speaking them to yourself even if whispering.
Q5. How long does it take for affirmations to start working?
It generally takes a new habit 21-days to develop. Similarly, rewiring your brain and shifting your mindset usually takes 3-4 weeks before you start seeing or feeling changes. Stick with your affirmations for at least thirty days before making significant changes.
Final Thoughts: Affirmations for Confidence in the New Year
I firmly believe that you and I will find our confidence again and be able to move forward in amazing ways! Whether you are lacking confidence, or that little piece of inner peace in your soul — or both, like me — we can use these powerful affirmations for confidence to begin our journey.
Read these affirmations for confidence to yourself daily — you can even write them on sticky notes and leave them posted in several places where you will see them throughout your day — and start rebuilding your confidence in the new year! Let’s do this, my friend!
If you would like more inspiration and support for developing self-confidence, you may be interested in these Related Articles:
- Think It’s Too Late To Reach Your 2025 Goals? Think Again!
- Celebrate the Changes That Come with Age: Embracing Midlife with Joy and Confidence
- 25 Morning Routine Ideas to Boost Energy, Confidence, and Well-Being
- 129 Sassy Self Confidence Quotes & Instagram Captions
Love to All! ~Susan
