Usually, you start the new year with high hopes and expectations. You are determined to eat healthy, start exercising and stick to your resolutions. Unfortunately, a few days later the so-called life and… you go back to old habits.
This is where the mantra comes in handy, that is, such a positive affirmation. It is the mantra that helps to maintain the positive energy accompanying the beginning of the year.
Coming up with a mantra for the new year can be fun and the mantra itself will support you in achieving your goals.
DO YOU HAVE YOUR MANTRA FOR THE NEW YEAR?
My mantra search started with one word for the new year. For the first time, I heard about this idea from Kasia from the Workshop blog. The point is that you choose one word – one little word (OLW) that will inspire you, motivate you, set the tone for the next year.
I liked this idea very much and I chose my words for several years. However, in the face of life’s challenges, I needed something stronger – a whole phrase that would give a kick and hope in the moment of doubt.
A mantra is a positive motivating statement. It can become an empowering belief that will support you on your way to your desired goal.
Each of us has certain beliefs – they are rules or guidelines for life. Your beliefs form a belief system that determines how you behave or react to everything you do in life. Beliefs usually arise during our upbringing.
When you face challenges in life, beliefs will dictate your reaction and often your success or failure. Your conception of yourself along with your beliefs often determines your destiny. The good news is, it’s never too late to change your limiting beliefs!
Research shows that when we utter short, uplifting mantras or affirmations, we feel better and develop stronger self-esteem. Increasing your self-esteem will help you feel more obligated to take care of your own needs.
WHAT MANTRAS DO YOU USE EVERY DAY
Mantra is the ancient practice of repeating a word or phrase many times. Did you know that you unconsciously use mantras every day? Have you ever thought, “ I’m not good enough “, “I hate my body “, “ it will never work “? These are negative mantras that only serve to feed thousands of other automatically repeating thoughts in your mind.
In fact, most of your thoughts are repeats of the previous day. Each repeated thought consolidates the path in the brain. Examine your thoughts and you will catch mantras that you repeat automatically. Not all repetitive thoughts are true – some limit you more than they support you. If you consciously choose positive thoughts, you will improve your life.
As your thoughts create the reality in which you live, speaking or silently chanting mantras can make a big difference. Mantras can be used by people of any religion and during any activity. Of course, mantras are most often used in meditation, but you don’t have to meditate to use them. Mantras can be used while walking, cleaning, cooking, and other routine tasks.
WHAT IS A MANTRA
A mantra is a sound, syllable or group of words that are repeated over and over again and are believed to produce a spiritual transformation. It is a common word in the Eastern world and consists of two words: “man” means “mind” and “tra” means “instrument.” So the mantra is the “instrument of the mind.”
In Eastern religions, meditators use mantras to focus and experience a greater oneness between mind, body, and spirit. The mantra is also present in the Western world. For example, the Benedictines regularly use the Scriptures, reciting the words of the psalm over and over again: “ The Lord is my shepherd “.
An inspirational mantra is a word or phrase that, when repeated, intentionally plants the seed for a new idea. It is a way to focus on what you want for yourself.
In many ways, the New Year’s resolution is a mantra. Like mantras, however, resolutions must be practiced daily if you want to put them into practice.
Reciting mantras, however, is not for the purpose of repeating them. In meditation, mantras are chanted to awaken a deeper awareness of oneself and to experience the miracle of inner transformation.
A MANTRA THAT TAKES YOU FORWARD
It is a word or phrase that reflects your goals, intentions, energies, aspirations etc. In fact, anything can be your mantra. A mantra can become an inspiring principle or motto that will accompany you in your thinking and acting. The mantra is to help you make room for one idea that you want to concentrate on. Repeating the mantra in your mind will completely immerse you in it and bring you closer to your goal.
Choosing a mantra is a great way to focus your thoughts on a single sentence or intention that reflects who you want to be or what you want to achieve over the course of the year.
Every time you do something that scares you, you utter a mantra and it becomes a repetitive thought that plays over and over in your mind and pushes you forward.
AN EFFECTIVE MANTRA FOR THE NEW YEAR
When choosing a strong mantra, try to make it reflect your experiences. The challenges you have overcome will give you faith in your strength. An effective mantra also reflects what you want for yourself in the new year.
You are more likely to achieve your goal if you relate your actions to your values and beliefs about yourself and the world. The use of your values creates what is called “committed action” in which mantras and affirmations gain their power.
HOW TO FIND AN EFFECTIVE MANTRA FOR THE NEW YEAR
Think about what resonates with you and choose a mantra that relates to what you are trying to overcome or achieve.
Do you want to learn how I create my personal mantra for success? Here are 5 simple steps:
- I start creating a mantra by thinking about what I want to achieve the most in the new year. Usually, it’s a few things – then I try to find some common theme that connects them. The mantra is to help me focus on achieving the goal that is most important to me, so I do everything to choose one goal and not get distracted.
- Then I wonder how I will feel after I achieve my most important goal. I write down words that will help me form or find a ready mantra later. Most often, these words more or less reflect what is important to me – my values.
- I am linking the mantra to my previous experiences. I make a list of 1-2 of the greatest achievements of the previous year that I am most proud of. I also make a list of the 1-2 biggest disappointments – mistakes or failures from the previous year. For each success and disappointment, I write down 1-2 short sentences about what contributed to them. Then I look for mantras and beliefs, which I sometimes unconsciously repeat in my head.
- 4 I choose the most positive, strong statements from points 2 and 3 that will give me energy and help me focus on my goal in the new year. The mantra of success should be expressed in the present tense and as a positive statement. I browse through inspirational quotes, sayings, excerpts from books and choose the ones that most resonate with me.
- I repeat the mantra regularly to make it my new habit. I create a graphic in Canva and hang it on the wall or save it to my phone, computer as wallpaper or screensaver screen.
CHOOSE AN INSPIRING MANTRA FOR THE NEW YEAR
My mantras from previous years:
“The biggest benefit of becoming stronger, happier, brave is finding the courage to live your dreams more now – no matter what obstacles you encounter along the way”
That was a quote from the book “ SuperBetter. Life is a game, learn to win ”Jane McGonigal. Though the quote was way too long to repeat it in your mind like a mantra, he did a good job anyway. However, in the next year I decided to choose something shorter:
“Everything is good for me day and night”
“Don’t count on miracles, count on yourself”
Find your own mantra – find inspiration on the quote board.
Remember your mantra each time you need to focus on your most important goal. Repeat your mantra as you begin to doubt your abilities and strength. Like positive affirmation, your personal mantra for success can greatly lift your spirits the more you repeat, read, or see it.
Mantras will help boost your confidence, making it easier for you to succeed. They will give you extra power and positive energy that will help you face even the most unfavorable situations in life.
