60 Positive Affirmations for Women, Each With Something to Do

If saying "I am enough" to a mirror makes you wince, you're not doing it wrong. A sentence on its own is easy to doubt. A sentence you follow with one small thing you do is harder to argue with.

Every affirmation below comes with one step, most of them under a minute: open a window, send one text, write one line. Pick the one that's almost true for you today, say it once, and do the step: "My worth isn't my inbox," then archive ten emails that need nothing from you.

Morning affirmations, before the inbox

The first ten minutes of the day tend to go to a phone. These lines are for the minutes before that, while the coffee brews or before your feet touch the floor.

1. I can start before I feel ready. Then: stand up before you check your phone.
2. Today only needs a beginning, not a plan. Then: write the first thing you'll do on a sticky note.
3. I'm allowed to go slowly this morning. Then: drink a full glass of water, sitting down.
4. Yesterday doesn't get a vote this morning. Then: open a window, even for thirty seconds.
5. I have done hard mornings before. Then: name one you got through, out loud.
6. I choose where my attention goes first. Then: leave your phone face down until you've had your first sip.
7. I don't have to be cheerful to be kind. Then: send one person three words: "Thinking of you."
8. Small things count today. Then: make the bed, even if it's only the pillows.
9. I'm on my own side today. Then: set out one thing you'll need later, by the door.
10. I'll notice something good today. Then: decide now where you'll write it down tonight.

If you'd like a line like these waiting on your nightstand, our Positive Vibes deck has 31 of them, on cards 3.5 by 5 inches: an affirmation on the front of each card, a 30-second practice on the back, and a wooden stand to keep the day's card in sight. It comes in its own gift box. Vikki bought one for her sister: "My sis loves it and uses it daily!" As a gift, the same deck comes in our Positivity Boost set with a 4 fl oz citrus shower spray and a 2.5 oz lemongrass and ginger sugar scrub, in our printed gift box. If you'd rather write your own lines, a pad of sticky notes does the same job for nothing.

Confidence affirmations, before you walk in

Confidence lines tend to fail when they're too big. "I am unstoppable" is hard to say with a straight face in a hallway. These are smaller and truer, for the minute before an interview, a hard conversation or a room full of people you don't know yet.

11. I've prepared enough to begin. Then: say your first sentence out loud once, in the hallway.
12. I'm allowed to take up room. Then: put both feet flat, drop your shoulders and breathe out slowly.
13. My voice belongs in this room. Then: decide the one point you'll make, in seven words or fewer.
14. Nervous and ready can both be true. Then: name the feeling, then name one thing you know cold.
15. I don't need everyone to agree with me. Then: write down the one person whose view matters here.
16. I can ask for what my work is worth. Then: say the number out loud before you say it to them.
17. I've earned my place here. Then: list three things you did to get here, in your phone's notes.
18. I can be new at this and still be good. Then: write one question you'll ask instead of pretending to know.
19. I don't have to fill every silence. Then: count to three before you answer the first question.
20. I can walk in as myself. Then: wear or carry one thing that feels like you.

For that minute in the hallway, we'd pick our Boss Energy deck, in the same format as Positive Vibes: 31 cards and a wooden stand. Naomi: "Love the quality and I love the messages". The deck also comes in our Confidence & Empowerment set, with the same citrus shower spray and our Energy roller, 0.33 fl oz, in our printed gift box. Jenna bought that set for herself in a hard patch: "the package was such a joy to open." If you only need one line for one big day, write it on the back of your hand and skip the deck.

Affirmations for work, when it's a lot

These are for the middle of a working day, when the list is longer than the hours. None of them asks you to love your job. They ask you to do the next part of it, and to stop at a sensible time.

21. One thing at a time is still moving. Then: close every tab except the one you need.
22. I can say "not today" and still be good at my job. Then: draft the sentence now, so it's ready when you need it.
23. My worth isn't my inbox. Then: archive ten emails that need nothing from you.
24. I'm allowed to ask for help early. Then: write the message to the person who knows, and send it.
25. Done is a kind of good. Then: decide what "enough" looks like for this task, and stop there.
26. A bad meeting is one hour, not my week. Then: stand up, stretch your arms over your head, sit back down.
27. I can rest without earning it first. Then: put lunch in your calendar, somewhere that isn't your desk.
28. I'll leave work at work tonight. Then: write tomorrow's first task down so it stops circling.

Hard days

Some days the cheerful lines don't fit. These are for those days: a bad week, a hard stretch, news you didn't want. They won't make the feeling go away. They're here to keep you company while it's there, with steps you can manage on a bad day.

29. Today is hard, and I'm still here. Then: put a hand on your chest and feel it rise three times.
30. I don't have to fix everything tonight. Then: write down one thing that can wait until morning, and let it.
31. I can do the next small thing. Then: put on your shoes. That counts.
32. I can tell the truth about today. Then: give one person the true answer to "how are you?"
33. The world can wait an hour. Then: turn off notifications, and note when you'll turn them back on.
34. I can cry and keep going. Then: let it happen, then wash your face with warm water.
35. This feeling is real, and it won't stay exactly like this. Then: notice the time, and check in with yourself again later today.
36. I can be gentle with myself while this passes. Then: change into something soft.
37. Someone would want to know. Then: text them, "Can you call me later?"

If a hard day is more than a hard day, you can call or text 988, the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, at any hour from anywhere in the US.

38. Rest counts as doing something. Then: lie down, close your eyes and count ten breaths.

Self-love affirmations, in the present tense

Self-love lines often sound like wishes: "I want to love myself." A Reddit thread on self-love self-talk makes a good point about that: say what's true now, in the present tense, and the line has more weight. So every line below is written that way, and each step gives you a piece of evidence.

39. I am enough as I am. Then: name one thing you did well today.
40. I can like myself today. Then: write down one thing you'd praise in a friend that's also true of you.
41. I talk to myself the way I'd talk to my best friend. Then: rewrite one harsh thought in her voice.
42. I am not behind. Then: unfollow one account that makes you feel behind.
43. My body does a lot for me. Then: thank it for one specific thing it did today.
44. I am worth the time I give other people. Then: block thirty minutes for yourself this week, in your calendar.
45. I can change and still be me. Then: write one thing you used to believe that you don't anymore.
46. I can let an old mistake stay in the past. Then: write it on a scrap of paper, then tear it up.
47. I am learning to trust myself. Then: make one decision today without asking anyone.
48. I am someone worth knowing. Then: tell one person something true about you they don't know yet.

New and expecting mothers

Pregnancy and the months after birth come with plenty of advice and very little sleep. These lines are short enough to read one-handed, between feedings or before an appointment.

49. I'm learning, and that's enough. Then: write down one question for your next appointment.
50. Resting is part of looking after us both. Then: sit down while the kettle boils, even if you could stand.
51. I can love this and still find it hard. Then: say the hard part out loud, even if it's only to yourself.
52. I can hand one thing off today. Then: name the task and the person, and ask.
53. My body has done something big. Then: put your feet up for one minute.
54. I'm the right person for this child. Then: write down one thing you already know about them.

If you're shopping for a new mother, our Mama Glow set is the Mama Glow deck (written for pregnancy through the fourth trimester), a Vanilla Amber candle and a bar of Oatmeal Milk & Honey soap, in our printed gift box. Lulu: "I sent this to a new mama and she loved it! It’s the perfect gift that is clean, simple and heartwarming." If she's not a candle person, the Mama Glow deck is sold on its own.

Short positive affirmations for a sticky note

Six lines short enough to read without deciding to, and where to stick each one.

55. I can do this. Stick it where you'll see it at 7 a.m.
56. One thing, then the next. On your laptop lid.
57. I can stop for a minute. On the coffee maker.
58. I'm doing better than I think. On the bathroom mirror.
59. Kind, not perfect. Inside your wallet.
60. I can breathe out first. On the car's dashboard.

How to use affirmations so they stick

When to say them. The morning is easiest, because the day hasn't started arguing back yet. Any time works if you pair the line with something you already do: brushing your teeth, the minute in the car before you go in.

How many. One. Pick the line that's almost true, not the one that sounds best, and say the same one every morning for a week before you change it.

Out loud or in your head. Out loud if you can, once. Hearing your own voice say it is different from thinking it.

The most powerful affirmation. The one you can say without wincing. It's usually smaller than you'd expect: "I can do the next small thing" lands where "I am fearless" doesn't.

Five to pick from in the morning. I can start before I feel ready. I'm allowed to go slowly this morning. Small things count today. I'm on my own side today. I'll notice something good today.

Make it physical. Write it where you'll see it, or stand a card where your day starts.

If you're choosing words for someone else

The lines here are written for saying to yourself. On a card from you, turn one around: "You can do the next small thing." Pick from the group that matches her week, the confidence lines for a new job or the hard-days lines for a bad stretch, and write it on the free card in your cart (switch on "Is this a gift?"). It holds 300 characters, so add a line of your own.

The packing slip shows no prices. Our decks come in their own gift box, and our gift sets in our printed gift box. We ship to US addresses only, including US territories and APO/FPO.

If you're sending one, we'd send our Mindful Pause set, the one for a hard stretch: the Mindful Pause deck, 31 cards and a wooden stand like the others, with a 7 oz Lavender Chamomile candle and a 3.3 oz lavender hydrosol mist, in our printed gift box. Amanda, on the deck: "Purchased as a gift and the recipient loved it." Some of its cards suggest using another of our products, and two reviewers didn't like that, so pick Boss Energy or Positive Vibes if you want a deck that never mentions our other products.

Each deck comes as a three-piece set in the same printed gift box: Mindful Pause with the candle and the mist; Boss Energy as the Confidence & Empowerment set, with a citrus shower spray and the Energy roller, for a new job; Positive Vibes as the Positivity Boost set, with the citrus spray and a sugar scrub; and Mama Glow with a Vanilla Amber candle and a bar of Oatmeal Milk & Honey soap, for a new baby.

If you came here for quotes rather than affirmations, our 50 quotes for women are lines other people said first. For more on the cards themselves, there's our guide to affirmation cards.

Keep one

Pick one line from this page, the one that's almost true. Say it tomorrow morning and do the step. If it still fits by Friday, keep it.