Demi Lovato’s mic was unintentionally turned on backstage before the 2015 VMA’s. The next week, links and articles blew up social media newsfeeds and trending topics. What was she caught saying? Clicking on the link, we expected to hear something we could laugh at, or a piece of Hollywood gossip. Instead, Lovato, not knowing the audience could hear her, said the words:
“I am enough. I am enough.”
This sentiment resonated with so many viewers that the recording went viral; Demi Lovato continues to be an even more amazing positive role model than the week before.
Positive self-talk and affirmations can alter our thinking, our attitude, and the state of our day in just a few words. I can do this. I am beautiful. I will be okay.
But, as Eckhart Tolle teaches in The Power of Now, there are actually two of us – the surface-level being that is freaking out, has low self-esteem, and can be easily knocked off-balance – and the observer.
The observer is the you in the back of your mind that can watch the surface you lose your cool, make irrational decisions, and upset others around you. It is the you that does not mentally engage in its surroundings.
Try it for a minute. Stare at something that is stressing you out. Then watch your mind be stressed, as though your stress is a car driving by and you are sitting on the side of the road.
Now bring affirmations into the mix. If we’re repeating “I am enough. I am enough…” are we reaching our surface-level being? Our observer already knows that we are enough. Our observer is already calm. Our observer is already empowered. In other words, our surface-level being is hearing conflicting views, and may be hesitant to believe the good stuff.
Just recently, I had a meeting with a difficult CEO who was insulting my beliefs. Instead of reaching for the instinct to calm myself, I imagined a friend holding me and saying, “Don’t listen to him. Don’t listen to him.”
Our peaceful, happy observer, can be that friend.
You are powerful beyond measure. You are an undeniable force of light. You are beautiful. You are enough.
I challenge you to find what works for you, and I want your thoughts! Should we begin talking to ourselves as though our observer is coaching us, or should we dig deeper into the surface-learner?
Meagan Roppo has been a student of meditation and yoga, as well as a 60-hour trained advocate for women, for the past four years. She has dedicated her time and passion to women’s crisis shelters, feminist studies, and writing on women’s issues. By founding She Enlightened in 2014, Meagan hopes to encourage and empower girls & women to bring forth their gifts, voices, and light that are undoubtedly inside of each them. Meagan currently works as Chief Operating Officer of Young Professional Women in Energy, a Pittsburgh-based nonprofit that works to employ more women in the energy industry.
Website: http://www.sheenlightened.com
Twitter: @SheEnlightened