5 Mantras to Help You Become Calm and Confident

Can one simple phrase actually make a difference in your life? According to Sherianna Boyle, the answer is most definitely yes. She is the author of Mantras Made Easy ($15, amazon.com), a collection of chants and slogans meant to help people tap into the power of positive thinking. “Just like you are programmed to respond to the ring of your phone, you can program repeated words and phrases into your subconscious mind,” writes Boyle, a licensed school psychologist and adjunct psychology professor at Cape Cod Community College. “Mantras are a way to clear up negative actions, opening up new pathways for positive ones.” Whether you’re looking to manage your anxiety, find more joy in your life or summon the courage to start a new chapter, Boyle’s got a mantra that may help. Below are five of our favorites from her book.

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To achieve inner peace..

“My breath is deep; my eyes are soft; I am at peace.”

You are taught many things as a child: how to tie your shoes, brush your teeth, and read and write. Breathing is not something most people were taught how to do. As the benefits of mindfulness (and mantras) stack up, this fortunately is beginning to shift. You do not have to be formally trained to learn how to breathe well. You can start right now by reciting this mantra. Take a long, slow, deep inhale (inflating your lower belly) and a slow, extended exhale (drawing your navel in), reciting this mantra in between. Do this for five rounds.

To beat anxiety…

“It’s got to be better than I think.”

This mantra takes you beyond your thoughts. It reminds you that your thoughts could never capture the possibilities and magnificence that are available to you when you allow yourself to move through your feelings and detach from thinking. This mantra was passed on to me by Zoe Marae, PhD. She described it as a way to complete what she referred to as “repeaters.” Repeaters are what you can attract into your life based on old patterns. Reciting this mantra opens the doorway to new ways of being, and as this occurs new perceptions will surface. As Candace Pert, author of Molecules of Emotion, shares, sensations create perceptions. Utilizing this mantra gives you a much more open feeling, providing an inevitable shift in the way you see your world.

To attract success…

“I have the confidence and knowledge to take action.”

Creating a life of abundance does require some level of action. First, you are going to want to create a plan. Ask yourself, “What steps will I need to take to put things into motion?” After giving it some thought, write down these steps on paper. Be sure to include the resources available to you. Secondly, you will need to cultivate the energy required to put this plan into action. See this mantra as being one of the ways you will create the energy to manifest what you wrote down.

To find happiness…

“I give myself permission to prioritize the things that bring me joy, creativity, and connection.”

At times, you might lose your sense of direction, or wonder if your life choices are off base. For example, you may crave a different lifestyle or a compatible companion. This mantra reminds you that perhaps these doubts mean that you are being connected to your divine purpose. Your creative energy can stimulate healthy change and lead to happy experiences. So allow yourself to feel these doubts, and ask yourself if they could become motivation for you to reclaim happiness. Rather than focus on what is missing from your life, this mantra encourages you to incorporate things that bring you joy (e.g., animals, nature, art, music, etc.).

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To find the confidence to start afresh…

“I am evolving and changing for the better.”

This mantra reminds you that because you are made of energy, you are always in motion. We know cells have the ability to regenerate themselves. Since you are made of trillions of cells, you are never exactly the same as you were the day before. See change as part of your evolution. Using this mantra is a positive way to support the evolution of your brain, mind, body, and spirit.

Excerpted from Mantras Made Easy by Sherianna Boyle. Copyright 2017 F+W Media, Inc. Used by permission of the publisher. All rights reserved.

This article originally appeared on Health.com