As evidenced by Steele (1988) self-affirmation is a tool that we can use to help us maintain our sense of self.  When we build these positive statements into our daily routine, we can re-wire the neuropathways in our brains, changing the way we see ourselves.

The narrative we use to describe ourselves, and the stories we use to govern our decision making are rooted in how we talk to and about ourselves.  Affirmations help us change those stories.

Having a positive mindset in times of stress is a main driver of mental resiliency.  It's not about striving for perfection (Cohen & Sherman, 2014).  It's about strving for growth and movement towards what matters most.

"There is MRI evidence suggesting that certain neural pathways are increased when people practice self-affirmation tasks (Cascio et al., 2016). If you want to be super specific, the ventromedial prefrontal cortex—involved in positive valuation and self-related information processing—becomes more active when we consider our personal values (Falk et al., 2015; Cascio et al., 2016)." Reference