Affirmations

Affirmations are a powerful but often misunderstood tool for manifestation.  The popularity of the movie “The Secret” has people running around with the idea that if they think “I want a new Maserati automobile” they are going to have one show up in their garage the next day.  Unfortunately that is not how it works.  Correctly performed affirmations are a key tool to trigger the universe to offer you options and opportunities.  But you still have to take them!  I’d like to shed some light on what I have learned about what works and doesn’t work when creating and using affirmations.

Affirmations are the next step after you have figured out your goals.  It is mentally programming your thoughts to dwell upon things for the purpose of experiencing them.  The Law of Attraction states that what we think about we attract.  An affirmation is an acknowledgement of this law, and the choice to use it for your benefit, rather than subconsciously having it work on your life without your input. 

The correct wording of your affirmations is important.  The law of attraction is going to start drawing on the universe exactly what you think.  A common beginner mistake is to word their affirmations in a futuristic context.  “I want to have more money”.  This is a fatal affirmation flaw.  You are telling the universe that you want to experience “wanting more money”, which you probably already are experiencing, the feeling of want, and thus the point of the affirmation in the first place!  Never write an affirmation with “want”, “need”, “wish to have”, because that is exactly what you will experience, that feeling of not having attained what you are attempting to affirm into your life.

I felt I had the wording of an affirmation all figured out after grasping the previous paragraph.  I didn’t.  You also need to take into account that your affirmation has to be believable to your mind.  Waking up every morning, saying “I am richer than Warren Buffett and Bill Gates combined”, and then smugly walking off to your job as the fry cook at Burger King;  That’s a recipe for an unfulfilled affirmation.  Look at an improved but still viable option when choosing your affirmation.  As a Burger King fry cook, you may have a goal (I hope) of a better job that is more fulfilling, better pay, or perhaps work for yourself.  And of course there is no reason your goal can’t be more money than Bill Gates.  Your mind is probably going to doubt it when your affirmation is “I have more money than Bill Gates”.  However, “my job pays me $1,000 a week and I enjoy it” is something that is a reachable step from the fry cook job.  I had some grandiose affirmations, that while I still have as goals, I am using daily affirmations that help me achieve great things that are more buyable to my mind.

Now, imagine you have an affirmation of “I make $100,000 a year”.  You affirm this every day, you visualize it, you take action, you get this great-paying job.  Then, you find out you work 14 hour days and most weekends.  Gross!  I know that I am not looking to spend every waking hour at any job.  How can your affirmations provide an insurance policy against this?  For every affirmation, include the phrase “in an easy and relaxed manner, and a healthy and positive way” at the end of the affirmation statement.  I had read this a few times in the past and it finally clicked in for me about a month ago.  “Easy and relaxed manner” sounds very, very nice.

Many affirmation techniques and advice touch on thankfulness.  It is said to be thankful for what you are about to receive.  This is another tricky concept.  Why am I thankful when it hasn’t occurred yet?  How do I express thanks when something obviously hasn’t happened?  Expressing thankfulness in advance is a way to help convince your mind that something is going to occur.  You are using your mind on your mind…trippy.  When writing an affirmation, I put “I am thankful that” in front of each affirmation to help cement this in my mind each day.

I have a goal of leading meditation workshops.  Over the course of my affirmation education, I have gone through the following versions of an affirmation for this goal-
“I want to lead meditation workshops”
“I lead meditation workshops”
“I lead meditation workshops all over the world”
“I am now leading meditation workshops all over the world”
And finally, correctly, “I am thankful that I am now creating meditation and spirituality workshops that I lead globally, in an easy and relaxed manner, and a healthy and positive way”. 

Remember that affirmations are the gateway to achieving what you have identified that you want to create in your life.  When creating affirmations, correct wording is essential to successful manifestation.

Comments

[Christine]

Well put! I actually learned something from you :)

[Kirsten Harrell, Psy.D.]

Hi Scott,
Nice article! In my opintion, you covered all the important aspects of affirmations. I might add a bit about repetition. The repetition of affirmations is what creates new neural nets in our brain.

Great job!

[Lesa]

Thank you for being honest about affirmations. I watched the movie "The secret" and bought the book. Both made it seems so magical with instant success and riches. Thank you, because i was thinking I was doing something wrong. I lke your explanation the best. Oh yea, and I love "Gods Debris".