Tips for Successful Affirmations
Florence Scovel Shinn is a master of affirmation, one of the most powerful tools we can use to accelerate our spiritual and material progress. Now we might do well to summarize what makes affirmations work and how to apply them:
1. An affirmation taps you into the place in your mind that recognizes a reality that already exists. You are not conjuring something from nothing. You are calling forth the wisdom that attracts and generates positive manifestations. The best definition of an affirmation is this: “The spirit within me loves to hear the truth about itself.” When you utter a negative statement or complaint, you feel awful because you are speaking out of alignment with truth. When you utter a positive statement or appreciation, an intelligence deep within you resonates with your words, you feel great, and you get an effective result. Affirmations are a pipeline to the place in consciousness where eternal truth already lives.
2. Affirmations use the conscious mind to affect and transform the subconscious mind. This is the highest and most powerful use of your intellect. Many people ask, “I understand the principle intellectually, but how do I get it to drop into my deep knowingness so I create a desired experience?” Affirmations serve exactly this purpose. Through focus and repetition, especially with feeling, they reach, mold, and transform your subconscious mind, which manifests in external experience.
3. Speak only of things you want to create. Never speak or focus on negative conditions. The subconscious hears every word you say and every thought you think, and goes about the business of manifesting what you hold in consciousness. Yet don’t worry if you find yourself thinking or speaking negatively. The moment you do, reverse the thought or word to a positive direction.
4. Be vigilant about your jokes and figures of speech. The subconscious takes your images and words literally. “The subconscious cannot take a joke,” means that your subconscious does not discern images you want to impress from images that you do not want to impress. When you make a joke that you do not mean, the subconscious takes this literally. For example, a parent told a child who was misbehaving on an airplane, “If you don’t behave I am going to throw you out the window.” The child later developed a deep-seated fear of flying. Also watch your figures of speech. When you say, “My boss is a real headache,” your subconscious hears “headache” and goes about the business of manifesting a literal headache. You can use this same faculty in your favor by making jokes that affirm wellness. A chiropractor once asked me, “So how’s the healthiest guy in the world today?” Suddenly I felt healthier than when I had walked into his office. The power of thought and words is always working. Make it work in your favor and in favor of your clients.
5. Repetition and rhythm are the keys. Take an affirmation in mind while you are cleaning your house or taking a walk, and roll it playfully in your mind. “All things are working together for good,” is a fun one to keep going. Or:”I do wonderful work in a wonderful way, with wonderful people for wonderful pay.” Many A Course in Miracles lessons can be used as affirmations. “Love created me like itelf” or “I am sustained by the love of God” are good examples. Popular songs use repetition and rhythm to get into your craw. Use repetition and rhythm to get good ideas into your craw.
6. Be creative about reminding yourself of your affirmations. Post them on your wall, refrigerator, auto dashboard, and computer desktop. Make up little tunes to accompany them. See how many times a day you can work them into conversations. The more you remind yourself, the more you will remember, and the faster your affirmations will manifest.
7. Use only positive words and images in affirmations. Never mention or focus on any condition you are seeking to move away from. For example, say “I am light and free, and my weight is perfect for my body and health.” Not, “I will lose the extra twenty pounds that is dragging me down.”
8. Use denials when appropriate. If you notice that you have gotten stuck on a negative thought, explicitly deny it. For example, “My daughter’s upset cannot have power over my happiness. I release her and trust that she can and will figure this out.” Or “I don’t need that man to make me feel loved. All the love I need is inside me.” Denials do not contradict the lesson in #7 above. They are bridges to take you from a negative belief to a positive one. Once you have crossed the bridge, dwell in the positive thought only.
9. Co-create affirmations with your clients. When you become aware that your client is stuck in a negative belief, ask her if she would like to use an affirmation. Most clients are eager to do so. Then suggest one for her, or ask her what affirmation would be attractive to her. Co-create an affirmation with her that she is excited about. If you see this client again, remind her of the affirmation and ask her for a progress report.
10. Become aware of the results of the affirmations you or others use. Notice when a positive or negative thought pattern shows up in physical experience, for you or your clients. Make the connection between consciousness and manifestation. When you recognize the power of thoughts and feelings to manifest, you will be educated and inspired to use thoughts, images, beliefs, and feelings in your favor and the favor of your clients.