Affirmations: Making Them Work!

You know about the power of positive thinking. You’re a veritable Thomas, “the little engine that could” who chugs along singing, “I think I can..I think I can”.

You put on the breaks, stopping yourself mid-sentence when you hear yourself say, “This isn’t working”…or “I feel terrible”…or “I can’t seem to get it right”. You know it’s one of those negative no-nos.

You religiously keep a log of positive affirmations, you sing happy ditties in the shower, you post pictures in a "dream" scrapbook.

You’ve read all the blogs and books and Hubs on creating your own perfect universe; how to be healthy, wealthy and wise by simply by thinking about it. So why the bleep isn’t it working already?

There are philosophers that say it’s part of the Universe’s larger plan; a stopgap measure to prove to the universe and to yourself, that you truly desire what you are so patiently re-affirming. After all, we do go about casually affirming things like, “I’m such an idiot!” (why did I forget to mail that letter?) If every affirmation came through spontaneously we’d all be in deep dirt. So we much be patient.

But putting patience aside, there is the possibility that you are doing one important thing incorrectly.

I’m not a licensed psychologist. I’m just one of those writers who enjoys spouting platitudes on “happiness” - from the Greek philosopher Epicurus to the iconic comic Groucho Marx. But I have learned that it’s important to keep your affirmations in the ‘now’, i.e. the present tense.

Just to reiterate a wee bit…if by chance you don’t know what an affirmation is, it’s simply a one-line statement that expresses something you desire deeply.

The trick is to think of your affirmation as a fact that has already come to pass or is happening now. That way the Universe won’t get confused. The Universe is just like the Genie in the Lamp. For example: If you say, “I want a house in Monaco”; the Genie would then say, “Your wish is my command!.. (poof), “You now want a house in Monaco!”

It’s like the old joke. A guy rubs the magic lamp and says to the Genie, “Make me a malted!” …and the Genie says, (poof!)...”You’re a malted!” Ok. pretty lame..but the idea is that correct wording is everything. The Universe is benevolent and generous, but he/she is very quirky (or should I say very ‘quarky’) and recognizes that time has no meaning. There is only the present.

You have to state your affirmations in the now- because there is no past or future. “I now have a beautiful house in Monaco”. “I am” is good too, as in “I am healthy, wealthy and wise”.

Scientists who study quantum mechanics agree that human thought or consciousness, affects our  world - the reality of what we see and experience. In other words if your positive focus is “lacking”, you will be too. If you’re mentality tuned to failure, you will surely fail. Winners focus on success. It’s a cosmic law that one day will be as credible as Einstein’s theory of relativity is today.

One of Dr. Deepak Chopra’s Seven Spiritual Laws of Success is The Law of Intension and Desire.

What Deepak means by that is that we need to set goals for ourselves and we need to think about them often. Just thinking about our goals as happening now, can lead us down the path to fruition.

For those who fear stepping out of secure places, (and this is very common), talking and thinking about your goals can easily set you in the right direction. The great thing is, that when we affirm our intensions, we become more aware of opportunities that present themselves in our daily lives. If we occupy our thoughts and speak words of negativity, we’ll miss those lucky opportunities that present themselves, because we’re too distracted feeling sorry for ourselves.

Some of you will say. “All this Genie in the bottle stuff, affirmations and talking things into being is just a bunch of hocus-pocus fairy tale “magic”.

It just so happens that science is quickly catching up with "magic". It always does. What was once deemed “magic” or “supernatural” or simply “inconceivable” often became fact. There was a time - some say 3000 years ago, when people believed the earth was flat. Before Isaac Newton formulated the Law of Universal Gravitation in 1665, the “magical” universal force of gravity was as inconceivable as auras or brain waves.

It’s interesting to note that there are still people on this planet who believe the earth is flat. You can check it out, at http://www.alaska.net/~clund/e_djublonskopf/Flatearthsociety.htm

but wait until you’ve finished reading this Hub because it’s a lot of nonsense.

Having said that; I believe that there will always be things we “know”, things we “don’t know” and “things we don’t know we don’t know. Were our ancestors able to travel in time to the present day they would surely think us magicians.

With nothing to lose for trying, I suggest you become that magician now, if only in your mind. The Universe is always listening.

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