What Are Affirmations and How Do You Use Them?

What are affirmations? Affirmations are simply positive words that will greatly improve your life. They are a declaration of what you want, how you want to feel, act, or be. An example of an affirmation is "I love and accept myself." Using affirmations is a powerful tool to help you create a life you love.

Affirmations can change negative beliefs that have been engrained in your subconscious all your life. Even if you don't believe what you are stating, your subconscious hears it and will make it so. Eventually it will "kick in," and your belief will be changed.

Affirmations changed my life. About six months of using affirmations regularly I decided I wanted to move to Southern California to live by the ocean. I was living in Utah at the time and had lived there my entire life. I was a single parent, and I had taken my son to San Diego in California where we fell in love with the ocean and wanted the beach life. I wanted to move there but I had no idea how this could ever happen.

I was the sole provider for my son and myself, I had limited income, I knew no one there, and it sort of seemed like a pipe dream. But I started doing affirmations such as "I love living by the ocean", "It is so exciting to live in Southern California", "I love my life living by the beautiful ocean". I also started playing ocean wave sounds each night when I was going to sleep and would visualize living by the ocean.

I was working at a hotel in Utah and mentioned to my boss how I really wanted to move to California. What unfolded was amazing. His father was investing in a company in Southern California about sixty miles north of San Diego, in a beautiful beach town. He needed someone with my skills to handle the accounting. I flew out, fell in love with the town, and moved my son and I a few weeks later! It felt like a dream. I couldn't believe it was happening.

Many people thought I was crazy for taking a chance like that, and moving my son and me when I didn't know anyone out there. I never regretted it and I still remember how powerful I felt that I made one of my dreams come true. I know affirmations and the power of positive thought made this possible.

Below is a list to help you make sure you use affirmations effectively.

1. Make a list of items you want to work on with affirmations such as increasing your financial abundance, improving your health, increasing your, self-confidence, etc.


2. Write your affirmation in the positive, present tense. For example, if you want to have more energy because you feel tired all the time, don't say, "I am no longer tired." Instead, say, "I have all the energy I need to do anything I want." This way it is positive, and you are assuming it happens now - not some time in the future.


3. Use affirmations regularly. I try to do some every day. If you are struggling with a particular issue, try repeating many times a day. A trick I do sometimes is to remember to say affirmations every time I use the restroom. You may be laughing but it is a great time to remember to do them, especially in the middle of your busy day. It is like a little "positive mental break" from your regular day.


4. If you find yourself saying something negative, immediately counteract it with an affirmation. For example, if you make a mistake and say to yourself, "Why am I always making mistakes?" counteract it by following up with "I am smart. I make good decisions and have a sharp mind."


5. There are many good books to get affirmations examples from. You Can Heal Your Life, by Louise Hay is a great starting point.


6. Make yourself a book of affirmations. I created what I call my PowerBook to keep my affirmations in. It is a journal of all the affirmations I have created or read on various subjects such as health, abundance, relationships, and more. The PowerBook also has pictures of things I want in my life such as vacations, a new home, etc. It works like a vision board to keep me focused on what I want.


7. Try visualizing what you want as you are stating your affirmation. The combination of stating verbally while visualizing will increase the power of affirmations.

Don't worry if you don't actually believe what you are saying at first. It will happen. When I first started using the affirmation "I love and accept myself," I would start crying. I was so hard on myself that I didn't see how I could possible really love and accept myself. I was 350 pounds and felt so unlovable. But I kept saying affirmations. One day I could say them without crying, and later on I actually believed them.

Affirmations work. If you don't already know their power, start today. They can help you create the life you want and deserve.