Affirmations and Visualizations for Success

Movies Like The Secret and What the Bleep at Spiritual Cinema Circle

2008-03-24T15:31:00.003-04:00

If you ever saw The Secret or What the Bleep Do They Know, you discovered that there is a new breed of filmmakers out there creating wonderful movies that uplift the spirit.

Some of these independent films have tiny budgets, though, and they don't often make it into theaters.

And yet the need for these films is huge - people really want films that teach them cool stuff about the human spirit, the human heart, and the miracles of living in these exciting times.

Well, Spiritual Cinema Circle has stepped up to the plate and is delivering these wonderful films right to your doorstep! They're collecting shorts, interviews, and full length movies that carry that positive vibes you've come to love from movies like The Secret and publishing them every month in their unique DVD collection.

The best thing is that you can subscribe to their service at a low cost and receive one DVD every month filled with great films and uplifting short movies!

And better yet you actually get to KEEP the DVD's that you receive, which means you'll be adding to your film collection as you go along.

Since you can't find these movies anywhere else and most of them will never make it to theaters, this is your chance to check them out.

I've posted an article about Spiritual Cinema Circle at my affirmations website:

Movies Like The Secret and What the Bleep at Spiritual Cinema Circle

Or if you want, you can just go right to the Spiritual Cinema Circle Homepage Linkand read all about their unique program.

You can even opt for a free trial of their program so you can see if it's right for you!

Download Free Excerpt from My Law of Attraction Book

2008-03-11T20:15:00.002-04:00

Sometimes I receive requests from people to "peek inside" my eBook, Why Most Affirmations Fail and the Four Building Blocks of Successful Affirmations. I realize that this is a great idea. I mean, when you go to a bookstore, you get the chance to hold the book in your hands and browse through the chapters. Why shouldn't you be able to do that with my eBook?

So now I've made several things available to you.

You can download the table of contents and two excerpts from the book at my main affirmations site.

Just go to this page:

Law of Attraction Free Book Excerpt

And you'll be shown how to download the seven pages which are in PDF file format.

I hope you enjoy them! Now you'll be able to get a glimpse of what all the fuss is about surrounding this controversial eBook which is part of my Ebook package (which also includes some free bonuses when you order it online.)

Have fun!

Law of Attraction Myths Debunked

2008-02-29T09:53:00.001-05:00

I just wanted to mention that there is a short article that is meant to introduce the free audio I talk about in the prior entry - you can read this introduction here if you like:

Law of Attraction Myths Debunked.

Enjoy!

The Law of Attraction - How Soon Will It Work? Free Audio

2008-02-24T13:08:00.002-05:00

People from all over the world are always asking me the same question - how soon will the law of attraction work? In this new eleven minute mp3 audio I provide some tips and tweaks to help you start seeing results faster. You can download it at my other website, Free-Daily-Affirmation.com. It's in a zipped format due to size so you'll need an unzip program. (Download a free evaluation version of Winzip here:

Winzip free version

And then you can download the free audio here:

The Law of Attraction - How Soon Will It Work?

Enjoy!

Interview with Lee Nutter of Bmindful.com, a Free Affirmations Community

2008-02-05T19:36:00.001-05:00

Recently I stumbled across a fabulous free membership site devoted to affirmations. Lee Nutter, the owner and publisher of this groundbreaking site, agreed to sit down for a brief interview. Bmindful is a cutting edge community for the positive thinking set.

Check out the interview at my affirmations site:

Lee Nutter talks about Bmindful.com, a free affirmations membership site.

You'll want to check out this inspiring site right away!

New Moon Times for 2008

2007-12-20T12:05:00.000-05:00

The new moon is a powerful time that acts as a spiritual gateway for positive energy. It's like a mini New Year.

The new moon is a wonderful day to write a new moon check of abundance, or a new moon check. You can read more about new moon checks and how they work here:

New Moon Checks.

I've just posted some of the new moon times for 2008 so you can coordinate your check writing to the new moon times. There's a new moon coming up on January 8th that should be an especially powerful day for setting your New Year's resolutions into motion.

Here are the new moon times for early 2008:

New Moon Times 2008.

Have fun and start putting the spiritual energy of the new moon to work for you!

Free Prosperity Affirmations and Other Affirmations to Improve Your Life

2007-11-18T11:01:00.000-05:00

You might enjoy these two new articles I wrote for Ezinearticles.com:

Some Sample Prosperity Affirmations That Work and

Some Free Affirmations to Improve Your Life

Have fun!

Affirmations Package Now Super-Sized!

2007-10-30T17:22:00.000-04:00

My Affirmations Package sold at my website just got supersized!

I decided to bundle three fabulous products together and offer them for sale. So now when you purchase my Affirmations Package, you receive the following:

* My main eBook, Why Most Affirmations Fail and the Four Building Blocks of Successful Affirmations

* My audio interview, Making the Law of Attraction Work for You

* The pdf written transcript of the entire audio interview, so you don't have to take notes!

The interview is an essential tool that adds more background to the eBook. In the interview, Jeff Smith asks me some frequently asked questions about how affirmations work, how people make common mistakes when they frame their affirmations, and what prevents people from manifesting what they want quickly and easily. These are incredible "user's tips" that aren't available anywhere else on the Net.

I'm looking for more affiliates who have self-help oriented websites and blogs who are interested in promoting my affirmations package on their site. You can make $16.50 per sale as a Clickbank affiliate. You can read all about how to become an affiliate at my site:

Affiliates for Affirmations Package

It's free to become a Clickbank affiliate and only takes about three minutes to grab your affiliate link from their system and paste one simple line of html code into your blog or website template.

For more info, contact us via our site: Free-Daily-Affirmation.com

Curl Up With Warm Inspiration - Affirmagy Affirmations Blankets

2007-10-29T14:20:00.000-04:00

The weather is finally turning cooler, and me and the cats are spending lots of time curling up to share body warmth. Bet you never thought fall would get here, with 80 degrees through most of October! I know I didn't. But cooler weather is finally coming.

I discovered a great new product line from a company called Affirmagy. They produce warm, soft, blankets with affirmations printed on them. You can read more about their great blankets (for people, babies, and pets!) here:

Affirmagy Affirmations Blankets

Cover yourself in some spiritual magic for winter!

How to Remove a Ghost - Lipstick Mystic Interview in Today's Star Ledger

2007-10-25T15:20:00.001-04:00

I wanted to mention an interview I did which just came out in the Newark New Jersey Star Ledger in today's Home and Garden section.

I worked for years as a professional ghostbuster, so at this time of year, people sometimes ask me to talk about ghosts and haunted homes.

In the article I provided tips on how to recognize when your home might be haunted, and I also shared techniques for clearing negative energies and ghosts out of your living space.

You can read the entire article here:

Newark Star Ledger Interviews Jennifer Shepherd

I also wrote an article describing hauntings in more detail at my other website, LipstickMystic.com - How to Get Rid of a Ghost

Enjoy! And here's to a haunt-free Halloween!

Link to Free Turbo Charge Your Affirmations Fixed Now

2007-10-24T11:47:00.000-04:00

Several kind readers alerted me to the fact that there were problems accessing my free report at my website.

This is now fixed, so go on and download your free report now!

It's called Turbo Charge Your Affirmations Today and you'll find it here (for real this time!)

Free Reports at Free-Daily-Affirmation.com

Turbo Charge Your Affirmations Today Free Report

2007-10-22T12:23:00.000-04:00

From time to time I like to offer free reports to my readers as thanks for all of your incredible support and positive energy.

People write to me every day about the successes they've been having when they work with affirmations and visualizations, and these stories are so inspiring, I just can't keep them a secret any longer!

One of the critical things I've discovered, though, which separates people who are successful with affirmations from people who haven't yet been successful has to do with the scope of their projects. It's really helpful to start with small, even silly, affirmations at first. Then when those things manifest in your life you'll be so jazzed that you'll be ready to tackle those larger projects without hesitation.

My free report goes into detail about small affirmations projects and outlines a bunch of real life success stories from people who focused on small stuff first before they worked up to tackling the big stuff.

I know you'll enjoy the report!

You'll find it here:

Turbo Charge Your Affirmations Today

Enjoy!

2007-10-09T16:43:00.000-04:00

Affirmations to Heal Dyslexia and Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)

2007-10-08T11:18:00.000-04:00

Ever suffer from brain fog? Have troubles focusing on just one thing at a time?

These are symptoms of living in a crazy, hectic world! We all find it challenging to deal with hundreds of daily tasks without brain drain. And people who have severe dyslexia or Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) really have troubles keeping up with today's fast pace.

A reader recently asked me for some suggestions about affirmations she and her son could use to help heal dyslexia and attention deficit problems.

I have a bunch of these in my arsenal, and I shared the best affirmations to increase mental focus and heal these conditions in my email response to her.

Now I've fleshed out these affirmations into a juicy article at my website.

If you'd like to experience greater focus and mental clarity, or if you suffer from conditions like dyslexia or attention deficit order, you'll definitely want to check out this new article.

You'll find it at my site here:

Affirmations to Heal Dyslexia and Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)

Enjoy! Here's to increasing your mighty brain powers.

Law of Attraction Interview with Author Linda Dodds

2007-06-26T15:05:00.000-04:00

Linda Dodds is a law of attraction coach, entrepreneur, and author of the fabulous new eBook An Impossible Life.

Linda sat down with me and talked about how to create the life you want. Don't miss her wonderful tips on manifestation, positive thinking, and personal healing.

Read the interview here:

Linda Dodds An Impossible Life Interview

Zen Alarm Clock

2007-06-10T14:31:00.000-04:00

I've always been a big fan of natural sounds vs. synthesized sounds. We listen to so much stuff that is "non-organic" or mechanical. From the blare of traffic horns to the buzzes and beeps of our cell phones, we're surrounded by a horrible sonic soup of unnatural sounds.

Researchers have proven that our bodies respond well to natural sounds -- the sounds of nature or the sound created by classical style instruments (instead of electrical or synthesized sounds.)

But one thing that has been lacking in the marketplace is an alarm clock that incorporates a natural sound instead of a beep or a buzz.

Well, I recently discovered a fabulous alarm clock that has been around for a while. Maybe you've heard of it. It's the Zen Alarm Clock.

This clock comes in both digital and analog (normal clock face) styles. The alarm is a chime that is run gently at gradually increasing intervals. So you don't wake up startled by a loud buzz or mechanical beep.

If you're like me and you like to meditate or work with a few affirmations to "create your day" when you are waking up, you know how precious those few waking moments are in the morning when you're still in that delicate Alpha brainwave state.

Well, the zen alarm clock and its beautiful Tibetan style chime help you to maintain that Alpha state and wake up slowly. So if you use a zen alarm clock, you'll find it easier to remember your dreams. And you'll enjoy some powerful moments as you wake up which are perfect for setting your intentions for your day and doing affirmations.

I'm such a fan of this clock that I've written a review of it. You can learn more about the clock and how it works here:

Zen Alarm Clock

Since I started using the clock I find it easier to maintain a positive emotional state throughout the day. I wake up less cranky and more ready to have a fabulous day! (And I am a heavy sleeper who usually HATES getting up in the morning!)

Zen Alarm Clock

Why You Should Avoid Focusing On a Specific Amount When Manifesting Money

2007-05-21T21:49:00.000-04:00

A reader wrote to me asking for more information about money manifestation. Should we focus on a specific amount of money or leave the Universe some wiggle room when we're manifesting abundance?

Read more about money affirmations and the art of manifesting money in my article:

Why You Should Avoid Focusing on a Specific Amount When Manifesting Money

One Woman's Experiences Using Larry Crane's Release Technique as Taught by Lester Levenson

2007-05-17T16:47:00.001-04:00

Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about my blog readers! Things have continued to be busy here as I recently did a redesign of my new affirmations website, www.free-daily-affirmation.com. From here on out both that site and this blog will be updated more frequently. I have some goodies in the works for you, so stay tuned here and also to my free daily affirmation site in the next two weeks.

In the meantime, I continue to receive great feedback from people who have been learning Larry Crane's Release Technique. If you're doing any sort of affirmations work, you'll often hit a "resistance point" where you need to stop and release negative emotions. The Release Technique is taught in The Abundance Course by Larry Crane. Larry was a student of a brilliant energy researcher and pioneer named Lester Levenson who figured out a way to release trapped negative emotions and showed people how to start manifesting miracles in their everyday lives.

You can check out his program here:

Larry Crane Teaching Lester Levenson's Release Technique

One lady recently write to me and shared her experiences working with Larry's program:

One Woman's Experiences Using the Release Technique Taught By Larry Crane

Using the Release Technique Can Help You Manifest Miracles

Learn the Nitty Gritty About the Law of Attraction

2007-03-30T14:16:00.000-04:00

Why Most Affirmations Fail and the Four Building Blocks of Successful Affirmations
by
Jennifer Shepherd, the Lipstick Mystic®

Thanks to all of you who have grabbed a copy of my new eBook. Response to the book has been incredible, and I'm still in shock!

I think the main thing people are responding to is how the book isn't a bunch of theory and it's not trying to sell you on a particular spiritual path or belief system. I discuss the nuts and bolts of the Law of Attraction, which is in itself a neutral law, and show you how you can start attracting more of what you WANT instead of what you DON'T WANT.

The Law of Attraction shows us that we are constantly CREATING as well as MISCREATING. When we see that it all stems from the same place -- that vibration that we're putting out through our emotions, intentions, and actions -- we can start shifting into experiencing situations that give us happiness instead of sorrow.

I've outlined extremely specific steps you can take to put the law of attraction to work for you. And I've laid out four basic building blocks of successful creation in a way that doesn't require you to "believe" anything. These principles simple ARE, and I'm simply encouraging you to make use of them!

Testimonials about the book are also pouring in.

"As I read your delightful ebook, I see it's grounded in common sense, with liberal dashes of zesty inspiration and lots of practical advice from someone who's 'been there, done that.' Awesome!"

---- Cynthia Larson, author of Aura Advantage and publisher of the Reality Shifters website: RealityShifters.com.

Don't have a copy yet? You can order my book now at my new Free Daily Affirmation website. It's available as a digital download, so you can have a copy in your hands today!

FreeDailyAffirmation.com

Anyway, I just wanted to say thanks again to all who have been so supportive about my book. I will be entering my eBook into the Clickbank marketplace, so if you'd like to sign up as an affiliate to help sell the book, you'll receive a $12 commission on each book purchased through your link. For more info, contact my affiliate manager Matt: customerservice (@) lipstickmystic.com. We'll be getting this set up in the next two weeks.

And if you are a mailing list owner and would like to let your readers know about my eBook, contact us about setting up a special sales rate for your readers. We can set up a sale to offer to your list, and I'll share 50/50 with you on all fees earned through that sale. It's a nice way for you to make a little money and to also introduce a positive book to your list.

I'm also adding articles to the Free Daily Affirmation site each week. Check out this one about some free daily affirmations you can use to align yourself with the spiritual energy of each day of the week:

Free Daily Affirmations article.

Do Affirmations Work? My New Book Reveals All

2007-03-21T13:34:00.000-04:00

Things have been a little quiet around here lately because I’ve been hatching up a little something special for you.

Welcome to the launch of my new website about affirmations and the law of attraction called Free Daily Affirmation.

I can’t wait for you to check it out! It’s full of free articles on how to apply affirmations and mind over matter techniques to achieve greater success in all aspects of your life.

Even more cool, I’ve just published a new book! Yay! (Finally!) It contains all the “juicy stuff” I’ve been sharing with individual clients and students over the years. This is the real “spiritual tech” of how affirmations work – and how they DON’T work.

The book is: Why Most Affirmations Fail and the Four Building Blocks of Successful Affirmations. I’m selling it through the Free Daily Affirmation site.

You can learn all about the book here:

Why Most Affirmations Fail and the Four Building Blocks of Successful Affirmations.

My book is being sold as a digital download, which means it is an eBook that you can download instantly after payment. It’s about 63 pages or 19,000 words. eBooks are great because you can print out the pages on your computer, curl up with them in a cozy armchair, and instantly enjoy your book. There’s no shipping costs or waiting around for the postman to deliver your book!

And while you’re visiting the site, don’t forget to subscribe to new my free newsletter. It’s called Affirmations Gumbo.

Each issue contains true stories about people who manifested success using affirmations. These are taken from my personal affirmations case files that I’ve been collecting over twenty years. And when you subscribe to the newsletter, you’ll receive my free report created just for subscribers, Affirmations Cheat Sheet. This has some fun affirmations covering everything from money to love to health and well-being, and you can start experimenting with these powerful phrases today. I like to refer to this cheat sheet when I’m stumped about affirmations. It always gets my creativity flowing!

Thanks very much for checking out my new site and book. I know that you’ll enjoy them! Look for the affirmations site to be updated regularly.

Stumped with affirmations? Wondering if the law of attraction really works? Find out more at Free Daily Affirmation.

Montel Williams and Nora Ephron on The Secret Plus Solving France's Homeless Problem

2007-03-12T15:01:00.000-04:00

Montel Williams talked about The Secret today on his talk show. A metaphysical subject turning up on a major talk show (other than Oprah?) Who woulda thunk it was possible!

Meanwhile, Nora Ephron does a hilarious, sardonic take on The Secret's more ludicrous aspects at The Huffington Post:

Nora Ephron on The Secret

And some young people in France don't need The Secret or any self-help guru to inspire them to do a good deed. An exciting grassroots movement has been started by the young people of France, some kids as young as eleven. They are solving the problem of homelessness in a great way:

France's Homeless and the Red Tents

The Secret on Larry King Again Tonight

2007-03-08T11:18:00.000-05:00

Boy, Larry King is really on a roll with supporting The Secret.

He's doing a third night of discussion on the subject of "Beyond Positive Thinking" tonight on CNN. The broadcast happens at 9:00 PM Eastern (6:00 PM Pacific) tonight(Thursday, March 8th).

The show will feature James Ray, John Assaraf, Joe Vitale, Lisa Nichols and Bob Proctor from The Secret movie.

If you're wondering what all the buzz is about The Secret, this panel discussion should give you an excellent overview of some of the concepts everybody is suddenly talking about.

Instant Manifestation

2007-02-27T18:02:00.000-05:00

Instant manifestation is a term that is sometimes thrown around in spiritual circles. It's the idea of creating your reality instantaneously.

Instant manifestation is also known as "you create your reality." And although sometimes when we are working with affirmations, power prayer, or applied faith it can seem to take FOREVER before we manifest something we want, manifestation can also happen instantly.

I want to share a fun example of instant manifestation that happened to me today.

I work from home and I like to go to various diners in our area for a simple soup and sandwich lunch. I find that it's important to my creative juices for me to get out of the house each day and do a little writing while I sit down for a light lunch.

So as always, I had notes with me about various writing projects and websites that I'm working on. And the soup I ordered (red pepper and potato!) was excellent, the coffee was strong, and I was buzzing along with creative energy.

As I drove back home, preparing to get back to work, I was thinking very specifically that I wanted to manifest some sales that afternoon - or one sale that was for a large amount. I've been working to build different websites that promote various affiliate products, and I've been doing lots of work behind the scenes to build traffic to these sites. Some days, I get no sales. Other days, I get a lot.

So I was listening to some jazz music on the radio while driving home and I thought about instant manifestation and how I was ready to instantly manifest something! And I specifically set the intention that I was instantly manifesting some nice new sales for the day.

When I got home, I manifested a sale from an unexpected direction. I do a lot of freelance writing for various newspapers and websites, and usually I'm just submitting my self-syndicated column each week and not doing any new assignments for my editors. But to my surprise, one of my editors called out of the blue pitching a very specific, fast turnaround writing job that only I could do. And the job was fun (writing an astrology profile for movie star Jake Gyllenhaal) and it paid the exact amount that I was intending to manifest in sales that day.

It was a definite case of instant manifestation, and it carried just the right energy I brought to my intention - energies of fun, speed, and creativity. All those things were incorporated into doing this job. It only took me an hour to complete, too, so it was very fun and easy to do.

Instant manifestation gets a lot easier when you don't have any resistance around receiving the thing you're manifesting. I had no resistance to receiving an intriguing new job offer from one of my editors because I enjoy doing all kinds of whimsical spiritual writing gigs and this was right up my alley. Plus, since I've been an astrologer for ages and a freelance writer for almost as long, this job perfectly suited me.

So - what are you going to instantly manifest today?

Go for it. It's meant to be easy - and fun!

You've probably heard about The Secret and the law of attraction. Learn more about instant manifestation and creating your own reality. Watch The Secret trailer and order it online here:

The Secret DVD

The Release Technique and the Law of Attraction

2007-02-25T12:49:00.000-05:00

Although law of attraction teachers have it right when they say that we can change our reality by shifting our thoughts in a more positive direction, sometimes people get really stuck trying to be positive. This is completely normal.

I don't much like it when gurus criticize a student for being too negative. Negativity has its origins in past pains and wounds we have suffered. If we don't work on clearing out that old pain, our ability to remain positive will be hampered. Some teachers naively say that all you have to do is to learn to be positive all the time. They act like it's an instaneous process, to teach your body to hold energy in a different way.

The truth is that it doesn't just happen overnight. Yes, our cells are regenerating all the time, and yes, we can gradually send them fresh messages of peace and well-being. But our cells DO tend to hold an energy charge of emotional pain and psychic trauma if we are particularly sensitive or have experienced events that have induced post-traumatic stress disorder.

You probably wouldn't think of yourself as someone who is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, but psychotherapists are finding that this condition is much more widespread than previously thought. We usually think of PSTD sufferers as people who have been in war zones, but there are hundreds of thousands of "super sensitives" in the US who respond to what some would call "minor stress" as deep trauma. So sometimes a person's body is reacting from a post-traumatic place even if they're simply going through a breakup or a job change. Any time you experience severe stress you can go into post-trauma. And you'll feel the aftereffects for some time afterwards.

When a wounded person starts working with the law of attraction, some intense emotions come up. So it's important to go through some sort of release process at a deep, cellular level to release trauma that is buried there.

We all have trauma that is buried within our cells. As rebirthing pracitioners have discovered, it all starts out at birth, when we go through tremendous physical and psychic stress.

If you don't find a way to release past pain, any new messages that you try to create about being positive and attracting abundance will be drowned out by that denser frequency coming from your past wounds.

Fortunately, there are many techniques out there to help you let go of this buried trauma. One technique I especially like was created by Lester Levenson. One of his students, Larry Crane, has continued to teach these ideas. You may have heard of The Release Technique and his book "The Abundance Course."

I really like the way Larry teaches. He keeps the release process simple and to the point, teaching you how to connect with negative emotions as they surface and gently release them. By doing this simple work each day, you can easily start to shift your core emotional "tone" to one that is much more positive. There's nothing particulary mystical about Lester Levenson's technique. It's more of an awareness method, a system for teaching you to be more aware of your emotions so you can carefully let go of the ones that no longer serve you.

After working with The Release Technique for a few weeks, you'll have released some of that old emotional baggage. Then you'll find it a lot easier to fixate on a new frequency of positivity and joy.

Check out Larry Crane's wonderful audio series, in which he guides you through the release process and shows you the amazing release technique that Lester Levenson pioneered:

The Release Technique - Larry Crane and Lester Levenson

Our nervous system is a delicate, beautiful instrument, and with diligent and gentle work on it, it can be attuned to frequencies of health. The Release Technique is an easy, no-nonsense system that can be used by anyone to let go of negativity once and for all.

Esther Hicks and The Secret Versions One and Two

2007-02-19T16:36:00.000-05:00

Many people who have seen the original version of The Secret with Esther Hicks in it found it to be far superior to the version that was released later, which doesn't have her in it. The version of The Secret currently making the rounds doesn't include Esther Hicks.

Author Linda Goodspeed Dodds, who has written a wonderful book about the law of attraction called An Impossible Life: A Guide to Finally Living Your Dreams, has made some journal entries at her site about the difference between the two versions of The Secret. I agree with her comments:

Here's her first journal entry about The Secret:

The Secret Commentary

Here's her follow-up, which includes the officaly explanation from Esther Hicks about why her material was eventually edited out of the final version of The Secret:

More Commentary on the Secret

And if you'd like to learn more about Linda Goodspeed Dodds and her work helping students apply the Law of Attraction to their every day life, her main site is:

An Impossible Life

Is The Secret Satanic?

2007-02-12T17:10:00.000-05:00

Is The Secret Satanic?

One of the commenters on one of my earlier posts believes so. If you scroll to the end of the comments, you'll find me offering my own take on this:

I don't believe that you can instantly dismiss any action or intention that someone sets as being a Satanic process. There's a big difference between setting the intention to be able to afford a nice house, take care of your family, and provide for your loved ones and doing something excessively greedy (like intending to own all of Manhattan.) :)

Here in the US, yearly inflation and cost of living increases mean that you have to earn at least 4% more than you did last year....even if all you do is sit in one place. So even people who already own property are dealing with increases in food costs, gas and transportation costs, and other inflation to the point where if you DON'T master certain techniques for manifesting a flow of abundance, you simply can't survive. And I'm not talking about living in a McMansion, either. I mean simply providing food, shelter, and transportation to and from work takes a lot of money these days. Therefore, I continue to state my own view that movies like The Secret and What the Bleep bring forth very important teachings about the nature of human creativity, the power of the human mind, and the miraculous field of energy that surrounds us in our daily lives.....and we NEED to be utilizing these ideas if we wish to be responsible human beings.

There's a big difference between exploiting others (in a Satanic sense) and simply expressing your full potentials as a human being so you can take proper care of yourself and your family.

The law of attraction is a neutral law. Like gravity. Since there are so few teachers out there teaching us about this, it's important not to throw the baby out with the bathwater. Sure, you may laugh at Oprah or find that gnomish guy Joe Vitale and his whole "hypnotic marketing" shtick repellant, but if you look at the core of what The Secret's teachers are promoting, it's good, spiritually appropriate stuff.

In my opinion, being a spiritual person who does service for others as a part of her path while at the same time manifesting a comfortable livelihood for herself and her family is NOT Satanic.

I don't believe that God wants me to suffer. He wants me to explore my divine potentials and my creative possibilities to uplift myself AND others.

I can help people a LOT MORE if I'm not starving and if my family isn't destitute from being unable to afford proper medical care, food, and shelter.

So why is it that so many religious people equate being able to provide for yourself financially with being Satanic?

Doesn't add up to me.

More Criticisms of The Secret Movie

2007-02-09T16:06:00.000-05:00

I wanted to offer a few more criticisms of The Secret movie and to also welcome all the new readers who have visited this blog. I realize that many of you probably saw Oprah’s show Thursday, which was all about The Law of Attraction and the movie The Secret. I’m excited to see that word is getting out about the extremely powerful set of metaphysical principles covered in the film.

Sure, this information has been repackaged in a “pop culture” way, so many viewers of The Secret will find the ideas silly or superficial. But it’s important to keep in mind that the concepts shared in The Secret are not REALLY so far “out there.” The concepts of applied faith, power prayer, and white magic have long been woven into all of the world’s most sacred spiritual traditions. Jesus was in essence a white magician – if you define white magician in the true sense of the word, as a person who unites with the loving powers of creation to generate change in the physical world. Jesus was very clear about how we all possess this ability and he said that one day we would perform “miracles” (really just the successful application of these principles) even greater than the miracles He performed. And I personally don’t think Jesus was a liar!

Unfortunately, when someone talks about the power of mind over matter or the law of attraction, grumpy people immediately come out of the woodwork to crankily state that “If the law of attraction is so damned easy, why aren’t I a millionaire?”

Hint: Take a look at that person’s rigid, unyielding, and negative attitude, and you’ll find some clues as to why he or she isn’t yet a millionaire!

One criticism I have about The Secret is that it was originally marketed heavily to many MLM (multi-level marketing) companies as an underground training and motivational video for their sales people. And its focus is more on money-making, which in turn inspires greed. So I can totally see how people might look at the whole phenomenon that The Secret has become and see it as yet another “Get Rich Quick” gimmick suckering people in.

But attracting abundance is just one way to apply these ancient principles. And ultimately, you can apply them to anything you want in your life, whether you’re seeking health, emotional well-being, spiritual illumination, new friendships, a romantic soul mate, or money.

The law of attraction is a spiritual law that is, on its own, a neutral principle. Like the law of gravity, it simply IS. And this law is active in all areas of our lives, areas which we tend to see as being separate. We don’t always see that the same energies are at play whether we are emotionally unwell, physically unwell, or financially unwell. Each of these conditions has to do with not being aware of the vibration we are carrying in our minds and our hearts. By lifting that vibration, each of these conditions can shift and we can create lasting, progressive change.

Every physical illness, for instance, is at its core a spiritual crisis. If you maintain the same state of consciousness that you had BEFORE your illness, you’ll never shift out of it. Every form of imbalance that we experience is a sign that somewhere, deep inside of us, we have gotten “out of whack.” It’s a sign that we need to readjust our thinking, our patterns of emotion, and our approach to life.

I don’t hope to convince the hard core “grumpapusses” who think The Secret is bunch of hooey and that the Law of Attraction crowd is a group of charlatans.

But for people who ARE looking at the sudden popularity of The Secret and wondering what it’s all about, I urge you to go deeper in studying the principles the movie talks about.

One good source for learning about the quantum physics and the science behind miracles is author and researcher Gregg Braden. His books like Secrets of the Lost Mode of Prayer and his new book, The Divine Matrix, pull together information from ancient religious traditions and modern science to show you that the power of applied faith is demonstrably real. This wisdom has been hidden away and people have misunderstood it for centuries, even though all of our greatest spiritual teachers have spoken about these ideas. Until now, the “masses” haven’t been exposed to these principles.

And if you ask me, it’s about time that this stuff is brought into the mainstream. This information is about the incredible creative powers that live within each us, that are operating in the background 24/7, and it’s important that we understand how they operate in order to create a better world.

Keep digging. If you found The Secret uplifting, merely interesting, or even completely annoying, know that the ideas presented in it speak to something deeper and VERY REAL that is going on all the time.

Don’t you want to understand it better?

You can find two of Gregg Braden's great books here:

The Divine Matrix: Bridging Time, Space, Miracles, and Belief

Secrets of the Lost Mode of Prayer: The Hidden Power of Beauty, Blessings, Wisdom, and Hurt

The Law of Attraction and The Secret Criticism

2007-01-25T14:27:00.000-05:00

You've probably heard about the independent movie "The Secret" which is all about the Law of Attraction. People are jumping on the Law of Attraction bandwagon without understanding the complex layers of wisdom that are bound up in this ancient metaphysical principle.

On the good side of things, "The Secret" is an inspirational movie just as "What the Bleep Do they Know" was. (I liked What the Bleep much better.) Both movies tickle our fancies about the amazing untapped potentials of the human mind and spirit.

On the bad side of things, whenever a complex metaphysical concept gets distilled and finds its way into popular culture, certain nuances are lost. And so when viewed from the outside, the cult-like following that "The Secret" movie has right now seems a bit silly. Is it REALLY true that simply by thinking positively about something, your reality can change? That's what the movie teaches.

The truth is that positive thinking isn't enough. You also have to take a hard, cold look at your shadow side, those dark emotions, ancestral urges, and genetic predispositions that you are carrying around at a cellular level. You need to do a lot of work on yourself, a lot of healing and transmutation of the darkness, before your positive thinking will begin to manifest huge changes for the better.

That doesn't mean that you can't make significant progress as you go along. Because once you start working with these principles, many amazing things start to happen.

And it doesn't mean that the Law of Attraction is bogus just because, in practice, it takes years of spiritual self-mastery to get close to the largest levels of success and well-being that you can create using this ancient principle.

It just means that there is no "instant fix" on the spiritual path. So beware any guru promising you instant enlightenment.

You CAN learn to manifest smaller miracles by applying the principles outlined in movies like The Secret and What the Bleep, and when you start to see these smaller things happen, you open up the floodgates so that you become ready to receive greater and greater levels of success.

I've been blessed to have manifested many miracles in my own life. I cured myself of serious heart illness after I had a heart attack at the age of just 28. I was living under very modest financial circumstances, working full-time as a psychic counsellor and doing much of my work pro bono to try to help the many, many people who were experiencing spiritual emergencies but who couldn't afford to pay my fees. And I had no health insurance at the time and did not seek conventional medical treatment.

Through doing a lot of hard, difficult work addressing my own shadow, learning to take responsibility for all of the negative thoughts I had thrown out at others over the years and seeing that this heart attack was caused by all of those things coming back to me in one huge psychic blow, I was gradually able to transmute serious heart problems that happened after the heart attack.

Two long years of working with some gifted healers and teachers also helped me. And two years after my heart attack, I could finally afford health insurance. At that point I went in for a battery of tests and there were no problems found on any of my heart scans. A bunch of heart specialists pronounced my heart to be completely normal and fine.

This was a true miracle that I directly experienced. After my heart attack I had two long years of debilitating chest pain of the type I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy. It made me learn compassion for others. It made me learn to love myself more. And mostly, it taught me to place my faith 100% in a loving Higher Power's hands. Because that Higher Power led me through the darkness and out the other side into experiencing full health and complete physical well-being again.

I'm in my thirties now, and having gone through such melodrama in my own life and learned to experience the magic of "applied faith" or power prayer, I know beyond any doubt that the Law of Attraction is real. The further you go on the spiritual path, the more important it is to refine your capacities for love and understanding so that the accumulated negative energy of your past negative thoughts and misdeeds doesn't hit you as hard as it did me when I had my heart attack. I had chosen an extremely melodramatic way of learning this lesson!

Since that time, I have learned to be 100% responsible for the energies I'm putting out and the vibration I set in motion each day through my emotional tone, my thoughts, and my attitude toward others. I don't always run around blissed out with love and light. But I do manage to keep my head above water most days and remain truly thankful for the adventures that life continually brings me.

On the spiritual path it's important to use discernment and to continually apply critical thinking processes to everything you are studying. A lot of people don't do that. I believe that by blindly following the latest New Age trend people are missing out on a much more nuanced, rich, and complete digestion of these important metaphysical concepts.

Dig a little deeper. Do your homework. Don't accept anything at face value. And always examine things through the lens of your own heart. Before accepting any guru's teaching, ask yourself if this path moves you closer to love and peace or turns you into a creature of chaos and imbalance.

Julian Walker is a spiritual seeker and writer who has written an excellent criticism about The Secret. Check it out here:

Criticism of The Secret

One of his main points is that you can't just "wish away" your negativity through positive thinking alone. He writes:

"Your so called "negative emotions" have value and meaning. They are communications from your psyche. Be curious about them. Compassionate. Follow a path of inquiry into what lies beneath the surface of your reactions, fears, anger-triggers, unsatisfied feelings, sadness etc. The way to be free of these is to embrace them and listen to what they might be telling you about your shadow - the part of you that you have disowned and disconnected from."

He's right. Without plumbing the depths of your own shadow, all you're doing is putting a temporary Band-Aid over your own negativity. Only through purging, probing, and transmuting your darkness can you emerge into a reality where positive thinking is as easy and as natural as breathing.

Until you reach that point, be patient with yourself!

You can also check out Julian's blog at:

Julian Walker Yoga

Releasing Negative Thoughtforms and Energy Blocks

2007-01-22T11:08:00.000-05:00

People often ask me about negative thoughtforms and how they affect our lives. Can our thoughts really have that much impact on what we are experiencing down here in the world of 3-D? Yes, they can!

Think of your thoughts and emotions as a frequency of energy that is constantly streaming out of you. You're broadcasting this stuff 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Although there can be some fluctuation, most of the time we have a relatively consistent "tone" to the energies that we are putting out.

The "negative" thoughtforms are those loops of self-talk that are going on which have a self-sabotaging tone.

You know which ones I'm talking about. They run along the lines of "I'll never have enough." "I'll never be enough." "There's never enough to go around." "I'll never find a soulmate." "I'll never have a job that makes me happy."

While some of those negative feedback loops might only kick in strongly for a day here and there when we're feeling especially tired or stressed out, we all have some ongoing self-sabotaging programs that are broadcasting negative frequencies. "I'm afraid of being hurt by someone, so I'm going to push that nice person away. " "I don't really believe I'm worth a lot of money, so I will sabotage things so the boss doesn't give me a raise."

It can be quite a challenge to uncover these self-sabotage programs and negative attitudes. But it's important to do so, because our nervous system is like a radio. If you're putting out a frequency that is screaming "Poverty! Loneliness! Despair!" that is going to drown out happier frequencies that are coming in all around you. You'll miss out on the Joy Channel or the Abundance Station because your system is locked into a more negative vibration.

Think of it this way. Have you ever tried to tune into your favorite radio station, only you're driving beyond that radio station's range? You might hear little bits of the broadcast, but maybe it doesn't come in very well. You're trying to listen to jazz, but all that's coming in is salsa music. Why is that? A competing signal from another radio station is overlapping that same frequency.

In our spiritual lives, if one frequency of thought or emotion is drowning out all other possible signals, preventing other "programs" from reaching us, we'll never hear all the cool stuff happening on the Happy Station. We're too busy spinning those "Death, disfigurement, and depression!" songs.

It's up to US to learn how to flip the radio dial and tune into an entirely new level of energy and possibility. The first step is to start being more aware of what station you're stuck on, noticing what frequency you're putting out all the time. Then start experimenting with a different tone, and things will begin to shift and to break open.

It's important to stop what you're doing when you find yourself stuck on the negative "station." Take a deep breath, shake it off, and consciously make the shift to a frequency of greater light, bigger hope, and enormous possibility.

You CAN do it! It gets easier with practice. I promise!

Affirmations and Encountering Resistance

2007-01-11T15:12:00.000-05:00

It can be a real challenge when you start working with affirmations. Suddenly you realize all the crazy, counter-productive thoughts you have running around your brain that tend to sabotage the things you are affirming.

So there you are, working on "I am financially prosperous and secure," and your brain is going, "I'll never have any money! WAAAH!" like a big old cry baby. You can have thousands in the bank and still find that strong resistance surfaces in your mind when you begin to work with an affirmation.

Or there you are, focusing on, "I am my ideal weight and I'm in perfect health," and about the time you finish this affirmation, you hear the voices of the Oreo cookies sitting downstairs, calling to you. "Come and eat me!" they sing to you seductively.

Resistance is a part of any affirmation work. You are going to encounter it, period. Just as athletes encounter resistance while they are training for a big event, trying to get their muscles into perfect shape, there is going to be some soreness, some need for ointment, and some crankiness as you push through to the next level. That's just a part of it all.

What you're really doing when you work with an affirmation is setting the intention that you are going to retrain your brain not just at the conscious level but at the subconscious level, too. And the subconscious mind is one unruly, lawless place. It's a zone of criminality, dark foreboding and collective, genetic fear.

The subconscious is the collective mind of humanity, with all its weirdness, flaws, and inadequacies. And it is an ancient and terrible beast. Within the subconscious lurks all of the survival concerns that we've carried forth since caveman times. We have an ancient genetic memory of pain, struggle, and fear, and all of that bubbles through the subconscious mind like a primordial stew.

But it is our destiny to heal the subconscious, to remind it that we aren't living in the Dark Ages anymore. We live in a global society now, and a lot of the subconscious mind's prime directives no longer serve us in this current world. The whole fight or flight reaction our ancestors felt when they encountered the unknown isn't working for us anymore.

Today's concerns over terrorism are stirring up ancient racial hatred that are stemming from a deeper, darker place, going back to humanity's past. In ancient times encountering members of a different tribe was a scary thing, because it meant competition for resources, potential violent conflicts, and it threatened the survival of your tribe. These fears are exaggerated within us.

So when an act of terrorism happens or someone of a different skin tone or religion does something unpleasant, the subconscious mind kicks in with its fear response and its tendency toward violent over-reaction.

The subconscious mind NEEDS to be healed, its primordial wounds needs to be transmuted. It's up to each of us to do our part in this species-wide proces.

When you begin working with affirmations, whatever you focus on is going to bring up resistance from the beast of the subconscious.

Don't let the beast scare you. Sure, he's hairy and has no manners and likes to roar and complain and act all fierce, but ultimately, if you are patient with him and take him firmly by the collar and give him lots of rubs under the chin and tell him he's a good beast, you love him and are going to help him, he'll stop getting in your way.

And then the things you are working to manifest through your affirmations will rapidly show up in your life.

When you encounter the beast of resistance, try not to be scared or freaked out. Give him a big hug, feed him a biscuit, and tell him that the two of you are in this together.

And together, focusing on the energies of healing and transformation, you can make it work.
----------------------

Jeff Staniforth's Affirmware software is a great tool to help you retrain that beast of the subconscious and get him to work with you instead of fighting against you. If you've hit a wall with your affirmations and need a boost, working with this software for just ten minutes a day for a ten day period can truly change your life.

Boost your affirmation power with Affirmware!

How Affirmations Can Help You Keep New Years Resolutions

2007-01-03T12:59:00.000-05:00

The New Year is a wonderful time to make fresh starts. January’s cold weather and long nights encourage us to sit still, look within and take personal inventory. What have we achieved in the past year? Where did we fall short of our goals? How can we do better in the New Year? Asking these questions can be a rich and productive process.

Most of us can come up with a list of things we want to improve. After all, who doesn’t want a better relationship, increased cash flow or a more rewarding career? These are just a few hot button issues that can always stand a little “tweaking.”

Tackling these areas requires energy and focus. On January 1st, we are full of enthusiasm. We’re convinced that we’ll be able to stick with our plan to lose weight, find a new job, or meet a romantic soulmate.

But too often our commitment to meeting those goals drops off. Oh, we usually stick to our plan for a little while. But after weeks of denying ourselves sweets, sifting through Want Ads or scrolling through endless online dating profiles, we’re burned out.

In the meantime, temptations beckon. Surely, one little cookie won’t do any harm? Taking a quick break from sending out resumes will reduce stress levels, right? And with all of those “looking for love” ads blurring together, there’s no hurry to find a date.

If we give ourselves enough reasons to slack off, we lose momentum. Discouragement sets in and those New Year’s resolutions are soon tossed out the window.

This is the point where most of us give up. It’s usually around January 15th – long enough into the New Year to have given those resolutions a good try, but not so far into the New Year to have fully established healthy new habits.

Changing behavior isn’t easy. Psychologists have found that it takes at least 30 days of sticking with a new behavior before we can begin to recognize that this behavior is the norm and permanently move away from the past behavior. New behaviors don’t feel “real” to us until they have been established for at least 30 days.

And if we want to manifest external changes in our circumstances like finding a great job, this requires some sweat, too. A 2005 study found that it takes an average of 5.62 months for a US worker to find a new position. It sounds daunting, doesn’t it?

The good news is that there is one primary reason why people fail to keep their New Year’s resolutions. And by understanding this common booby trap, we can stop sabotaging those resolutions. Then we can gradually build up the necessary personal history (a minimum of 30 days of maintaining the new behavior) to create a brighter future for ourselves.

The main trip wire responsible for sabotaging our New Year’s resolutions has to do with our perception of time. The number one reason why New Year’s resolutions fail is because, from our vantage point, an entire year is a long, long time!

If we’re trying to overcome an addiction that we’ve had for years, the prospect of denying ourselves access to that thing (sweets, cigarettes, alcohol, etc.) for a whole year can be intimidating. A year can feel like an eternity. So to master our addictions and to keep our resolutions, we need to shift the way that we are looking at time.

12 step programs like Alcoholics Anonymous encourage people to just focus on controlling their behavior today. This allows people to bring their attention to the present, which is where we have the greatest power.

If you want to stop sabotaging those resolutions, shift the time frame around. Don’t pledge that you’ll avoid certain behaviors for the whole year. Promise yourself that you will keep your resolution today. Then, renew this commitment to yourself on a daily basis. This way, you will be breaking the time period down into workable “chunks” of time that will be much easier to handle.

French psychologist Emile Coue was the father of the world’s most famous affirmation: “Every day, in every way, I am getting better and better.” Start each day with this affirmation. Then focus on keeping your intended resolution today. That’s all you need to do. Keep your resolution today and let tomorrow take care of itself.

By shifting your attention to the present and focusing on short 24 hour periods, you’ll feel better. You’ll get instant gratification, knowing that you successfully kept your resolution for an entire day. And this confidence will carry over to the next day, making it easier to keep your resolution that day, too.

Before you know it, a year will have passed, and you will have kept that important resolution all year long. Just think of the positive changes you will have achieved!

Weight Loss Affirmation Turbo Charged

2006-12-29T15:12:00.000-05:00

Weight Loss Affirmation Turbo Charged

Weight loss requires focus and discipline, but it doesn't have to be hard!

When you train your mind to be excited about losing weight, the pounds just drop off. Using a weight loss affirmation each day can make the process much easier.

Psychology experts have proven that self-hypnosis or positive "self talk" plays a huge factor in success. Sports medicine experts use these affirmations to enhance the performance of athletes. Success coaches all over the world teach their clients to use affirmations and sit back to watch as the people they've helped go on to earn millions.

If you've been struggling to lose weight, how about getting rid of the struggle?

Affirmation software created by an Australian inventor will do the trick!

I've mentioned Jeff Staniforth and his cool Affirmaware software before. People from all over the globe have used this easy, user-friendly software to change their lives. Weight loss is an attainable goal, especially if you're willing to spend just ten minutes a day working with a simple weight loss affirmation that you create for yourself.

For ten minutes each day, this software makes it fun to focus on your weight loss affirmation. Stick with it for just a few weeks and you'll notice a different in your energy levels and weight.

Read the testimonials at the site - thousands of people from all walks of life have used this powerful affirmation software to create lasting, positive change for themselves. A weight loss affirmation can help you to lose weight, but you can also use this software to focus on other types of goals like earning more money, attracting a romantic partner, and achieving greater peace and serenity.

Access the power of affirmations with this fun, intuitive, and people-friendly piece of software!

Weight Loss Affirmation Made Easy with Affirmaware

Tags:
weight loss affirmation weight loss lose weight affirmation

Sample Prosperity Affirmations

2006-12-12T11:24:00.000-05:00

Here are some fun prosperity affirmations I thought I'd share today.

"I have more than I need in all areas of my life."

"I give thanks for the abundance that surrounds me."

"I am safe, prosperous, and secure."

"A constant supply of abundance flows toward me."

"I am receiving an infinite supply of abundance."

"Spirit (or God or Goddess) fills me with abundance."

"I am enjoying a constant flow of positive energy."

"I am receiving perfect abundance now."

When you're working with prosperity affirmations, remember to affirm something you already have or are in the midst of receiving rather than framing your affirmation in the future (with something like "I will have money coming in.") Keep your prosperity affirmations focused on the present tense and it will work better for you.

Prosperity affirmations are about setting a clear, unbending intent to enjoy all the blessings available to you in the present and keeping yourself open to all that the Universe is bringing you - in its sacred, magical, and wondrous way.

Tweak these prosperity affirmations with your own ideas - don't be afraid to experiment.

Tags:
prosperity affirmation prosperity affirmations

Create Your Own Affirmation The Right Way

2006-12-11T16:42:00.000-05:00

When you're working with affirmations, the language you use is incredibly important. Think of it this way. You're basically programming your brain through self-hypnosis or autosuggestion. So you want to make sure that what you put in there is going to work to your maximum benefit, right?

Too often when we engage in prayer, we get into "wishing" mode. We plead for a Higher Power to grant our wishes. Without realizing it, we are demonstrating our LACK of faith in God instead of applied faith in a Spiritual Power to work through us and within us.

And too often we do this same thing with affirmations. Instead of affirming that something has already manifested, we focus on WANT or LACK.

Notice the difference between these two phrases.

#1) "I want $10,000 to manifest right now."

#2) "I give thanks for this $10,000 that has manifested in my life. Thank you, thank you, thank you."

Feel the difference in energy between the two?

In one affirmation, you're affirming your SEPARATION from that state - you're affirming the LACK of that $10,000.

In the second affirmation, you're giving thanks and you're filled with joy and appreciation for God or a Higher Power ALREADY having manifested $10,000.

The fact is that everything - money, relationships, property, opportunities - has already been created. This is a universe of unlimited creation. Somewhere, in some reality, everything you could possibly dream of has already manifested.

So your job is to affirm that you are in the reality where everything you want HAS ALREADY BEEN CREATED.

I notice a huge difference when I began to change my affirmations to give thanks for things already having manifested instead of wishing for them to manifest in the future.

I have won $1000 on three separate occasions playing slot machines and also have won $2700 or so on a different day. Each time, I focused on changing my mindset to one of incredible gratitude about THE ABUNDANCE I HAD ALREADY RECEIVED.

It was from this state of joy, of peace, of confidence and trust, that the money just kind of went ......bloooop.....and emerged from those machines. Very fun! I felt like I was tapping into the joy of being a child again, where I just had total trust that I was being provided for.

We can do this in every aspect of our life. The universe is a richly abundant place, and all we need to do is to affirm the abundance that has already manifested. Truly SEE and FEEL it, truly enter into GRATITUDE and JOY about it, and miracles will happen in an instant.

Tags:
create affirmation prosperity affirmation money affirmation wealth affirmation

Turbo Charge Your Positive Affirmations with Waterfall Images

2006-10-24T11:57:00.000-04:00

I wanted to share one of the tricks I use to turbo charge my daily, positive affirmations. It's simple, really. I use a picture.

I mentioned before that it can be helpful to combine tools like images and sound when you are doing affirmations. Feng shui experts teach us that having positive images in our home and work space can be powerful cues that enhance positive energy.

And they're right!

I have photos of different waterfalls that I use as a screen saver on my computer. So every time I boot up, those waterfalls are there, bringing in positive energy and reminding me to open up and receive all of the wonderful things the universe has to offer. I also have a poster of a waterfall on my bulletin board in my office.

Waterfalls are powerful conductors of "chi" or life force, so having photos of them in your home or on your computer can really turbo charge your meditations and positive affirmations.

AllPosters.com has a gorgeous selection of dozens of different waterfall posters. These are all photographs of real waterfalls from all over the world.

When selecting a waterfall image, it's best to choose one where the water is rushing towards you. This is because you want energy to be flowing your way. So be sure to choose an image that you feel a positive response to and make sure that it has water rushing towards you as you look at the photo.

The energy of waterfalls is very sacred. There is a male deva in charge of each waterfall; he helps circulate the intense chi generated by the waterfall. I visited a waterfall in the Lake Placid area last fall, and I couldn't really stand over top of it on the walkway built there because I could feel the intense force of all of that chi blasting me, practically knocking me over. I couldn't keep my balance! So I had to stand off a bit and admire it from farther away.

While I was there I talked with the male deva in charge of that waterfall, a very beautiful and powerful being.

When you look at a photo of a real waterfall, you are accessing the energy of that sacred spot and all of the spiritual helpers who are guardians of that waterfall. As you set this image in your home or workplace, it creates a nice burst of good energy in the background.

Then you can tap into that energy to make your affirmations extra positive, because you'll be feeling better as you do your affirmations.

So that's my secret tip for the day - surround yourself with inspiring waterfall images!

AllPosters.com has dozens of gorgeous waterfall posters. You can check out their site through the link in my sidebar.

Here's to making your affirmations positive, powerful, and creative!

Tags:
positive affirmation waterfall feng shui daily affirmation

Using Color and Imagery with Affirmations

2006-10-16T14:07:00.000-04:00

Using Color and Imagery with Affirmations

When you want to create something new in your life, this creation first begins as a thought. Within that thought, you have words – like “I affirm abundance.”

You also have emotions – the emotional charge that you carry as you think about your affirmation

And you can also employ visualizations. The visual element can be really helpful, serving as a “cue” that triggers the right emotion and the right energy when you are affirming something.

Some people like to take a photograph or image that, to them, represents the affirmation and put this on their computer desktop to look at every day while they do work. This can be a really great way to keep the energy building with your affirmation. You can also post an image on a bulletin board or post-it board above your desk. Every time you see the image, you will be thinking about your affirmation.

If you’re affirming abundance, you should find images that feel abundant to you. You could use images of gold coins, hundred dollar bills, expensive jewelry, or even a luxury car.

Or you could use an image from nature that makes you feel good. One of the principles of the ancient Chinese art of feng shui states that the image of a waterfall is very powerful. If you want to post an image of a waterfall in your home or workplace, this can be a great trigger for your subconscious mind to receive more abundance. The waterfall should be flowing TOWARDS you in the photo. The water rushing towards you represents all the good things and the abundance that are flowing your way.

I find that my most successful affirmations, the ones that end up manifesting things fast, are ones where I’m using a combination of tools – images, words, ideas, and even sound.

Recently I was surprised to find a tool that makes this process easier for me. There's a wonderful brain researcher from Australia named Jeff Staniforth who has spent years developing a special software program that incorporates all these things. It's a desktop application that allows you to schedule ten minute increments where you display a positive image of your choice on your computer, play peaceful sounds that you select, and work with typing in and looking at various affirmations. You can choose to focus on any area of your life that needs work and the software will guide you through a ten day "mini-program" where you will focus on that particular area of your life, using affirmations to shift your consciousness around that thing. It's powerful stuff.

If you're a geek like me and you enjoy doing stuff on the computer, you'll love it. If you're a bit less tech-friendly and don't like being in front of your computer much, this might not be the best tool to aid you with learning more about affirmations. But you can read about it and see some of the cool testimonials and articles at Jeff's site.

One part of the software that I particularly like allows you to type your affirmations and to also keep track of any contradicting or “negative” phrases you are trying to release surrounding that thing. By just spending ten minutes a day using a simple self-coaching system within this software you can clear out a lot of negative self-talk and release internal programming that is keeping those positive affirmations from taking root.

And the software has lots of other cool things you can play with, too. You can set up inspirational images to look at each day that help you focus on your affirmation. And there are even very specific, high vibrational sounds you can listen to for a few minutes at a time to help anchor your creations as pure energy.

This software has so many bells and whistles, it’s really amazing. One woman told me that she worked with the software as recommended for just ten minutes a day, using it to help her focus on a particular affirmation she’d been having troubles with. And within seven days the thing she was affirming manifested! She was looking for a certain type of apartment within a specific (low) price range, which everybody in her urban area told her was IMPOSSIBLE to find. Within seven days a friend of a friend happened to mention this amazing apartment in the bottom floor of a gorgeous Victorian home, and the price was EXACTLY what she could afford to pay. Not only that, but the landlord agreed to a month-to-month lease, so she didn’t have to commit to putting down money for a full year in case she wanted to move up ahead.

I’ve heard several success stories like this from people who have purchased this software. Some people work with one affirmation for a couple of weeks and then work with the software to focus on a second affirmation, and so on. So you can use it whenever you want, however you want, to aid you in your affirmations.

You can listen to an interview with Jeff at his site where he talks about his inspiration for creating this software and how affirmations helped him to manifest ownership in a piece of real estate – in a “miraculous” way, because he had very little money at the time! And you can read dozens of testimonials from people who have had great experiences after they began using this software to aid their work with affirmations.

And if you’re like me, and you have a fascination with all things and people Australian, you’ll definitely want to listen to the interview! Jeff’s voice is a lot of fun to listen to!

Sculptor3 - Powerful Affirmation Software to Change Your Life

Tags:
affirmation software,visualization,feng shui waterfall

What to Do When You Experience Resistance During Affirmations

2006-10-12T21:17:00.000-04:00

What to Do When You Experience Resistance During Your Affirmations

Some people have asked me why it’s so hard to avoid thinking about negative stuff when you really, really want to focus on the positive.

Case in point. One woman was working on daily affirmations about peace. Mostly she was hoping to manifest greater feelings of peace in her life since she was going through a challenging relationship situation.

She would sit there affirming peace and find her mind obsessing about everything that WASN’T peaceful. The Middle East. Darfur. Inner cities in the US. Images of all the places where there was a LACK of peace kept shooting through her head, sabotaging her affirmations for peace.

What should we do when our mind is the enemy and it is fixated on the antithesis of our affirmations?

In her case, she was affirming peace, but all she could think about was war zones.

Many people find that when they are affirming weight loss and health, they become preoccupied with fantasies about doughnuts and other tempting junk food.

Some folks try to affirm financial abundance and are suddenly plagued with fear about how little they have in the bank. They WANT to feel optimistic about money, but they’re not there yet. They just haven’t hit that vibration of feeling “plenty.”

That’s understandable. When you’re dealing with a difficult situation, it can be pretty hard to successfully affirm its opposite.

So if you’re feeling unhealthy, it can be hard to psych yourself up into feeling healthy.

If you’re depressed, it can be difficult or fake if you tell yourself “I’m so happy!” Yeah, right.

I find that when a polar opposite is setting in, and you find yourself fixated on the exact opposite condition that you want to be in, sometimes you need to work at setting affirmations in a different way.

Sometimes we need to avoid a polarized affirmation – that is, affirming the exact opposition situation to what we’re experiencing right then. It’s not realistic to go from feeling really bad to feeling really great in five minutes if you’ve been feeling bad for a while.

If you’ve been living in poverty, to affirm extreme financial wealth to yourself isn’t going to work right away, either. There will be too much resistance in your subconscious.

You see, that’s what was happening with this woman I was talking about who was trying to affirm peace. She was in the middle of a very unpeaceful situation at home, so to affirm peace when what she was really feeling was danger most of the time kicked up huge amounts of resistance within her. No wonder she was preoccupied with visions of war zones. She was living in one herself, where she didn’t really feel safe.

In her situation, she would have been better off affirming something a little less extreme. Instead of affirming complete peace, which sounded “bogus” as she spoke the words to herself, she could have been affirming mental clarity or wisdom to help her deal with situations in her relationship that she needed to change.

I advised her to try some affirmations like these:

“I am calm in the midst of change. I have mental clarity and emotional strength as I handle transition.”

“I gather my energy to respond quickly and do what needs to be done.”

“I have faith in the Universe to guide me in the situation. I am receiving wisdom and guidance at all times.”

Do you see how these affirmations worked around the EDGES of her situation to give her extra assistance, helping her to navigate through a difficult situation? But they weren’t some fake-sounding words affirming a peace that couldn’t realistically exist yet in her life.

When you have something challenging to deal with, it can be best to start affirming strength, mental clarity, emotional balance and spiritual faith to help get you THROUGH the challenge. Then, on the other side of things, after you have dealt with the challenge, you can start affirming peace. Because you will have made the changes in your life that were necessary before you could begin to experience peace.

So if you are encountering strong resistance to something you’re trying to manifest, you might be affirming something that you’re not prepared to receive yet in your life. You might need to work around the edges of the situation, affirming slight improvements and gradual shifts, freeing yourself up and making room in your life.

Then, when things are a bit more in balance, you can start affirming greater amounts of peace, health, well-being, financial abundance, etc.

Resistance encountered during affirmations is usually a signal that we need to tweak our affirmations to be a little less extreme, a little less polarized. Make them more gradual, use affirmations to affirm mental and emotional clarity and personal strength, and then use those things to propel yourself forward over the next hurdle.

Once you’re over that hurdle, try your original affirmations again. Do you feel less resistance now?

The woman I was telling you about later went through a change in residence and was no longer living under the same conditions. She felt a lot more restful and safe. Now when she worked on her affirmations of peace, she felt them “stick.” And she didn’t have her mind flitting around thinking about images of war zones. She was more able to receive peace at all levels of her being because she had made physical changes on the earth plane and navigated into a reality of greater peace, anyway.

If you experience resistance to something you’re affirming, you might need to make changes in your daily life that will allow you to align yourself with that happier vibration. To create greater well-being in our lives, we need to hit things from both levels – the spiritual plane and the physical plane.

Affirmations Today

Tags:
meditation difficult,resistance during meditation

Affirming the Positive – A Decision We Make Every Day

2006-10-10T19:39:00.000-04:00

Affirming the Positive – A Decision We Make Every Day

The author of the following story is unknown. This arrived in my email box today as one of those chain letters. I’ll spare you the bit at the bottom where it says you have to forward it on to other people. I detest those fear-inducing aspects that are too often added in at the bottom of otherwise inspiring chain letters.

With the silly chain letter rigamarole removed from the bottom, it makes for a cool and interesting tale about how we each decide, every day, whether we will focus on the positive or the negative. Here is the story:

John was the kind of guy you love to hate. He was always in a good mood and always had something positive to say. When someone would ask him how he was doing, he would reply, "If I were any better, I would be twins!"

He was a natural motivator.

If an employee was having a bad day, John was there telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation.

Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up and asked him, "I don't get it!

“You can't be a positive person all of the time. How do you do it?"

He replied, "Each morning I wake up and say to myself, ‘You have two choices today. You can choose to be in a good mood or ... you can choose to be in a bad mood.’”

“I choose to be in a good mood."

“Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or...I can choose to learn from it. I choose to learn from it.”

“Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept their complaining or... I can point out the positive side of life! I choose the positive side of life.”

"Yeah, right. It's not that easy," I protested.

"Yes, it is," he said. "Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation is a choice. You choose how you react to situations. You choose how people affect your mood.”

“You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood. The bottom line: It's your choice how you live your life."

I reflected on what he said. Soon thereafter, I left the Tower Industry to start my own business. We lost touch, but I often thought about him when I made a choice about life instead of reacting to it.

Several years later, I heard that John was involved in a serious accident, falling some 60 feet from a communications tower.

After 18 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, he was released from the hospital with rods placed in his back.

I saw him about six months after the accident.

When I asked him how he was, he replied, "If I were any better, I'd be twins...Wanna see my scars?"

I declined to see his wounds, but I did ask him what had gone through his mind as the accident took place.

"The first thing that went through my mind was the well-being of my soon-to-be born daughter," he replied. "Then, as I lay on the ground, I remembered that I had two choices: I could choose to live or...I could choose to die. I chose to live."

"Weren't you scared? Did you lose consciousness?" I asked.

He continued, "The paramedics were great.”

“They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But when they wheeled me into the ER and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. In their eyes, I read 'He's a dead man'. I knew I needed to take action."

"What did you do?" I asked.

"Well, there was a big burly nurse shouting questions at me," said John. "She asked if I was allergic to anything. 'Yes,’ I replied. The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply. I took a deep breath and yelled, 'Gravity'."

Over their laughter, I told them, "I am choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead."

He lived, thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude. I learned from him that every day we have the choice to live fully.

Attitude, after all, is everything .

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:34.

After all, today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.

Affirmations Today

Tags:
positive attitude,positive affirmation

The Most Effective Affirmation is a Simple One

2006-10-08T17:29:00.000-04:00

The Most Effective Affirmation is a Simple One

I learned some time ago that it’s best to keep affirmations extremely simple. When you add too many things into the equation, your mind can get caught up in twists and loops.

When you first start out experimenting with affirmations, it’s best to stick to simple sentences with one or two main concepts in them. Later on you can gradually work your way up to more complex affirmations.

If you’re asking for too many things in your affirmation, you can pollute the waters and send a message of confusion to your subconscious mind. And when it comes to improving your energy and your life, the last thing you need is to be affirming more confusion!

I’m a big fan of what is perhaps the most famous affirmation in the world. It was created by a French psychotherapist and pharmacist named Emile Coué. In 1920 he began teaching people to repeat the phrase, “Day by day, in every way, I am getting better and better" (Tous les jours à tous points de vue je vais de mieux en mieux)

His patients had an incredible rate of recovery from a variety of ailments. To this day Coué is considered the father of autosuggestion, and his particular type of self-hypnosis is called Couéism.

Over the years some of his detractors started the rumor that Coue ended up killing himself, but he actually died of pneumonia.

People have famously adapted his affirmation. You’ve probably heard it stated like this:

“Every day, in every way, I am getting better and better.”

I like that this affirmation operates on two levels. First, it gives you a specific time frame in which to envision improvement – you’re clearly stating that this is happening EVERY DAY. Second, it gives you a clear scope or scale of the situation you are affirming – “in every way.” And third, it is both general and specific at the same time. “I am getting better and better.” You’re affirming MORE goodness, MORE of the best things that life can offer you. And yet it leaves you open to the power of the Universe to define just how this process of getting better and better might manifest.

Some people use this classic mantra to focus on increasing their energy levels and physical health. It works great for that.

Some people tend to be thinking more about improving their overall financial situation. It works really well for that, too.

Others who are more preoccupied with troublesome personal relationships enjoy using the affirmation to clear out feelings of heaviness in those relationships. That works, too.

“Every day, in every way, I am getting better and better.”

Who isn’t open to that? I know I am!

Affirmations Today

Tags:
every day better and better,emile coue

How to Do Affirmations When Going Through a Tough Time

2006-10-05T12:30:00.000-04:00

How to Do Affirmations When Going Through a Hard Time

A lot of skeptical types look at affirmations and go, “Well, you’re just being delusional. Why affirm that things are positive when sometimes life sucks?”

We all have unpleasant things happen, but doing affirmations isn’t the same thing as entering into self-denial.

This week one of the dear dogs who lived here on the farm was put to sleep, the lovable black lab guardian dog Rosie. This was very sad and certainly shook us up. Although he was an old doggie, getting up there in years, somehow we didn’t expect him to be . . .gone.

I think such times of sorrow are actually the BEST times for doing affirmations. It can help you to get control over your emotions and put a healthier tone on any sadness or mourning you are going through.

One of my favorite affirmations during hard times is this one:

“The Light of Spirit guides my every move, uplifts my heart, and enhances my wisdom.”

Sometimes when something bad has happened, the only control you have over the situation is in your reaction. How will you respond to the situation in a way that is authentic and of the moment without going down a “dark” path of intense despair or hopelessness?

I was struck by the sweetness and grace of Terri Irwin, wife of Steve Irwin. Steve Irwin was famous throughout the world as The Crocodile Hunter. He recently died in a tragic accident involving a stingray. In the midst of his wife's sorrow, she talked about how she has never lost faith and truly believes that things happen for a reason. And she expressed gratitude for having her two daughters, who were keeping her grounded during this difficult time.

When tragedy strikes, it’s more important than ever to keep your heart open and keep working at connecting with feelings of love and hope. Because if you don’t do this, your heart chakra can get shut down, bitterness sets in, and in a few months, you’ve forgotten how to love. And when we forget to love, we lose our connection to God/Goddess/Great Spirit, who is all love.

So during a difficult time you need to focus on keeping your heart open, even as the tears flow, even as you mourn. Because an open heart is the one tool that keeps your soul vital and alive. And if you close it, you lose a great deal.

The affirmation I shared above is one that works for me when I’m going through tough times. Here it is again:

“The Light of Spirit guides my every move, uplifts my heart, and enhances my wisdom.”

It helps me see how God’s love for us doesn’t stop, even when we are going through difficulties. If anything, He/She/It loves us MORE during those times, and there is great strength and nurturing available to us then if we reach out and grab it.

Affirmations are a powerful tool for keeping us on the spiritual path, even when we are confused, shocked, angry, or sad. Doing affirmations at those times is a kind of applied faith that allows us to keep focused on the incredible creative power of the universe – a power which we both possess as individuals and a power that we can also tap into, from a source greater and stronger than ourselves.

Affirmations Today

Another Affirmations Success Tip

2006-10-02T16:15:00.000-04:00

Another Affirmations Success Tip

Do you remember the Disney movie Cinderella? At one point in the movie Cinderella sings this song to her animal friends:

A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes

A dream is a wish your heart makes,
When you're fast asleep.
In dreams you lose your heartaches.
Whatever you wish for, you keep.
Have faith in your dreams and someday
Your rainbow will come smiling through.
No matter how your heart is grieving,
If you keep on believing,
The dream that you wish will come true.

Sometimes when we’re having a happy dream, and everything in the dream is buoyant and filled with light, that’s a snapshot from our Higher Self reminding us about what is possible. Hang on to those feelings as you come out of a happy dream, because they can guide you as you’re doing affirmations.

When you are doing affirmations, which are really a form of power prayer or an act of applied faith, it’s important to remember that prayer is a feeling state. A prayer is about entering into a vibration of peace and well-being with such conviction and power that all of reality rearranges itself to align with that vibration. That’s how miracles happen, when we learn to step into the power of being fully happy in the NOW and we confidently direct that energy out into our environment.

Our dreams can also tell us what isn’t working and remind us about what we don’t want. Nightmares reveal our greatest fears. Instead of being afraid of nightmares, you can use them as a spiritual tool. Your nightmare is reminding you that you still have a way to go before your affirmations fully penetrate into your subconscious mind, and there are still some shadows and anxieties lurking about.

Our fears can highlight inner resistance that is getting in the way of our affirmations. Instead of going to battle with these fears, it’s best to have a “chat” with them and acknowledge them. Shine a light on them, get to grips with them, learn about them.

Dreams can serve as powerful cues that remind us about energies we want to embrace – and energies we want to avoid bringing into manifestation. Pay attention to your dreams.

And when you have one of those beautiful, happy, Cinderella dreams, don’t dismiss them as fairy tales. They are messages from your Higher Self reminding you of how miraculous and joyful life is meant to be, so you can align yourself with this potential and shift your reality in a happier direction.

Affirmations Today

The Secret to Successful Affirmations

2006-09-30T23:11:00.000-04:00

The Secret to Successful Affirmations

One of the big secrets to successful affirmations is a very simple one. It can be easily overlooked.

Sometimes we're so busy trying figure out the exact wording for the situation or thing we want to affirm into our lives that we forget that it's equally important HOW we affirm it.

ALWAYS STATE YOUR AFFIRMATION IN THE PRESENT TENSE.

So instead of "I will attract more money into my life" or "I will meet a fabulous new soulmate" you should be saying:

"I am attracting more money into my life" or "I am meeting a fabulous new soulmate."

You wouldn't believe the difference this one little "tweak" can make! It can really speed up the rate at which the condition you're affirming shows up in your life.

If you are careful to phrase all of your affirmations in the present, a magical thing happens. You realize just how profoundly your thoughts and beliefs affect the reality that takes shape around you.

And then you can spook yourself because you realize that the world of physical matter is truly this wiggly, inconsequential thing, easily manipulated like drops of water.

If you phrase your affirmations in a future tense, you're manifesting the polar opposite of the thing you are affirming. Because you're affirming that you will have this thing in the future, which means there's no chance in heck that you're allowing it into your life this very moment.

So imagine if you're going around affirming "I will have a million dollars." You really can see it, you completely believe it, you can visualize that million dollars somewhere off in your future just waiting for you to show up. That future you is wearing a great big smile.

Meanwhile, there's a briefcase of money with a million dollars in it sitting right in front of you at the bus stop. It's unmarked, unclaimed, and yours if you want it.

When you're affirming your LACK of a million dollars, your vibration will be such that you literally WON'T SEE the million dollars that might be sitting right in front of you, ready for you to take it home. Even if it jumps up and down, doing a little dance inside its briefcase, shouting "Take me home! Take me home!" you won't hear it, and you won't see it. Your vibration is not permitting that million dollars to join you in the present. You're refusing it entry into your current reality.

Instead, your vibration is affirming the LACK of that million, so that million dollars in that briefcase will remain completely invisible to you because you have shifted your reality to one in which you are 100% POSITIVE that you will have a million in your FUTURE.

Bad news - you're living in the present. That's where you need to affirm having the million dollars. In the here and now.

Perhaps you're not affirming that a million dollars is waiting for you up ahead, but you're telling yourself through your affirmations that a wonderful love relationship will turn up. . .in your future.

What good does that do you now? Don't you want somebody to cuddle up with NOW, in the present? That's a much more effective way of keeping your toes warm. If you want your toes warm TODAY, stop affirming that Mr. or Ms. Right will turn up in the future and affirm that he or she is being magnetized into your reality TODAY. Affirm them right into your current sphere of influence.

What are you waiting for?

So remember - tweak your affirmations very carefully to make sure that they are affirming greater and greater things or more pleasing situations for you IN THE PRESENT.

Because last time I checked, that's where we are all hanging out. Here. In this moment.

Affirmations Today

Affirmations for All of the Astrology Signs

2006-09-28T19:26:00.000-04:00

Each astrological sign has its own personality quirks. Depending on which sign you were born under, you’ll tend to have different overall “loops” that play in your head. Think of these as your personal “operating instructions.” These instructions are really spiritual impulses to experience life in a certain way. They can be very powerful.

The trick is to harness the positive impulses and bypass the negative ones. Some of the negative feedback loops that can kick up for my sun sign, Virgo, include:

“I’m not doing enough and my efforts will not pay off.”

“I will disappoint others if I don’t do ____.”

“I will wait to take action until I have analyzed all the facts.” (And then Virgo can get caught up in endless research – like, years of it – before actually taking action to achieve their goals down here on the Earth plane. If you take a survey of students going for the masters thesis, a disproportionate number are Virgos!)

I found an interesting website that has listed three positive affirmations for each of the signs. You might want to experiment with the ones listed for your birth sign. If you know your moon sign, which is often different from the sun sign, you might want to work with the affirmations for that sign, too.

The positive affirmations for Virgo that they list are:

"I accept that I am doing exactly what I need to be doing at all times. I find peace in knowing that this is so."

"I know that I am a good and decent person who is getting better all the time. I allow myself to relax into this knowledge."

"There is unlimited love for me that is unconditional and perfect. I accept its presence, and know that it is now revealed to me."

You’ll find the rest of the affirmations for all of the signs at the website: Circles of Light.

As an astrologer, I like these and think they’re right on track. I often worked with something similar when I did one-on-one astrological counseling with people.

Affirmations Today

Getting Consistent Results with Affirmations and More on Increasing Energy

2006-09-27T20:28:00.000-04:00

If you'd like to view comments posted after each entry, just scroll down to the bottom of a post and look for the little link that says "comments." If any have been posted, you should be able to click there to expand and read them.

I wanted to quickly respond to two people who commented on my first post. (Thanks for your input, guys!)

From bedhead2:

I like the idea of exploring affirmations as a specific topic. I look forward to seeing more of what you have to say on the subject! And I hope others will share their experiences with affirmations, too. I've had some good results with them over the years, but it hasn't been consistent

From avril:

I tried the affirmation you gave for increasing energy. I still felt physically tired but I noticed my mood got a lot better. Maybe I was increasing my emotionally energy? Could the affirmation work that way, too?

Bedhead2,

Most people report inconsistent results with using affirmations. This is because they hit a resistance point or block and find it difficult to move beyond it. Without a cheerleader egging you on, it's easy to give up.

The same is true with anything in life. It's hard to lose weight without pushing past resistance points. If you're trying to give up smoking, you'll hit some rough patches, too.

With affirmations people report that if just 51% of the thoughts they are having about a given subject are positive instead of negative, this is enough to manifest a big change in their reality.

So while you may go around 49% of the time having sabotaging thoughts, as long as you can raise your awareness enough to have 51% of the messages become positive ones, this can make a huge difference in your reality. So it's all about using every tool at your disposal to get over the hump.

Avril,

I'm glad you reported on your experience with the affirmation I provided. It was about increasing your energy and yes, emotional energy is certainly energy! So while some people might use that affirmation and find that their physical stamina is increasing, others might find that their emotional energy lifts and they're suddenly in a better mood like you were. Other people might find that their mental concentration suddenly increases.

The energy of the universe is limitless, and once we invite it into our lives, it will tend to flow wherever we most need it to be. Some people might need it to increase physical energy, others might need an emotional lift.

You can experiment with shifting the affirmation around to make it more specific. See what happens when you try these three different affirmations:

"My physical energy is vibrant, clear, and happy. I have unlimited energy."

"My emotional energy is vibrant, clear, and happy. I have unlimited energy."

"My mental energy is vibrant, clear, and happy. I have unlimited energy."

Each affirmation targets a specific area. See how they work for you.

Affirmations Today

Join Me in Exploring Affirmations and Visualizations

2006-09-26T16:13:00.000-04:00

Welcome to my Affirmations and Visualizations for Success blog! My name is Jennifer Shepherd, and I'm also known as The Lipstick Mystic. You may have read one of my syndicated astrology or spirituality columns in newspapers or in magazines across the U.S. Or you may have seen me doing some ghostbusting on TV shows like the Sci-Fi Channel's Sightings or Fox TV's Real Scary Stories.

I used to have a full-time psychic counselling practice, and I turned up on a lot of radio stations giving my on air predictions about everything from celebrities' love lives to my pick for the next team to win the SuperBowl.

Confession: I was always wrong about the SuperBowl. I soon learned that in order to make accurate psychic predictions about something, you have to have an affinity for the subject. I attended my first football game just a year ago, so I can't say I "get" the game very much!

Now I write and teach full-time on spirituality subjects and I also run a bunch of funky websites on different topics. In this blog I'll be sharing my own personal stories and cool anecdotes from others around the world on the subject of affirmations and how they work. We'll also be looking at how they don't work. Feel free to offer comments in the comments section and to share your own questions or personal stories about working with affirmations in your own life.

In short, an affirmation is a conscious attempt to use words and language to "reprogram" the brain and to rewire human consciousness. It goes a little deeper than mere hypnotism, which can be used to do everything from stopping smoking to losing weight.

Affirmations penetrate on an almost mystical level, and they truly can shift not just our conscious thoughts, but they also have the ability to shift our "vibration" and change what we start to manifest in our daily lives.

"Vibration" is a term that is often misused, so don't be scared about it. You might have heard a hippie dippie New Age healer type talk about "shifting your vibration" or "ascending to the next level." Chances are that this same healer was also packing his bags waiting for the next ship full of ET's to beam him up. I'm not talking about that.

When matter is analyzed down to the most microscopic level, quantum physicists have discovered that these subatomic particles are in constant motion. Another word for this movement is vibration.

Sound healing with the use of instruments like Tibetan bowls, shamanic drums, or other musical tools can actually shift this vibratory rate, changing the way our bodies feel.

The messages we tell ourselves each day also have a big affect on this vibration. Negative self-talk has been proven through muscle testing to decrease the strength of our bodies and to slow down our reaction time. So sports medicine has come to incorporate a lot more of a mind/body/spirit approach because these techniques enhance an athlete's performance so beautifully.

Basically, when you're telling yourself you're no good, you won't be any good.

When you tell yourself you're good, you'll be good.

Now, we all have a bunch of stuff going through our heads. In this world of multi-tasking, our brains have become like Grand Central Station. So many thoughts are headed into the station at the same time. Others are leaving. Some get diverted, interupted, and thrown off track. If you've ever been in the middle of a conversation and suddenly forgotten what you were talking about, you know what I mean. It's like your thought was derailed. The brain is so busy doing so much stuff that it's easy to get off track.

The use of affirmations is just one technique that can allow us to take charge of the brain and start rewiring how mental processes operate. And affirmations can also soak into the subconscious level, shifting the "tone" of how we feel about life and even reprogramming us to become more successful in all aspects of our lives.

Of course, the undisciplined part of our brain likes to resist. So affirmations need periodic tweaking, experimenting, and innovation as we discover these resistance points or "psychic tripwires" within the mind and subconscious.

Let me leave you with an affirmation for you to experiment with. In my work as a healer with individuals from around the world, I often compare notes on cool affirmations that people seem to be having great success with. And sometimes I will "download" affirmation tips from my own higher guidance. This blog will be a place to share some of these. I encourage you to experiment with them, offer feedback in the comments section, and see how you feel, what happens, etc. Think of this blog as a school for affirmations, and we're all part of the teaching staff. Let's focus on figuring out what works, what doesn't work, and some of the potential reasons why.

This is an affirmation I've been working with to replace my multiple daily cups of coffee. I've become a little too used to that caffeine lift and notice that my energy really drags when I get off the coffee.

This affirmation is designed to help you to increase your natural energy levels. It's phrased as being in the present because affirmations are more powerful if we assert them in the NOW instead of in the future.

"My energy is vibrant, clear, and happy. I have unlimited energy."

Experiment with this and let me know how you do with it. Don't judge yourself if you encounter resistance. Simply observe, notice, and keep experimenting with it. Take note of any shifts or changes as you work with it. You can combine this with visualization (picturing positive imagery or colors in your mind's eye.) And you can use sound, too. Usually, to truly retrain the brain, it's good to incorporate sound, color, and language.

There's a wonderful brain researcher from Australia named Jeff Staniforth who has spent years developing a special software program that incorporates all these things. It's a desktop application that allows you to schedule ten minute increments where you display a positive image of your choice on your computer, play peaceful sounds that you select, and work with typing in and looking at various affirmations. You can choose to focus on any area of your life that needs work and the software will guide you through a ten day "mini-program" where you will focus on that particular area of your life, using affirmations to shift your consciousness around that thing. It's powerful stuff. If you're a geek like me and you enjoy doing stuff on the computer, you'll love it. If you're a bit less tech-friendly and don't like being in front of your computer much, this might not be the best tool to aid you with learning more about affirmations. But you can read about it and see some of the cool testimonials and articles at Jeff's site.

Sculptor3 - Powerful Affirmation Software to Change Your Life

Affirmations Today