WHY AFFIRMATIONS ARE SO POWERFUL! by Susan Jeffers, Ph.D. Copyright © 2006 Susan Jeffers, Ph.D. All Rights Reserved www.susanjeffers.com Note: For Personal Use Only: This content of this book is not to be copied or distributed to others by any means either for profit or for free. Copyright law mandates that permission must be sought before the book or portions of the book can be applied for anything other than personal use. Why Affirmations Are So Powerful! 2 Dedication This little book about affirmations is a gift of thanks to my wonderful website visitors who constantly shower me with beautiful messages. Your loving feedback makes my heart sing. Let me now shower you with one of my favorite affirmations… THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! Copyright © 2006 Susan Jeffers, Ph.D. Why Affirmations Are So Powerful! 3 WHY AFFIRMATIONS ARE SO POWERFUL! CONTENTS I. AFFIRMATIONS RUN DEEP, DEEP, DEEP ................ p. 4 II. 10 AFFIRMATIONS AND THEIR DEEPER MEANING ... p. 10 III. ONWARD TO THE BEST OF WHO YOU ARE! ........... p. 21 Copyright © 2006 Susan Jeffers, Ph.D. Why Affirmations Are So Powerful! 4 I. AFFIRMATIONS RUN DEEP, DEEP, DEEP “I choose the path of trust. I understand that I have little control in the external world. But I do have control of my reactions to it all.” Susan Jeffers One of my favorite tools for pushing through my fears and other negative emotions is the positive affirmation. (This is no surprise to those of you who are familiar with my work!) I have used affirmations for such a long time (over 30 years!) that I often find these uplifting and soothing thoughts roaming inside my mind throughout the day keeping me in an upbeat, loving state. And if I find myself fearful or upset about any situation in my life, I simply begin repeating an appropriate affirmation over and over again until peace envelopes me like a warm blanket. Delicious! As I explain in Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway, an affirmation is a strong, positive statement telling us that “all is well,” despite what the negativity of the mind may be saying to us. With constant repetition of this uplifting and soothing statement, the voice of doom and gloom that roams through our mind is replaced with thoughts of peace, power and love. Yes … all is well. I believe that one of the reasons that affirmations are so powerful is that, by replacing negative thoughts with positive thoughts, we are actually moving ourselves from the weakest part of who we are (the Lower Self) to the Copyright © 2006 Susan Jeffers, Ph.D. Why Affirmations Are So Powerful! 5 strongest and most loving part of who we are (the Higher Self). I can’t think of a better place to be! Another reason that affirmations are so powerful is that they are much more than meets the eye. While an affirmation is only one sentence in length, it has a very deep meaning. As I see it… An affirmation is an encapsulation of a whole wealth of life- affirming thoughts that remind us that we are inherently powerful and loving and there is nothing to fear. Let me give you an example: On my desk sits a little picture frame in which I have displayed one of my favorite affirmations… IT’S ALL HAPPENING PERFECTLY! When I am feeling fearful or upset about any situation in my life, I have only to notice my “reminder” sitting right before me and I begin repeating this affirmation over and over again. As I do, I can actually feel my body relax as the negative feelings disappear and I truly embrace the thought, IT’S ALL HAPPENING PERFECTLY. You may be thinking, “Susan, how can it be happening perfectly, when so many things don’t turn out the way we want them to turn out?” A good question. And when we explore the deep, deep meaning of this affirmation, we find the answer. For me, IT'S ALL HAPPENING PERFECTLY! is a shortened version of… My mind cannot see the larger picture, the Grand Design. I don’t know why life is happening the way it is, but I will simply trust that all things happen for a reason. Therefore, even if a certain situation is not going the way I want it to go, I will relax and focus on how I can learn and grow from it all. In this way, I become a stronger and more loving person. Yes … IT’S ALL HAPPENING PERFECTLY! Copyright © 2006 Susan Jeffers, Ph.D. Why Affirmations Are So Powerful! 6 You can see that, with this deeper meaning in mind, the frequent repetition of this simple yet very profound thought, IT’S ALL HAPPENING PERFECTLY!, can create a wonderful sense of peace. By the way, you don’t even have to believe the affirmations you are saying for them to have a positive effect—body, mind and soul. For example, maybe you don't feel that IT’S ALL HAPPENING PERFECTLY!, even knowing the deeper meaning. Amazingly… It has been demonstrated that just saying, thinking or writing positive thoughts make us stronger in every way, whether we believe the words or not. Amazing, indeed! I have also made another very interesting and important discovery… If you say affirmations often enough, you will ultimately believe them. The reason for this is that affirmations are a form of “acting-as-if”. If you act-as-if long enough, your mind lets in the possibility that something is so. And, ultimately, you are able to embrace the reality that it really is so. Another example from my own life: There was a time when I really didn’t believe that my life made a difference. I had very low self-esteem, indeed. To help myself, I began attending self-help workshops. (In fact, I became a workshop addict!) It was at one of these workshops that I learned the value of affirmations. I was skeptical at first, but I thought, “Hey, there is no harm in trying.” One of the affirmations I then began repeating daily over and over again was, “MY LIFE MAKES A DIFFERENCE”, even though I definitely didn’t believe it was true. Copyright © 2006 Susan Jeffers, Ph.D. Why Affirmations Are So Powerful! 7 And then one day it happened and it was so breathtaking that, even to this day, I remember the moment well. What was it that happened? I was enveloped with a life-changing realization: “My life really DOES make a difference!” And tears of joy rolled down my face. And it is this profound realization so many years ago that has guided my actions ever since as I focus on putting my best into everything I do. And, if you think about it, it all started by my repeating an affirmation that I really didn’t believe. This was a lengthy way of telling you that, whether or not you believe the affirmations I present to you in the next section, the mere saying of them will create an energy shift toward giving, loving and embracing. And there is a bonus: As you begin repeating affirmations over and over again, keeping their deeper meaning in mind, your interaction with the outside world subtly changes. For example, when you say the affirmation "I AM POWERFUL AND I AM LOVING AND I HAVE NOTHING TO FEAR" often enough, you begin to act differently, stand differently, and react to the outside world differently. You become more loving. And the amazing thing is that you are treated differently! You definitely draw a healthier, more loving energy into your life. Affirmations are very powerful indeed. You may be thinking, “Oh, Susan, I’m too busy to add something else to my schedule.” Not to worry! The proper use of affirmations takes absolutely no time away from your day. How is this possible? Because… All you are doing is replacing the negativity in the mind with healthy thoughts of peace, power and love. Read that again! These positive thoughts, which are simply replacing the negative thoughts, can be repeated while you dress, shower, and exercise, while you are sitting at your desk, or taking care of your children, and, of course, as you are going off to sleep. Copyright © 2006 Susan Jeffers, Ph.D. Why Affirmations Are So Powerful! 8 The key is to remember to say them! To this end, I suggest you write your favorite affirmations on post-its and put them in your car, on your desk, on your mirror, by your bedside, and so on, so that you are reminded to say them. You can get very creative about this. One of my students made it a practice to place on each page of a notebook just one affirmation. Each day as she was driving to work, she would pick an affirmation from one of the notebook pages, repeat it ten times, and then flip the page to the next affirmation which she would repeat ten times…and on and on and on. She continued this process until she reached her destination. By the end of her trip, she felt very powerful and loving, indeed! I might add that ultimately she changed her life dramatically. (I should also say that she assured me she did this exercise in her car with driving safety in mind!) Bad habits are hard to break (and negative thinking is definitely a bad habit!) but break these bad habits, we can. In the beginning, it is best to use affirmations intensively until they become part of your every day thinking. Again, this is easy since, as you now know, affirmations take no time out of your day; they simply replace negative thinking with positive thinking. A very good exchange, indeed! Let me now offer you 10 affirmations with their deeper meaning as I see it. (As you become more familiar with the deeper meaning of affirmations, you may be inspired to create your own that are based on your own life experiences.) As an experiment, I urge you to repeat each affirmation, silently or out loud, 10 times after you read the deeper meaning. This is very important. And I have made it easier for you to do this by arranging the page in a way that reminds you. (How quickly we forget!) Now let me make a prediction: Copyright © 2006 Susan Jeffers, Ph.D. Why Affirmations Are So Powerful! 9 After reading the 10 affirmations…having understood their deeper meaning…and having repeated each affirmation 10 times, you will definitely feel uplifted as the energy in your body moves in the direction of peace, power and love. I believe that once you see their positive value, you will make affirmations a part of your daily life, as I have made them a part of mine. After all, who can resist replacing the voice of doom and gloom in the mind with thoughts of peace, power and love?! Not me…hopefully, not you. Onward! Copyright © 2006 Susan Jeffers, Ph.D. Why Affirmations Are So Powerful! 10 II . 10 AFFIRMATIONS AND THEIR DEEPER MEANING Copyright © 2006 Susan Jeffers, Ph.D.