Affirmations - The Bad News

As we progress though our lives we are always affirming our thoughts and beliefs. Every single day you are consciously and unconsciously telling yourself things that are based upon your belief system.

However, the problem comes in when you reaffirm negative thoughts rather than positive ones. This is the bad news about affirmations. When they are negative in nature you really can't expect anything but negative outcomes.

Ask yourself how often you tell yourself that you're stupid because you forgot something or that you're fat because your favorite pair of jeans feel tighter.

When we succumb to negative thinking we are reinforcing our internal belief that we are unable to change and we are condemned to continue repeating our self-destructive behaviors. We become ensnared in a cycle of negative thinking.

But think for a moment how your life would be different if you used affirmations that rather reinforced the positive.

When used properly affirmations can work wonders! All that is needed are a few easy adjustments to the manner in which you phrase your internal dialog. You can use this powerful technique to alter your way of thinking and change your life.

Because our subconscious mind takes things on a literal basis it is necessary, for affirmations to work, to follow an easy formula.

The following tips will help you to create positive affirmations that will change your life:

1. The subconscious must know that you are doing something this moment, not in the future. For instance, if you state an affirmation as something that you wish to change such as: "I will quit smoking", your subconscious is unable to distinguish the meaning of "I will".

It cannot plan for the future. Rather, the subconscious mind accepts what it is told even if the behavior is yet to occur. This is why affirmations must be stated as if they are already fact.

"I no longer desire to smoke" is an example of an effective affirmation and this will program your subconscious into thinking like a non-smoker even before you have put down your pack of smokes.

2. In order for the subconscious mind to accept the affirmation it needs to be personal. Saying something like: "You need to follow a healthy diet" will not result in any changes. This is because when the subconscious hears "you" it cannot see it as a statement that is directed at yourself.

Your affirmation needs to be in the first person which means you need to use "I" instead of "you". By doing so you will soon see a strong positive effect on your behavior.

"I like eating healthy food" is a positive, first person affirmation that is going to result in you making better choices when it comes to eating a meal or snack.

3. The subconscious is very literal and doesn't process the idea of "not". Hence, the statement, "I am not going to lie around watching TV when I should be exercising" simply will not work other than to re-affirm that you should lie around watching TV!

"I like exercising in my spare time" is more likely to get you to get up and go to the gym rather than reaching for the remote and unhealthy snacks.

For affirmations to powerfully change your subconscious and affect your behavior in a positive way they need to be positive, personal, and in the present tense.

Commit yourself to cease reinforcing old and negative thinking which simply keeps you in a rut. Instead, use these three easy techniques now to create affirmations that will not only alter your subconscious programming but your actions and your life - all for the better.