Affirmations get a bad rap by many in the areas of personal
growth and development, and at the same time by others are
touted as the magic to changing your life. There are those
who tell you that using affirmations is THE way to changing
your thinking thus changing your life, and others who say
they are a useless waste of time.
Here I will attempt to clarify and set straight the place
and value of affirmations in your self improvement efforts
to change and grow in your life. The topic of affirmations
fits into what I call "A fine line." There is a fine line
between going too far one way or the other. To get the
value from something you must find the "fine line" place in
the middle, too far one way or the other, and you lose it.
And so it is with affirmations.
First, some of the misconception comes from people grasping
for the quick fix. We all know how we can easily read into
something what we want. And that what most people are
looking for is the quickest, easiest way to make changes in
their life, which does really not exist.
All related factors must be addressed to realize real
results. Affirmations do play a role in your overall self
development and growth but are certainly not the only tool
that must be used to get the results you want. Affirmations
alone will not bring about the major change in life some
believe, on the other hand they are not totally worthless
as many others make them out to be.
Much of what is taught in the personal growth and
development field is just part of the story. Where someone
has focused on one or even a few aspects of what is
involved and highlighting just those parts, which gives the
impression that, that is all there is. Yes, in short change
it is simple, but there are many 'between the lines'
aspects that come into play, and one of these is
affirmations.
It's easy to allow ourselves to get consumed with one
aspect of life development when our focus is on just one
element, which is the case with many books and trainings.
It is good to study and focus on one aspect if this is
something specifically you feel you need to learn and user,
but don't forget about the whole picture.
Now those who say that just using affirmations will fix
your life, seem to 'forget' about the aspects of action,
among other things, which we can't escape as we are in this
physical reality. Yes, your thoughts and your feelings play
a crucial role in how you manage and develop your life, but
that's not all. You must take appropriate actions, it's
your job, your design here in this physical reality we
enjoy. If we weren't suppose to be involved physically why
are we here?
And, those who say affirmations are worthless are missing
out on a powerful tool that has some purpose when one is
working on their thinking. And, yes, your thinking is
absolutely critical as everything revolves around it. I
think why some people look down on the use of affirmations
comes from their reaction to others who say that
affirmations are all you need. But this all or nothing
reaction does not serve anyone well.
Here are some ways that affirmations are useful in your
self improvement work:
* Affirmations help set your tone. Your overall attitude
and feeling will affect what you think about. It affects
how you act and interact with others. It virtually colors
your day. Using affirmations will help direct your daily
tone.
* Affirmations help keep your thinking positive - on what
you want and away from what you don't want. If affirmations
serve no other purpose for you than this, it makes them
well worth using, if all you do is use affirmations to
replace unwanted thinking with desirable thinking you have
won big. A critical part of change is to learn to stop
focusing on what you don't want and rather focus on what
you do want.
* Affirmations help build mental discipline. As you learn
affirmations and actually use them regularly, you are
training your mind to a different way of thinking on a
daily basis. You are learning how you can change your
thought and how to keep it as you want. You are learning to
take command of your thinking by directing it rather than
allowing everything to be automatic.
* Affirmations help evolve your thinking in the direction
you want. As you develop affirmations for yourself, you are
thinking about and expanding your thinking in the areas
that you want to play a greater role in your life. The more
you work with developing affirmative and supportive
statements, the more you will discover what is possible.
Now, maybe if your thinking is already 100% supportive of
what you want in life, where you are going, and you never
slip into any thought of doubt, worry and what you don't
like, you don't need affirmations. Actually if this is the
case, you have already assimilated the affirmation like
thought into your everyday thinking. Your conscious mind is
already always on the positive, supportive congruent
thoughts of your ideal life as it is freely unfolding. For
anyone else, affirmations can be a useful tool.
Affirmations are a wonderful tool for effecting your
thinking, which is very important in your growth and
development, as long as you don't get stuck thinking that
this is all you need to do. It takes more than just your
thoughts to see results, but developing your thinking is
key to your knowing the right actions to take, when and how
to get the results you want.
----------------------------------------------------
John Halderman, I write about effective self improvement
methods, more specifically how you can bridge the gap
between information and creating effective results. To
learn more about what you just read here and to discover
how this can help you change your life, follow this
link-http://effectivepersonaldevelopmentblog.com
Posts
