Affirmations and “Laziness”

Affirmations and Laziness

Has anyone told you you are lazy? Perhaps you’ve told yourself that many times. You can use positive affirmations to move yourself past your reluctance or inability to take action. But first, let’s look at what might be behind the supposedly laziness.
How Fear Impedes Action
Most people others call lazy actually have deep-seated fears. Some of the most common ones are fear of:
  • responsibility
  • failure
  • success (which often is related to responsibility)
  • being different
  • being separated from friends and family

Any fear you have is based upon the belief that what you are contemplating doing is unsafe. Your acquired these beliefs when you when you were very young. Almost all of them originated before you were the age of five.

When you were little you may have been punished or made fun of when you initiated something. Perhaps you started a game and someone was angry because you woke up Mom or Dad.  You might have a desire to be an artist but the rest of your family is into sports or business. Your passion may take you away from loved ones and the security of home and friends.

It’s important to take time to recognize your fears. You might even have a fear of knowing what your fear is! That’s a never ending circle, isn’t it.

How Not Knowing Impedes Action

Many people appear to have a lack of ambition simply because they don’t know what they would like to do with their life. They haven’t found their passion yet. They haven’t discovered what it is that will motivate them to do something more than they are doing now.

If someone appears to be a dedicated couch potato, you can be sure that if there is a fire they will get moving. Having passion calls for having an activity which ignites the fire within to find a goal and follow through with it.

Usually fear of making the wrong choice interferes with discovering something the person is passionate about. Those who have always been excited about something in life or who have always known what they wanted to do when they were adults have a difficult time understanding anyone who can’t find themselves.

I was blessed with knowing what I wanted to do. I studied psychology, have three degrees in it, and still enjoy learning about the field. I’m the only one in my family of origin who is doing what they initially studied. Many of my nieces, nephews and their children also took a few years to figure out what they wanted to do.

Not knowing what you want to do can be disconcerting, but it is nothing to be ashamed of. If someone tries to shovel shame on you, don’t take it! You can’t find your passion if you have shame clinging to you.

How Affirmations Help

People who appear lazy often repeat the same statements, “I don’t want to,” “I can’t,” “I’m not interested,” or other self-limiting beliefs. Each time a limiting belief is repeated, it reinforces the limitation. When you use positive affirmations, positive statements, you are counteracting the limiting belief. You are also beginning to construct a new pathway in your brain which will open you to different possibilities.

Suggestions to Move You Forward

If you want to change, you have to take action. This begins by changing the messages you give yourself.

Changed the “I can’t” to “I can.” Follow that up with doing something different that you know you can do. It can be as simple as walking around the block.

You might want to replace “I don’t want to” with “I want to find out what I enjoy.” Follow that with the action of listing three things you enjoy doing. Then repeat to yourself, “I am discovering what I truly want to do with my life.”

If the difficulty is that you are afraid, take a deep breath, hold it for a count of four, and then exhale as much as you can. Follow that with the positive affirmation, “I have the necessary courage to overcome my fears.”

Whatever limiting affirmation you are repeating, turn it around. Develop affirmations which open you to limitless possibilities.

Jumped Starting the Subconscious

Every time you use a positive statement rather than a limiting one, you are opening your subconscious mind to a different possibility in life. When you use limiting words, your subconscious mind wants to support those words. When you use words opening you to possibility, your subconscious mind wants to support you in that area.

Not only the words need to be open to possibility, but also your attitude. You could ask, “Why” with an attitude of anger which closes off getting the answer. When you attitude is one of wanting to know the answer, your subconscious mind says, “Oh, you really want to know? Let’s look for the answer.”

Developing affirmations take some skill. Once you learn how to do it, you’re on your way. Just remember to put your whole self into them as I talked about in the last post.

Positive Affirmations for Career Success

Positive Affirmations for Career Success

The major reason clients come into my office is to assist them in becoming successful in life. They asked me, “What can I do? Are there some affirmations I can use which can help me become successful in my field?” Yes, of course there are. There is something even more important than affirmations for success. This is believing in yourself.
The Combination of Words and Action
Just minutes ago I was working with the man who is extremely talented. He will soon have his doctorate, he’s an excellent writer, he has tremendous insight into his field. There is one thing he does not have. That is the self-confidence to do what he needs to do to reach his ultimate goal.
I’m going to tell you the same thing I told him. It doesn’t matter if you have self-confidence. It only matters that you have a plan and you follow it. When you follow one at a time the steps you have outlined, you will gain self-confidence on the way.
Stating affirmations does you absolutely no good if you do not couple them with action. when you combine positive statements with taking the steps necessary to move forward your entire being comes into alignment moving you to what you want to accomplish.
You can have all the gasoline you want in a car, but if you do not turn the key it will not move forward. The same is true for positive affirmations. Think of these statements that you make as the gasoline to your car. Taking action is turning the key so that it all comes together. When you combine the repetition of what you want to become beliefs to guide your life with the action necessary to accomplish your goal, you will gain self-confidence. And with that you will become successful in your career and other areas of life.
Putting Together Postive Statements with Powerful Imaging
I’m going to give you two sets of affirmations. The first has to do with believing in yourself. The second has to do with success in your career. I’m assuming here that you know what it is you want to be going.
Remember you have to combine words with action. In this case, I want you to incorporate the power of your mind. Do this by imagining yourself being or doing what the affirmations states. After doing this exercise, take the first step necessary to manifest your goal. This could be picking up the phone, taking a course, or some other necessary step. Just be sure it move  you forward and is not just spinning your wheels, so to speak.
To Increase Self-Confidence
  1. I have unlimited potential.
  2. My very being radiates competence and confidence.
  3. I am excited about life and the possibilities available.

To Attract Success in Your Career

  1. I have the ability to become competent and capable in any area of expertise I apply myself.
  2. I attract to me the perfect career, at the perfect salary with the perfect benefits for me.
  3. Every decision I make leads me directly to the achievement of my career goals.
Summary
Each time you repeat any of these statements imagine yourself being what you have just said. Believe in yourself and follow your plan.

Three Questions to Ask When Establishing Your Definite Purpose

Three Questions to Ask When Establishing Your Definite Purpose I’m sure you know by now that setting specific goals in life is crucial to achieving success. Did you know that there is something you should do before you set those goals? The critical task before establishing your goals is to analyze your desires and motivations and write out what Napoleon Hill in “The Law of Success” calls your Definite Purpose.

In the language of Steven Covey and others in the motivational and success field, Definite Purpose is also known as your Mission Statement. Since I’m studying Napoleon Hill’s “The Law of Success,” I’m going to stick to what he calls Definite Purpose. If you are more familiar and comfortable with the term “Mission Statement,” you can apply what you learn here to what you know about your Mission Statement.

When Napoleon Hill interviewed the successful people of his time, as well as another 15,000 people, he discovered that those who were successful each had a Definite Purpose for their life. Unfortunately, only 5% of the people he interviewed were successful, and of those 5% of those who were successful, 100% of them had a Definite Purpose which guided their lives. This Definite Purpose was in writing where they could see it when they awakened in the morning and before they went to sleep at night. If you want to be successful, then do what successful people do.

There are three questions to ask yourself when establishing your Definite Purpose.

1. Is it constructive?

2. Will it bring hardship or trouble to anyone?

3. Will it bring you peace and prosperity?

Let’s look more closely at these three questions.

Is it constructive could be asked in a few other ways. Does your Definite Purpose contribute in a positive way to the world? Is it something you would be proud to share with anyone you meet? If you believe in an afterlife, would you be excited to share it with those who greet you after you leave your body?

Will it bring hardship or trouble is not talking about simple difficulties in life. Will your Definite Purpose be supportive of others in their lives? You may have as your goal to make millions or billions of dollars, but if you do it in with a ponzi scheme in which people will lose their life savings you have caused hardship and brought suffering to those who trusted you.

Will it bring you peace and prosperity is an internal measure. Being a drug dealer of either street or prescription drugs will not bring you peace. It might bring you money, but prosperity is much more than having money. It is the feeling that every area of your life is full and fulfilled. If you are continually on edge because someone might turn you in to the police, or you will be found out and sent to prison, there is no peace.

Once you set your Definite Purpose and know it satisfies the three questions above, then you can establish goals to move you forward to the fulfillment of what people now call your mission statement. This is your passion and you will be able to keep your desire burning brightly and your motivation alive until it is accomplished.

The Trait of the 95% of the Population Who Fails

The Trait of the 95% of the Population Who Fails

Napoleon Hill, in “The Law of Success,” states that the population in the United States fails at the endeavors of life. Not that you need assistance in subtracting, but that means that only 5% of the population succeeds. Now this was in the early 20th Century, but I fear the percentages are no better now in the early 21st Century. What is lacking in individuals that results in 95% of the people being unhappy, as unhappiness is the result of failure? Do you know?

According to Napoleon Hill, the primary reason people fail is that they have no definite purpose to their lives. What is known as existential psychology would say that people do not have meaning in their lives. If you have no definite purpose you are like a sailing vessel roaming the vastness of the ocean without a rudder. You use your vast store of energy only to move in circles.

Once you establish your definite purpose in life, you now know your direction in life. You have a destination in life that acts as a beacon guiding you on your way. You need three additional items in addition to your definite purpose to move you towards success.

Definite Plans will take you from point “A” to point “B.” If you decide to go on a journey you need more than a rough idea of where you are going. For example, traveling from Houston, Texas to Omaha, Nebraska by car is pretty much due North. The problem is that going due North will not get you to your destination the easiest and most efficient way. You need a definite plan, also known as a roadmap, to get you where you want to go.

Power, according to Napoleon Hill, involves gathering together a group of people who have the knowledge, wisdom and skill to assist you in getting to your destination. Having access to these accomplished people is only a small part of the equation. You have to utilize what they know and act upon it. Having people available is only potential power unless you ignite it with your action.

Proficiency in the skills are needed for what you have chosen to do. You can have all the knowledge in the world at your fingertips, which you do through libraries and the internet, but if you do not learn those skills and then practice them, they are useless to you. There are many people who believe they are an expert because they have read a book or received a college degree. It is only when you have mastered the information you have learned through action that you can achieve your definite purpose.

Today, it seems that most people want to achieve the status of great wealth or accomplishment without having to go through the necessary learning process. Book learning is not enough. You have to train your mind and your body in how to implement what you have learned. Consider this question, would you fly solo in a jet after having only read all the books available on how to take off, fly and land a jet? You might be willing to take the controls when someone else has you in the air, but wouldn’t you give them back when it came time to land? If you don’t, you have a very slim chance of making it through your flight alive.

This is true with your definite purpose. Learn the necessary knowledge, gather your support team and then put your plan in action after you practice or have worked with a mentor.

The Power of Internal Motivation

The Power of Internal Motivation

Setting goals is considered one of the most powerful, if not most powerful technique to assist you in moving forward in your life. Goals provide focus and direction. You are the one who has to find the motivation to move from where you are to your destination.

If you want to move towards a goal you need a reason why. This is called motivation. The ease with which you reach your goal depends upon where your motivation comes from and your attitude regarding that motivation. Let’s talk about two different types of motivation, that which comes from within you and that which is a force from outside of you.

Motivation from Within

When you have an internal drive for accomplishment, you don’t need a force from outside of yourself to move you forward. This passion is the fuel of your movement. It could be a deeply held desire you’ve had for sometime, the love of family, your desire to prove yourself to yourself, or a reason based upon mystical or spiritual experiences. Internal motivation, when it is present, is a force of great strength which can propel you past the difficulties that arise when you move forward in the accomplishment of your goal.

Motivation from Outside

Fear is also a great motivator. Although fear comes from within you, its source comes from outside of you. If you didn’t have the external reason moving you into action, you would no longer be afraid. With the fear gone, your motivation is gone leaving no energy to move you forward. Fear of getting in trouble with the IRS definitely moves me forward in paying my taxes and doing so on time. The problem with something external moving you to action is if it isn’t present you won’t act.

Let’s say you want to succeed to prove to your parents you can do it. You can do this because you love your parents and you want to succeed as a sign of your appreciation for the role they played in your life. That’s a positive motivation that can move you forward even if your parents die before you succeed.

But, what if your internal reason is that you want to prove them wrong about you, that you want to shove your accomplishments in their face? The fuel for your actions is based upon anger. You have to keep that anger going if you want to succeed. Being angry that long is not fun for you and can drive away those around you.

Your Attitude is Crucial

It’s not just the “why” of doing something, it’s also the attitudinal “how” that determines whether you are happy or unhappy during the process of accomplishment. Life can be great fun or it can be filled with pain and turmoil. Everyone’s life has high points and low points. What is going on with you internally, your feelings, will determine whether life is fun or drudgery.

If you want to prove something to someone because you are angry with them, look for another reason to achieve the same goal. Search within you and find the reason for accomplishment that is based upon positive feelings. This could be as simple as you have always wanted to succeed in this area and you would feel a sense of great accomplishment when you have reached your goal. That is internal motivation.

Many people are aimless in life until they fall in love with someone. Suddenly they find the reason for accomplishment. They move forward out of love for another. This is a positive attitude that can lead to joy in life as long as you stay in the energy of love. What happens, however, if that person is gone or that love is gone? What moves you then? That’s why you ultimately have to act upon what you desire and what you want.

Once you are clear on why you want to achieve a particular goal, and you know you want to achieve it for yourself, then you are well on your journey with an internal energy which will sustain you as time goes on.

Napoleon Hill on the Greatest Wealth

Napoleon Hill

Napoleon Hill on the Greatest Wealth

[one_half]There are few people striving to become successful who do not become acquainted with Napoleon Hill and his book Think and Grow Rich. Some are aware of his book The Law of Success. Even fewer know there are two versions of The Law of Success. One was written in 1925 and distributed by means of a series of small booklets. The other one, published in 1928, was a greatly edited version of the 1925 edition. Think and Grow Rich is actually a much edited version of the 1928 edition of The Law of Success.

Why is this important to you? The story goes that when Hill distributed the few copies of the results of his 20 year endeavor commissioned, but paid only travel expenses, by Andrew Carnegie, some of those he interviewed were horrified at what he had published. The story goes that they, especially Henry Ford, wanted the project squashed. These few men, and they were men, did not want the mass population to know the true secrets of acquiring wealth.

The researcher spent 20+ years interviewing the wealthiest people for the project of writing a new philosophy that anyone could follow. As I’ve roamed the internet learning more about Napoleon Hill, I’ve discovered that many people question him and his philosophy because he did not die as financially wealthy as did Andrew Carnegie, one of the primary men who established the steel industry in the United States.

It appears that most of the population believes that wealth refers only to financial riches. There is little realization that the term for Napoleon Hill meant much more than that. He states what he calls “my greatest riches” at the end of the preface of The Law of Success. His goal was to[/one_half] [one_half_last] assist people in achieving self-satisfaction on the deepest level. He wanted people to feel fulfilled. He wanted them to discover who they were, what they needed to be happy and then to accomplish that happiness.

Andrew Carnegie wanted Hill to be a greater success than he was, one of the wealthiest, if not the wealthiest, men of his time. Napoleon Hill states in The Law of Success that he believes he accomplished this. His standard was not in his bank account. His standard was that, by his writings, he made more millionaires than did Andrew Carnegie. His writings also helped millions of people come to know and take responsibility for themselves. He assisted millions in becoming successful as measured by their own standard.

Therein is the key to success. If you accomplish your personal goals and fulfill that which is in the deepness of your heart, then you have achieved wealth. If you measure yourself by the standards of others, you will never be satisfied and always fall short of success and personal fulfillment. If you depend upon others to tell you what you must do and accomplish to be a success, you will always fail. Only you can know in your heart what you need to do and be to feel fulfilled in life. It takes courage and perseverance to accomplish your goals and not someone else’s.[/one_half_last]

Collaborating with the Dead in a Writing Project

Collaborating with the Dead in a Writing Project

[one_half]Lately I’ve been working on a number of writing projects. Some are metaphysical in nature, another is a novel with its seeds in what I do with spirit release, and yet another is joining Napoleon Hill, who died in 1970, in a project. He’s already completed his part which is Think and Grow Rich. What I’m doing is taking the knowledge and skills I’ve gained over my 35+ years as a therapist and suggesting exercises at the end of each chapter to integrate his concepts.

We’ve learned a great deal about the mind and all its levels (conscious, sub-conscious, sub-sub-conscious, super conscious, super super conscious) since Hill published his books. I’m applying our (as in the people of the world) new knowledge so that people can get beyond the blocks to achieving what they want which are located, maybe even locked, deep in the subconscious mind.

If you’re not familiar with Think and Grow Rich, think of it as a precursor to the book The Secret. Hill took on the task and interviewed hundreds of wealthy folks, probably all men since they’re the ones who made money in the late 19th and early 20th century. He did this over the course of 20 years with the purpose of discovering commonalities between these wealthy folks. By the way, these were people who amassed their wealth themselves, not those who were born into wealth. For instance, he would have interviewed Sam Walton, before he died of course, not his children. [/one_half] [one_half_last]Think and Grow Rich is the most well-known of his books. He also wrote The Law of Success. From the research I’ve done, Think and Grow Rich is a distillation of The Law of Success and the latter book has a 1928 version which is a distillation of the 1925 version. I’m sure I’ll be reflecting more on these three books as I continue my work, but, for now, I won’t say anything else about The Law of Success. You might be saying, “Oh, come on, Cathy, give us a hint.” My reply, “Let me read the two versions first and then compare with Think and Grow Rich.” Yep, I’m grinning as I write that.

Back to my collaboration with Napoleon Hill and Think and Grow Rich

I’ve read Think and Grow Rich several times. The concepts within it may have been new to most people when first published in 1937. They aren’t anymore. The self-help era which began in the 1980s, motivational gurus and metaphysical teachers have taught the concepts for decades now. The Secret, which tells of a secret to abundance hidden for centuries, or so I’ve been told because I only skimmed the book, contains similar precepts as Think and Grow Rich.

The one of the key concepts I’ve heard in 99% of all manifesting abundance and manifesting the life you want info is to focus on the good, eliminate negative thinking and keep the positive in the forefront. There is an addition “secret” to manifesting that isn’t spoken of as much. That “secret” is called action… but that is a topic for another post. [/one_half_last]