An affirmation is a declarative statement that something is so. Affirmations can be created and applied to all areas of life, regardless of current appearances. In order for affirmations to bring into being dramatic changes in your life, you must believe they work.  In affirming, affirmations represent the inner truth and not necessarily statements of outer reality. The goal is to repeat these statements with the intense feelings you would be experiencing in actuality were the conditions already true in the outer life. Some guidelines for creating affirmations include:

~ Use action words.

~ Always affirm in the present tense.

~ Be positive, never negative.

~ Make personal statements, using "me", "my", "I", or even your name.

~ State the affirmation as though it has already been accomplished.

~ Change yourself, not other people.

~ Do not make comparisons with others.

~ Stretch the boundaries while still being realistic.

Affirmations aren't that difficult to understand. The three sections of the mind are the subconscious, conscious and superconscious.

     The subconscious is like power without direction; it is similar to steam or electricity and it does what it is directed to do with no power of induction. Whatever a person feels deeply or images clearly is impressed upon this part of the mind and carried out in detail. A negative example would be a person who believes that he or she will always be alone. From this part of the mind life experiences are impressed and carried out, thereby leaving the individual in a state of aloneness perpetually.

     The conscious mind is the mortal or carnal mind. Here, life is seen as it appears to be. The conscious mind envisions limitation and lack, poverty, death, disaster, and sickness and it impresses it upon the subconscious.

     Within each human being lies the superconscious mind, which is the God Mind in each of us and the realm of perfect ideas. Within it lies the "Divine Design" for each person. "There is a place that you are to fill and no one else can fill, something you are to do, which no one else can do." The Divine Design usually flashes across the conscious part of the mind as something unattainable, an ideal - "something too good to be true." In reality, it is man's true destiny flashed to him from the Infinite Intelligence which is within himself.  Affirmations bring about one's Divine Destiny by stretching the boundaries of "what is" to "what is meant to be and can be."

     In using affirmations, one should always follow intuition or "hunches" for that is often the manner in which manifestation of affirmations is brought about. An intuitive thought to have more money would bring about a hunch to either spend money while affirming, to go to a particular place, or to do a specific thing. When one affirms a new reality, one also must cosign that affirmation in an act of faith. An example would be affirming that one has a new home, and then having a hunch to purchase some item for the new home. Another would be affirming divine supply, and then having an intuitive idea to either spend the money one has in a specific manner or to give money. One cannot affirm without acting in faith in conjunction with the belief and expect the affirmation to change one's reality. Faith and action go hand-in-hand.

     Another strong factor in affirming is to not desire what isn't good for all involved. One should always include in their affirmations statements such as: "under grace in a perfect way" or "this or something better", which then allows affirmations to manifest while also not steering them in a harmful manner or limiting results to something minor when in fact we can manifest something better suited to us or more abundant.

Some ideas on beginning affirmations are:

~ I forgive...

~ I release...

~ My life is...

~ I am...

~ I feel...

~ I manifest...

A very well-known metaphysician was Florence Scovel Shinn. In her books, "The Game of Life", "The Power of the Spoken Word", "Your Word is Your Wand", and "The Secret of Success", among others, Shinn provides innumerable examples of different affirmations that can be applied to change all areas of life from what it is into what it could be. Many of these are listed below. By continually reapplying and reaffirming the affirmations, the opposite condition of what one affirms is eliminated in varying lengths of time according to the intensity of one's beliefs, and manifests what is better.  Following are some of her affirmations.

Infinite Intelligence, give me the right _____, equally as charming as this, the ________ which is mine by divine right.

Divine order is now established in my mind, body, and affairs. I see clearly and act quickly and my greatest expectations come to pass in a miraculous way.

I am always under direct inspiration; I make right decisions, quickly.

 Infinite Spirit, open the way for the Divine Design of my life to manifest; let the genius within me now be released; let me see clearly the perfect plan.

I am fully equipped for the Divine Plan for my life.

Infinite Spirit, open the way for my right home, my right friend, my right position. I give thanks it now manifests under grace in a perfect way.

(For prosperity) God is my unfailing supply, and large sums of money come to me quickly, under grace, in perfect ways.

(For right conditions) Divine Love now dissolves and dissipates every wrong condition in my mind, body and affairs. Divine Love is the most powerful chemical in the universe, and dissolves everything which is not of itself!

(For health) Divine Love floods my consciousness with health, and every cell in my body is filled with light.

(For guidance) I am divinely sensitive to my intuitive leads, and give instant obedience to Thy will.

(For Right Work) I have a perfect work in a perfect way; I give a perfect service for perfect pay.

The decks are now cleared for Divine Action and my own comes to me under grace in a magical way.

My seeming impossible good now comes to pass, the unexpected now happens!

Endless good now comes to me in endless ways.

I give thanks for my whirlwind success. I sweep all before me for I work with the Spirit and follow the Divine Plan of my life.

I am awake to my good, and gather in the harvest of endless opportunities.