5 Tips to Take Control of Your Mind and World Using Affirmations

You are a powerful creator. We all are. Every day with the thousands and thousands of thoughts that run through your head, you are creating your reality. If you are not happy with any aspect of your life, you have the power to change it. That's right, you, and only you, have the power. So, why hasn't anybody ever told you this before? It certainly wasn't because they were keeping a secret from you. Most likely, it was because they didn't know.

Don't think that you are capable of manifesting anything?

Think about all the different thoughts you let roam freely in your mind. Those thoughts can range from "do they like me?" "Do the kids have any activities after school today?" "Oh no, I hope my co-workers don't ask me to go to lunch" or "why don't my co-workers ever ask me to lunch?" "I don't know why you got promoted, I deserved that promotion." Just think about what a busy place your mind is. Only you know the thoughts you have and never share with anyone. Most of those thoughts are ego based, I don't mean ego in a negative way. You are the center of your world so of course, everything revolves around you. If you are unhappy with any part of the world your chaotic thoughts have created why not simply create something better? So many people are unaware that their thoughts are creating the good and bad things in their lives, they simply let their world run on auto-pilot. Affirmations are just one way to bring clarity and positive things into your life.

Affirmations can help you to get clear on the things you would like to bring into your life. Once you start to focus on the positive, you will start to bring more positive into your life. Whatever you focus on, whatever you see, you will always draw more of that to you. For example, if you are constantly saying "I hate driving with idiots. Why is it that all the nuts are out when I'm driving." Guess what, that's an affirmation. Your mind doesn't hear sarcasm and so your wish is its command. Just like that you have created and successfully manifested for yourself just what your mind was focused on, driving with idiots.

Affirmations are positive statements about something you would like to bring into your life. You could easily affirm for yourself, "I am surrounded by courteous and competent drivers, at all times." I know which one I'd rather have.

It's easy for us all to focus on the negative. It's easy to run on auto-pilot. It's also easy for us to take control of our world, to see the positive in situations and then focus on that positive and draw more positive into your world.

The person who learns to control their thoughts can have and do whatever they can visualize for themselves; everything is there for you just waiting for you to create it and bring it into being.

Here are some tips to get you started with affirmations.

1. Always start your affirmation by focusing on the positive.

2. Your affirmation should only be about you. Why? Because we all have free will. You must never try to force or bend someone to your will. Respect other peoples choices (Yes, this can be challenging).

3. Whenever you say the words I AM, be aware of the next thing you say or think. I AM is one of the many names of God. When you say (or think) I AM you activate the God power within yourself and connect to universal energy. It doesn't matter what name you call God or if you even believe in God, it works just the same. Just like gravity, it works whether you believe in it, think about it, or not. Whenever you say I AM you start to create and bring what you have affirmed into your life.

4. Take control of your world and your mind by choosing your words and your thoughts carefully. Don't allow your mind to run on auto-pilot give it something positive to focus on.

5. Discover the power of silence, even in the midst of noise and activity. Just a few moments of silence with your eyes closed or open can relax your body and shift a busy mind into deeper peace. You may not always find the time to meditate, but you can still experience sitting in the silence at any time.

Even with your eyes wide open, you can mindfully rest in the presence of peace within. Focus on the easy rhythm of your breath and bring your awareness to the sacred space of your heart. By focusing on your breath and your heart you'll find you are only a thought away from inner peace. Allow yourself to drop into the silence and visit this holy sanctuary within your heart to find deep inner peace.

Try affirmations out for yourself become the powerful creator I know you are. Experiment with affirmations, gratitude and focusing on the positive and watch your life change for the better.

http://ezinearticles.com/?5-Tips-to-Take-Control-of-Your-Mind-and-World-Using-Affirmations&id=9803526

Message From the Universe: Make Your Dreams Come True

"Q: What would you call a world where each challenge bears gifts, your enemies are ancient friends in disguise, and by simply pretending your dreams have already come true, mountains are moved?

A: Earth.

Too easy? 

The Universe"

Even though you do not see great things happening in your life just yet, it is important that you are feeling the excitement that it will happen soon. You need to look at everything you always wished and know for certainty that it will happen in your lifetime. You want to believe that all will happen, and with the strong sentiment that your success is very close by, anything great can happen in your day. You will start perceiving life with a more upbeat attitude. Your attitude will change as you start feeling the chills in your body when you go visit your exotic car dealer. You start looking at homes and which one you feel like purchasing in the next coming 6 months. Everything around you seems to be changing for the best because your approach to life has changed. No more negativity is entering your mind as it did before and you are enjoying this new side of you. You want to enjoy every single moment of this process as the reality will soon start to kick in. The famous adage: "Be careful what you wish for" will be in full motion as you will start experiencing what the rich and famous deals with every single day of their lives. Be ready for an exciting adventure.

It is not THAT difficult to think of success in your life. You simply need to have your thoughts aligned with your beliefs, put actions into your thoughts and allow the Universe to clearly understand what you are looking for. Patience is a must during this phase because even though you may believe that you deserve success today, the Universe might feel differently about the timing. However, by seeing how persistent you are and the level of determination you possess, there is no reason why you can't expedite the process and send a clear and concise message to the Universe that you are ready for the Big Bang of your success. It has no other choice to oblige to your demands. Allow the Universe to work with you when it comes to aligning everything the right way for you to experience greatness. There is no rule of thumbs that all positive people will experience positive things and negative people will experience negative. However, why not put the odds in your favor and focus on the positive and let the rest unravel in front of you. I am sure that you will see changes that will happen either sooner or later, but they will happen. Don't abandon the ship without having the certainty that it will sink. Sometimes, your success is so close by that your continuous pursue it essential to experience it. Keep on digging until you reach the gold, as long as you've done your research that gold is actually there.

http://ezinearticles.com/?Message-From-the-Universe:-Make-Your-Dreams-Come-True&id=9698937

How Do You Turn a Breakdown to a Breakthrough?

We all have highs and lows in our life. It is with the low times that we most struggle and sometimes do not have the strength to go on. The trick is to turn every breakdown you face to a breakthrough. How do you do that? Read on to find out.

Here are a few tips that you could implement in life for a breakthrough in your problems:

1) Always focus on the positive

Almost every breakdown has an upside. Try to find it and focus on it. Focusing on positivity will reduce the size of your problem. Also look for the gifts the disadvantageous situation has to offer. More often than not, this way you will eventually overcome the breakdown.

2) Bear with the breakdown

Stay with your uncomfortable situation. Time heals everything. And things do not always stay the same. Time brings change and shifts to better things.

3) Share your woes

Ventilating out your woes with someone you trust deeply makes you lighter and eases your mind, putting you in a situation to handle your problems bravely and skillfully so that you finally get a breakthrough.

4) Journal your worries

If you don't like sharing your worries with anyone, journal them constantly in a journal book and keep it handy all the time and note down everything that comes to your mind including your anxieties. In the process, who knows, you may hit on something solid, leading you to a breakthrough.

5) Believe in the power of prayers

Saying your prayers and reciting the Holy Book are powerful tools in a crisis. But you have to believe in what you are asking for while you pray and recite and only then you almost always get it.

6) Invest yourself in self-help books and programs

These are very educational and the techniques and ways out they teach boost your self esteem and vigor and at the same time, help you to solve your problems.

7) Get help from a professional coach

A professional coach in the appropriate area may be the answer to your problem that is looming over and overwhelming you. Getting in touch with such a coach may help to give you the required breakthrough.

Summing up, the above tips are some of the ways I would suggest that could help you turn around a horrifying breakdown to a pleasant breakthrough. Pick one or two and apply and see how they work for you. Chances are you will benefit because I myself utilize many of them in real life, giving me relief, making me stress-free and eventually wiping out my overwhelm.

http://ezinearticles.com/?How-Do-You-Turn-a-Breakdown-to-a-Breakthrough?&id=9389993

7 Criticisms You Need to Crush If You Are Looking to Live The High Life

"Know Thyself."

In one way or another, many of the greats have passed on the above message. Whilst many look outward for the answers to their problems, the wise look within.

However, having gotten over the fact that one has to look within for the answers to life, there are still a number of factors dragging people down, stopping them from really ever fulfilling their dreams and aspirations.

What are they? Well, I call them the 7 Critical Killers.

As we go through them, see if anything rings true with you. Could it be that any of the 7 Critical Killers has gotten hold of you and doesn't want to let you go? If you agree to that, this article could be one of the most important you would have read to date.

So let's get right into them. Here are the 7 critical killers:

1. Criticism of self

2. Age

3. Income

4. Education

5. Experience

6. Personality

7. Other People's opinions 

Now, this list is by no means exhaustive. No doubt there are a number of other criticisms people face. But, for this article, we'll go with the seven that are listed.

1. Criticism of Self

Let's face it - all other criticisms pale in significance when compared to this one. Self doubt, poor self-esteem, and a weak self-image all lead to an internal dialogue which would shock many, if the outside world were to eavesdrop on it.

What or who is that inner dialogue with? It's with our own inner personal gremlin, the voice that stops us from everything that's great. It's the dampener of spirit, the killer of dreams. It's the very frightened part of us trying to make sure that we play life safe.

Think back. Have you ever wanted to really do something, attend something, or learn something, but got thrown out of the game because you already gave yourself reasons as to why it just "simply can't be done"?

This is the inner critic. If you don't pay regular and daily attention to it, it will muscle in on your life and squeeze you out of all your dreams, hopes and aspirations.

2. Age

I suppose it's in the way someone says it, right? I mean, if they say it like, "how old did you say you were?" Or, "do you think you should be doing that at your age?" Or even, "What, they're 10-20 years younger than you! You'll end up looking like a fool!"

Think of what's better: the person who has a number of years on their side resigned to the fact that they are aging, or a person that says, "yes, I've picked up a lot of experience during my years and am looking to see what I can learn next!"

Can you see how easy it is to get psyched and phased out from mere simple statements? And how one can live a powerful and contributing life by knowing how to interpret the statement for personal gain?

Life really does hang in the balance based on how we're able to deflect the bad, and focus on the positive and good.

3. Income

"How much do you earn?" "You've been at this business opportunity thing for a long time now. How much are you bringing in?" "Shouldn't you be independently wealthy now?" "What, you haven't even got a private pension? What are you going to do when things really take a dive in your later life?"

If any of the above statements make you squirm a little uncomfortably, you can be sure there's a defense system that's just raised its head. And look, society has an insatiable appetite in wanting to know who earns what, who's bought what, whose kids go to what private school, what's the latest car they're driving, and what have you.

And, it's here to stay. If any of it makes you that uncomfortable, then congratulations! Because you're in exactly the right place to turn things around if you truly desire it.

4. Education

If there was one area people have a hang up about, it's in the area of education. They feel it a personal criticism that they couldn't attend the best of schools or universities. That they didn't have the opportunities to excel in their studies when at an earlier age.

Now, what's also true is that those who do emerge from the educational and institutional system are dissatisfied in carrying out their chosen discipline in the wider world.

Quire frankly, there's a whole industry in home study systems, vocational programmes, learning institutions who are aiming to fill the void many people feel they have, as well as catering to those looking to master a new set of skills.

5. Having No Experience

I've seen the self criticism and the critical arrows of others when it comes to learning something anew. And yes, there's a huge yawning gap as the wide as the Grand Canyon in the minds of those who feel they do not have the adequate experience when tackling something for the first time.

It's as if people feel they can't learn what it takes to make up this missing ingredient. Experience comes from doing, from interaction, from being able to take constructive help and acting on the feedback.

6. Personality

When you see someone who has just the most natural of personalities, the most attractive persona, the most flawless character, it's almost inevitable that we start comparing and finding faults in how we measure up. Our own critical antennae start flickering.

If we were to go back into the playground, it's probably true to say that the more attractive our personalities, as well as how we appeared to others, the more friends we had. And for many, this scenario is played out in their lives to the present day.

Statements like "you're too shy", "that's just the way you are", "he doesn't speak that much", "she's gone into her shell", "he's too outspoken", "who'd want to hang around with you", and other such things are all designed to pigeonhole a person. Eventually, these people are then known by these personal characteristics, which are then taken as criticisms.

7. Other People's Opinions

We look to our parents, our educators, the government, society, television, religious institutions, the press, other people in authority to give us the ideals in how we're supposed to live. And, for the most part, we lap everything up - hook, line and sinker.

However, when the time comes for any of those we hold in high esteem to tell us we're no good, we're not living well, we're sinners, we're fat, we're uncultured, or we're uneducated, we take their criticisms to heart. We truly believe that in some way, we're bad.

Sadly, that's just the way most of the world wants us to believe. But, we don't have to play their game!

As you've just read, there's a lot to contend with as we move through life. Criticism seems to be the normal way of things. However, what doesn't have to stay the same is the way we deal with and treat criticism.

We can either be reactionary to it all, or we can take the proactive approach and step in front of criticism before it reaches our senses and deal with it like we would deal with something unwanted. We can send the gift of criticism back to its originator, without so much as a negative thought. Just like an unwanted letter, we can return to sender in our own mind before criticism has a chance to strike.

It's not the way most people choose to live. However, if you're looking to live life at the top, it's essential to deal with criticism in a swift and efficient manner.

http://ezinearticles.com/?7-Criticisms-You-Need-to-Crush-If-You-Are-Looking-to-Live-The-High-Life&id=9345315

How to Conquer Stage Fright and Focus on the Positive

In their book, As We Speak: How to Make Your Point and Have It Stick, authors Peter Meyers and Shann Nix detail strategies and methods to help businesspeople become effective, persuasive communicators and speechmakers. This edited excerpt focuses on ways to overcome the common fear of public speaking and deliver your message clearly and confidently.

What determines how you feel are the things on which you choose to focus. Most of the time we don't bother to choose. We just let the mind's eye wander around. In this default setting, the brain will choose its focus primarily based on fear. Why? We are built to look for danger. Your brain is designed to keep you alive. For tens of thousands of years, the human brain has done a great job by looking for trouble.

We focus the mind's eye through the questions we ask. When you ask a question, the brain immediately sets out to answer it. But when facing an audience, most people ask questions that cause them to focus on their fear, rather than their objective. Think about a typical question you might ask yourself: "Will they ask me hard questions?" The brain, primed to lean toward the negative, searches for an answer. Brain says, "Yes!" You start to get nervous. You're panicky, starting to sweat. "Am I prepared enough?" Brain searching. . . answer is "no!"

Questions like "What's missing?" and "Will I know the answers?" may seem like intelligent questions to ask yourself. But they're actually sabotage questions. The answers can only produce a negative state.

So what's the answer? Ask a different question. The way you control the focus of the brain is by changing the internal questions that you ask. Ask a question with a presupposition, an implicit assumption about the world, as revealed in a statement whose truth is taken for granted.

For example, the question "What's great about this opportunity?" contains the presupposition that there is, in fact, something great in the opportunity that you haven't noticed yet. What you want are questions with this kind of powerful presupposition. This will drive the brain to produce a better answer and produce a feeling of exhilaration rather than terror.

Asking the right questions before you go on is a very powerful way to manage your state. You are programming your brain purposefully, so that it will come up with answers that pull you forward, rather than hold you back.

The architecture of a good question is very specific. It contains a presupposition that forces you to think of new possibilities -- in other words, don't ask, "Will I succeed?" but, "How will I succeed?"

Be persistent with your brain. Once you get an answer, ask again. One to four weeks before the event is when explore everything that could go wrong in your talk. Ten minutes before you go out, you can't be asking yourself, "Will it hurt if I fall?" You must turn your attention to your state, and ask yourself performance-enhancing questions only.

You may have felt fear when facing an audience in the past. Chances are that it was your beliefs, and not the audience itself, that tied your stomach in knots. Your beliefs about yourself as a speaker will determine how you show up. Human beings don't just assemble facts. We constantly interpret the facts to tell a story and make sense of what's happening around us. That's how we learn. Beliefs create the meaning you bring to the things that happen. You wear your beliefs like glasses; you view everything through them. And here's the thing about beliefs: They are always true for you. Whether or not anyone else would agree is irrelevant.

For example, if you believe that you couldn't hold an audience's attention because you are too new, too old, too young, a woman, a man, an introvert, etc., then that will be true for you.

If you perceive that you are in danger of being judged, attacked, or ridiculed, that perception is all that counts. The receptors in your brain respond the same way, whether or not the attack is real. If you're walking into a room full of Ph.D.s and your fundamental belief is that you're not really smart enough to speak on this subject, then you will unconsciously look for all the ways to confirm that belief. On the other hand, if you believe that you have a unique perspective on this situation, and this is an opportunity for you to provide insight, then everything from the way you enter the room, to the way you connect with the group, to the sound of your voice will be very different.

If you stand up in front of an audience and have a bad experience, you will tell yourself a story about it. The danger is the belief that comes out of that story. Is there any chance that you created a belief at that moment that has kept you from returning to the spotlight? Something like, "I've never been good at this, and I never will be?"

You can't always control events in the world around you. But you can control your belief. And controlling the belief will change your physical state.

http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/224531