Quick Start For Afformations

If you’ve tried affirmations and found they don’t work for you, here’s a simple variation that for many people delivers much faster results – affOrmations!

I needed to have plaque scaled from my teeth, and braced myself for the usual pain of this procedure. Just as my dentist got to work, I remembered afformations, and repeated several times to myself “Why am I so comfortable having my teeth scraped?”. With the exception of mild discomfort in one sensitive tooth, the rest of the procedure was surprisingly painless. What a relief!

Try this

Say the following to yourself, noticing how you feel after each:

“I am full of energy.”

“Why am I so full of energy?” (No answer required)

When I say “I am full of energy”, but I’m really feeling tired, my mind says ‘No you’re not’. So repeating this affirmation is unlikely to be successful, since my mind has already sabotaged the thought.

When I ask “Why am I so full of energy?”  my perspective broadens, and I feel hopeful that there is a way to have more energy. My mood lifts, and the outlook looks brighter.

The key to afformations is to ask a positive question, starting with ‘Why’.  Asking positive questions is a powerful tool for transformation.

But don’t try to answer the question; the idea is to ‘live with’ or ‘give yourself to’ the question rather than try to answer it.

Your subconscious Google does the rest. When you ask a question your subconscious mind gets to work looking for answers. Your whole energy system tries to find answers to the question, and then you’re on course to more energy, or whatever else you choose.

This is why asking yourself “Why am I so tired today?” reinforces your tired feeling, as your subconscious searches for evidence that you are indeed tired.

Instead we use positive, empowering questions, so our minds search for empowering responses.

Will any question do?

Some people want to start their afformation with ‘How?’, rather than ‘Why?’

Try out these questions for yourself:

How am I so full of energy?

Why am I so full of energy?

For me ‘Why?’ feels much more empowering and motivating, but feel free to experiment with what works best for you!

The 4 steps of afformations

Ready to try an afformation for yourself? Here are the 4 steps:

1. Identify what you want

• Less stress
• My shoulder pain to be gone
• To get rid of this depression

2. Convert it into a positive Why? question

• Why do I feel so calm?
• Why is my shoulder so comfortable?
• Why is my mood so upbeat?

Your question needs to be:

• positive, so convert any negatives to what you want instead.
• phrased as if it has already been achieved, ie Why is my shoulder so comfortable? rather than ‘Why will my shoulder be more comfortable?’.
• concise; it’s better to use several afformations, rather than a long complicated one.

3. Live with the question

This means asking the question in an open way, and not trying to find answers. Leave your subconscious mind to do the work!

Simply repeat the question to yourself whenever you think of the issue. Some issues resolve immediately, like my fear of pain as my teeth were scaled. Others take longer, in which case repeat your question a few times a day, if necessary reminding yourself with Post It notes stuck on places like your fridge and computer.

4. Take inspired action

If an intuitive idea comes to take action towards your goal, such as an aromatherapy bath to ease a sore shoulder, be sure to follow it.

Have fun with your afformations, and please share how they go for you.

The idea of afformations was ‘discovered’ by Noah St John, and his latest book The Book Of Afformations is now published  (though the print version has still to arrive in the UK).