Archive for March, 2007

Affirmations: Do They Really Work?

Saturday, March 31st, 2007

It seems the jury is still out on the usefulness of affirmations.

Some people swear by them, and credit affirmations with helping them to make massive positive changes in their lives.

Other people say they are ineffective and wishful thinking.

Well, this is a case where both sides really are correct. Although the use of affirmations and the reasons behind their effectiveness is definitely up for inspection!

Affirmations, when done correctly, can help desired change happen far more quickly. When affirmations are framed appropriately, designed to support the desired change(s), and implemented in the proper manner, then they can seem to work like magic.

However, there are some simple basics to affirmations, that many people don’t understand. There is a form (or formula) to creating effective affirmations, and a method for integrating them into our self-development work that makes a huge difference in how well they will work for you. If you’ve been using visualization and affirmations, but you’re not getting the results you want, then you are probably missing out on at least some part of this basic understanding.

If you’re ready to have better results, then this could be your lucky day! Over the past week or so I’ve discovered 2 very useful tools that can help increase your success in using affirmations.

The first was a software product that intrigued me. So I bought the rights to it, made some basic modifications, and tested it out myself. I think you’ll like it. In fact, I’d like to run a little test with it, and you can be a test subject if you’re game! More about that in a few minutes.

The second tool I discovered was a quick-read ebook called “Why Most Affirmations Fail and the Four Building Blocks of Successful Affirmations” by Jennifer Shepard, a syndicated columnist with a tagline of the Lipstick Mystic.

This book contains a lot of useful information about how and why affirmations do and don’t work, and what you can do to make them more successful. I really liked Jennifer’s approach, and so I contacted her to see if I could set up a special offer for my readers.

While affirmations may seem to be esoteric to those who are not familiar with them, they use some very solid premises based on how the brain codes and uses information. They are useful for any area of your life, whether your focus is personal or professional.

Well, it didn’t take a lot of convincing, especially after she saw how connected the Prosperity Challenge is to the work she is also doing. So, she graciously agreed, and the result is that Jennifer is allowing me to offer you her $27 book for only $17 – which is more than 35% off her regular price.

There is a condition, however. This price will only be good until April 17, 2007. The link and the discount disappear on April 18. You can find out about Jennifer and her book by clicking here to be taken to the $17 page.

This great little book will give you lots of insight into how to tune up your affirmations so they work better. She offers some great ideas on how to overcome blocks and get things back on track. I think you’ll enjoy reading the book as well as the articles and suggestions she has to offer on her website.

So, now that we’re talking about affirmations, this is where my new software comes in. I purchased rights to a subliminal message affirmation software program that works on your computer desktop.

The actual affirmations were written based on ideas in “The Secretâ” – you know, the movie everyone has been talking about for months now. But I found the affirmations to be very basic, so I “pumped them up” to make them even more powerful, using my understanding of linguisitics and how the conscious and subconscious minds work.

While the focus is mostly on wealth and abundance, there are also some affirmations and suggestions for other areas of your life, too. As we know, abundance isn’t just about money. It’s also about health, relationships, self-confidence, etc.

So, here’s my offer to you: I am currently selling this software at http://subliminal-messenger.comfor $7. I know that’s a really low price, but I do want people to have the opportunity to use it if they are interested. However, I also want people who want to write their own affirmations to have a solid grounding in what works and why. So when you decide to pick up Jennifer’s book, I will give you a free copy of the Law of Attraction Subliminal Software.

All you have to do is send me a copy of your PayPal receipt for the book and I’ll send you a link to get the software for free. That means you get both the book and the software for $17 – less than half of the full price!

So, if you’re interested, here’s what you do:

  1. Go look at Jennifer’s site, http://free-daily-affirmations.com/
  2. Go look at the software, http://subliminal-messenger.com/
  3. Then, use this link: http://prosperitychallenge.com/affirm.html to buy the book
  4. Send a copy of your PayPal receipt to prgm@prosperitychallenge.com
  5. Read the book, apply the principles
  6. Install the software, enjoy the results!

Oh yes, and if you do use the software, please let me know how it works for you – what you liked, what you didn’t like. I am planning to develop several more little affirmation scripts for various specific issues, so I really want to know what you think, and how it works for you.

By the way, personally I think affirmations are great and I use them often! But I also know their effectiveness is dependent upon several factors.

At some time in the future I will be writing my own book about my successful experiences using visualization, language and various specific techniques and processes. In the meantime, I encourage you to pick up Jennifer’s book. You are sure to learn something new and useful – I did.

To Our Continued Success!

Katie

P.S. I will be posting a link to both the book and the software on the Prosperity Challenge and the Career Life Institute blogs. The book will continue to be available after April 17 – but it will go back to its full price of $27.

Posted in Freebies, Special Stuff, Useful Tips | 1 Comment »

Q & A: So What’s the Deal About Suicide?

Sunday, March 18th, 2007

Question from R:

I just read about Esther’s story about Burl Yves (he was great!) and the feeling of bliss in crossing over.

Now if we are all spirit in these bodies and we never die, what is the big problem of suicide? To me, all negativity concerning suicide comes from religion.

I’m extremely tired of being here and would love to go home…to me it would just be giving up this vehicle called the body..no big deal… If you have the time, could you reply?

Thanks, R.

Here are my thoughts:

Hi there,

I agree, it seems the negativity concerning suicide is religiously oriented, or politically oriented.  Esther/Abraham says that all death is suicide, and that makes sense to me – especially if we take responsibility for being here in the first place.

I used to worry about people who wanted to commit suicide, or worse, I thought they were avoiding responsibility. In some cases that’s true, but in other cases, it can be a clear understanding of when your time is up.

People think about suicide as an “out”, which it is in some ways.  It is mostly a desire to move away from pain, and it is certainly one of the options.  I guess you could think of suicide in the same way as bankruptcy – a chance to clear it all up and try again.

Esther tells a story (probably on one of their CDs of the month) about watching some young children play with sticks and marveling at their absorption. She and Jerry talk about how soon they will be able to come back and play like that. I don’t think it means they are contemplating suicide, just that they realize their time on Earth, and in these bodies, is limited.

Now, in your case, I’m reminded of my dad who was disabled at 40 and as he got older he was afraid his body would outlast him.  He was a hemiplegic (paralyzed on his left side), but otherwise pretty healthy.  In his last few years he began to withdraw – not as extreme as an Alzheimer’s patient, but he had his own dementia of the memory-loss type. And his personality seemed to retreat, too.

When he lived with us in his final years, he – the Dad I knew – wasn’t really here most of the time.  He was just this nice old guy who lived with us and expected us to take care of him.

As time went on, he stopped taking care of himself at all.  He gave up his desire to thrive, and was interested in only the most basic stuff – like his dinner and going to the bathroom, and watching Jeopardy.

After we moved him into a nursing home because we could no longer transport him safely from his wheelchair, he came down with a cold one day. Then it became pneumonia.  We all expected him to recover, even the nurses. Suddenly, however, it became very serious (like within a day or so). Then he was gone.  Even the death certificate stated “lack of thriving” as the cause.

Dad would never have consciously chosen suicide, but I personally think he had enough presence of mind to take advantage of the opportunity and decided to “go home” and give up the body he had dragged around for 35 years after his illness.  Some think that Alzheimer’s patients retreat mentally because they don’t know how to give up their body, even though they are ready to leave.

When you’re ready to go, you’ll find the way, whether it’s consciously or not.  You will create the circumstances that are acceptable for you (and/or those around you – your family, friends, clergy), and you’ll go.

As for me, I have many, many more things I want to do this time around – things I didn’t have the courage, understanding, and/or means to do when I was younger.  Perhaps I’ll feel the way you do someday.  When that time comes I *think* I’ll be smart enough to recognize it consciously, but for now I’m having too much fun.

It is strange to me that almost all societies have laws against suicide – and some of the penalties include death!  My feeling is that if you have made the choice that it’s your time to move on, that’s your business. Hope this helps!

Katie P.S.  My husband has willed $1000 to each of 10 of his friends, to be spent on a celebration of his life once he is gone.  He wants all 10 of them notified of the others and encouraged to all get together, but they don’t have to.  He is in the middle of writing his music playlist for the party.

You may want to think of something appropriate for you regarding how you want people to celebrate and remember you.  It can be simple or large. For me, I think I will be leaving some money to an art scholarship fund, but I don’t want any services, just my ashes scattered on our property.  But again, for now I’m having too much fun to think much about that!

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