Affirmations Workshop

In this workshop you will learn how to articulate powerful and creative affirmations. In a broad sense, we are affirming something all the time, but the truth is, some of us know what that is and some of us don’t. We may be regularly affirming the limits of our day. Affirmations Workshop by Josh Reeves. Music: Market Square by In This World, Intimacy by Rest & Settle, and Open to Receive by Outside The Sky, from Soundstripe.

Transcript

The following is an affirmations workshop.

So as you enjoy,

Make sure you have something to write with and on around you.

This is also a great workshop to do with someone you love and care about.

So if they're there and around you,

Just pull them on in.

Or maybe this is something you can decide to do with them at a later time.

In this workshop,

You will learn how to articulate powerful and creative affirmations.

What is an affirmation?

It's a statement of truth.

In a broad sense,

We are affirming something all the time.

But the truth is,

Some of us know what that is and some of us don't.

We may be affirming how grateful we are to see an old friend.

We may be cursing someone who's bothering us.

We may be regularly affirming the limits of our day.

Same shit,

Different day?

Sound familiar?

When we are articulating affirmations,

We are giving added intention and inquiry to what we want to experience and to who we really are.

Thus,

Affirmations are generally positive.

Affirmations are focused on who we want to be and what we want to experience.

I am a good father.

That's who I want to be.

I take every available opportunity to show my children I care and love them.

That's what I want to experience.

Who do you want to be?

What do you want to experience?

Before you begin writing affirmations for yourself,

Here are three tips.

First,

Use present tense.

In affirmations,

Avoid statements in the future tense.

I will or I'm going to.

Instead,

Focus on I am now or I embrace.

Even though we may be focused on a future time,

Affirmations are always about right now.

They help us embody who we need to be at a later time,

In this moment,

And help us to embody it now.

Second tip,

The power of I am.

I am is not just a powerful way of asserting yourself.

There's also a spiritual power to I am.

It's an affirmation of not just our personality,

But of our spiritual identity.

Martin Luther King Jr.

Once put it this way.

He talked about Moses in the Bible talking to Yahweh.

And Moses asked Yahweh who he is,

And Yahweh says,

I am that I am.

King interpreted this to mean that I am is the name of God.

That God is the only being in the universe who gets to be I am.

Martin Luther King Jr.

Has to be I am Martin Luther King Jr.

I have to be I am Josh Reeves.

And you have to be I am say your name.

And yet we all say I am.

We all get to share in the name of the sacred.

And when we affirm it,

When we assert it,

We're asserting that spirit within ourselves.

Which gives our affirmations a spiritual power and lining.

We are putting the power of God,

The power of spiritual truth,

Before any statement we make by making our identity beyond just our humanness,

But in our spiritual truth.

I am love.

I am beautiful.

I am wise.

Affirmations grounded in I am are not just statements of practical wish,

But spiritual grounding in claiming who we really are.

They teach us that our affirmations aren't grabbed out of a brainstorm above,

But mined from deep within our own soul.

Happy digging.

I am statements help you not only to claim your affirmation in the present,

But from the divinity within you.

Tip 3.

Sincerity.

For me personally,

Act as if and fake it till you make it,

No matter how effective techniques they may be,

Are insincere.

So I avoid them.

Saying I am a millionaire or I am in a loving,

Supportive,

Romantic relationship,

When I'm just not or I don't have one,

Doesn't do it for me.

I find what I can accept sincerely is true for myself in the moment,

Best allows me to embody my affirmation.

And it best allows my affirmation to have creative momentum to move me and my life forward.

Instead of I am a millionaire,

I might say I am cultivating prosperity every day.

Instead of saying I am in a loving,

Supportive,

Romantic relationship,

I might say I am committed to cultivating a loving and supportive romantic relationship.

Or I am worthy of a loving,

Supportive,

Romantic relationship.

Or I am choosing a loving,

Supportive,

Romantic relationship.

Okay,

So let's begin our affirmations workshop.

Our first step is going to be to free write affirmations for five minutes.

With hopefully little self-screaming or self-judgment,

Just write whatever comes up for you to affirm.

Write as many affirmations as you can.

Remember,

I am is a great way to begin your affirmations,

But it doesn't always have to come first.

My highest and best is taking place.

Or I practice love every day are powerful statements.

Even no or no more can be a powerful affirmation when coming from the core of your being.

So,

Ready,

Set,

Go.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

I deserve to be happy,

Not just overall,

But every day.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Now stop.

What did that teach you about affirmations?

Free writing those affirmations.

Did it teach you anything?

Or what did you notice?

Some of us might have some embarrassment or fear come up while writing an affirmation.

Who am I to say that about myself?

Or gosh,

What if someone looks over my shoulder and sees this?

The lesson is that sometimes we hold back our affirmations because of fear of judgment or criticism.

Some of us might have noticed that as we free wrote,

Certain desires or affirmations jumped up for us,

Like they were ready to come out like little gifts deep within us,

Just waiting to be recognized and to be opened.

It is as if there is a surface level to what we want but as we go deeper within,

More resonant and powerful desires appear.

The lesson here is that the deeper we go within ourselves and the more willing and attentive and the presence we give to our affirmations,

The more powerful they become.

Now go through your affirmations and pick up to five that really resonate with you.

Hopefully you at least have three,

But try to pick five.

Take two minutes to do this.

Alright,

Do you have them?

Did just that process of choosing five affirmations teach you anything about affirmations?

What did you notice?

Perhaps that there is a power in choosing or narrowing it down.

This power of choosing that one reveals not only what resonated with you but ones that may have a more creative power and clarity.

By narrowing down our affirmations we in a sense have given them more creative momentum.

The next step of this workshop is to create time for you to say your chosen affirmations over and over out loud.

This is more powerful when you have someone to do this workshop with,

But do consider being just as focused on listening as in speaking.

You will repeat your affirmations over and over again for the next three minutes.

Don't worry,

We'll keep the time for you.

Ready,

Set,

Go.

One,

Two,

Three,

Four.

One,

Two,

Three,

Four.

One,

Two,

Three,

Four.

One,

Two,

Three,

Four.

One,

Two,

Three,

Four.

One,

Two,

Three,

Four.

One,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Stop.

What did that teach you about affirmations?

What did you notice?

For some of us the power of repetition was revealed,

As we said our affirmations over and over we may have felt ourselves embody them,

We may have even gotten a little emotional.

The lesson here is that affirmations repeated are powerful and when we really hear them we accept them more strongly.

Some of us may have gotten self-critical or even embarrassed.

The lesson here is that affirmations are kind of like a divine secret.

When you say one,

Sometimes it's like admitting a secret that you've been holding onto for a very long time.

There is a fear of judgment or rejection.

Yet this affirmation is a divine secret.

It's a good secret.

It's the truth of who you are,

Damn it.

Admit it.

Some of us found power in the words of our affirmation,

But perhaps just as much in the feeling of emphasis we gave them.

That's part of the mystery of affirmations.

What makes them powerful?

Is it the words themselves?

Is it the conviction we give them?

Is it the images and feelings we associate with them?

If we don't know,

We might as well go with all of the above.

I had a teacher who taught me to repeat my affirmations by taking turns emphasizing each word.

She gave me the affirmation,

God is my source.

And so I would say,

God is my source.

God is my source.

God is my source.

God is my source.

Try it sometime.

If we did this exercise with a partner,

We may have also noticed the power of being seen or in witnessing another share their affirmation.

It can be a very intimate type of experience.

It is an honor for me when I get to witness someone sharing their affirmations.

Next,

I want you to choose one affirmation.

Just one.

I know this is hard,

But there's power in choice,

Right?

You can still keep the other affirmations and return to them later or add to them at another time,

But pick the affirmation that resonates most with you and what you want and your life right now.

Doing this exercise,

I was able to come up with a personal mission statement for the year.

I am practicing genuine honesty and professional intimacy.

I am practicing genuine honesty and professional intimacy.

This has really helped me at work while at the same time being more genuine and connecting not just at work,

But at home as well.

Choose your affirmation and take it into every area of your life this week.

Practice the following acronym,

WEAR your affirmation.

Write your affirmation.

Write it several times.

Write it large or small.

Write it in color.

Write your affirmation on the top of a page and then journal what it means or looks like for you.

Give your affirmation an animating life.

Place your written affirmation on your altar or on your car dashboard or in front of your computer monitor.

Set it as your screen background.

Next,

Emphasize your affirmation.

Spend time with the power of your word.

Don't let a word get by without it having a particular meaning to you.

Listen to this meaning.

Feel it.

Embody it.

Let it be like a fuel for your soul.

Let it animate every cell of your beingness.

Next,

Apply your affirmation.

Visualize and practice embodying it in different areas of your life.

When an experience is over,

Ask yourself,

How did you do?

Don't let your affirmation be ethereal or hidden,

But make it practical wherever you go.

Don't leave home without it.

Practice it like you would brushing your teeth or putting on your shoes and socks.

Make your affirmation a part of your everyday life.

Be willing and look for opportunities to practice your affirmation.

And lastly,

Repeat your affirmation silently with emphasis out loud with those you trust.

Write it,

Speak it,

Declare it,

Whisper it,

Sing it.

Allow your affirmation to somehow fill the air or the aura of everywhere you go and everywhere you experience.

Do this for a whole week and then check in and see what happened.

Was there a demonstration?

Have you changed or grown in any way?

Does your affirmation need re-articulating?

Repeat this process as often as you like,

As you mine and bring forth the incredible truths within you.

Let's not let them be secret anymore,

But allow them to shine and be practiced in every area of our life.

Go get them!