The Power Of "I Am" Affirmations

Happy day after Christmas! I hope you enjoyed the holiday. 

Do you remember the Saturday Night Live character Stuart Smalley as portrayed by Al Franken? He was a self-help guru that began most of his sketches by sitting in front of a mirror saying to himself, "I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and doggone it, people like me!"

The part was played for laughs, but years later as I became aware of the law of attraction, I realized that Stuart Smalley was right on. Particularly when I learned about the power of "I am" affirmations.

I haven't talked yet about affirmations, but basically they're statements you can make about yourself or your life that can very often ring true the more you repeat and more importantly, believe them. It can be so hard to change negative affirmations you've been carrying around and repeating for years into positive ones, but it was one of the first LOA exercises that I started applying and found that it really does work, once you can believe and feel a positive affirmation. Most of the time, positive affirmations sound and feel like a big ol' lie, especially when your life has amassed a ton of evidence contrary to the affirmation. They require time and patience -- but personally, I believe that they do work and can eventually help you change your negative beliefs.

But if affirmations are a good thing, then placing "I am" into your affirmations is like putting them on steroids. More and more, I am hearing so many experts from business executives to dating coaches extol about the benefits of "I am" affirmations.

What makes them so powerful? I believe it's because when you say them you're tapping directly into the source, God, the universe, the force, or whatever you want to call it. In fact the late Dr. Wayne Dyer dedicated nearly an entire book to "I am" affirmations, Wishes Fulfilled. One chapter explored what he believed to be the source of the phrase, which is the Bible story of Moses encountering God in the burning bush ("And God said to Moses, 'I AM THAT I AM.'") 

Plus, there's no faster way to put what you want into the present than to declare "I am." The other night I woke up in the middle of the night (despite the nightly meditation that usually helps me sleep until the alarm.) I started thinking to myself, "I am sleeping" as if it had already happened. A few minutes later, it did.

When I first learned about "I am" affirmations, some of the ones I decided to come up with for myself included:

I am confident.
I am attractive.
I am happy. 
I am sexy.
I am a money magnet.
I am healthy.
I am a great writer.
I am a social media marketing guru.

I still say those, and these days I've also added:

I am beautiful inside and out.
I am worthy. 
I am a great catch for the right man.
I am in demand for the right job.
I am working in a fulfilling career.
I am successful. 
I am enjoying a loving, fulfilling, loyal relationship with the right man for me.
I am rich.
I am abundant. 

If you're besieged by negative thoughts and beliefs yourself, try writing down three positive affirmations that begin with "I am" and repeat them daily for a month. See if at least your opinion of yourself has changed or has begun to change to the positive statement after 30 days.