When I was a teenager I had a job doing telemarketing. I hated it. Calling people to “book appointments” was loathsome.  I wanted to be doing anything else.  So sometimes I would call in sick when all I wanted was to be doing something else, like hanging out with friends or finishing that homework project (yeah I was a bit of a goody-goody in high school).

But I’m not any good at lying. So in order to call in sick, I’d have to invoke being sick. Have a cough, exhaustion, etc. And in the half an hour to an hour it took me to work up the courage to call and tell that lie I would start to feel really sick. And then I really needed that rest I was asking for. A very mixed blessing in my 15 year old head.

That is the power of the mind combined with taking action.

Saying it can make it so (you believe it), acting on that information will make it so (you create it).  As an example of how this works think of something you want that you know you’re going to get. Like dinner – whether it’s groceries, dining in a restaurant or fast food. Remember the last time you decided what to eat for dinner. How did you manifest that. You decide and know that you’re going to get it. But you don’t just know you’re going to get it, you act on that information. If you didn’t, likely you’d be very hungry quite often.

That’s the essence of working in alignment with your values. 

Values, beliefs, truths, affirmations are all the same thing with different phrasing (and possibly different copyrights) but getting to the same basic idea and intention.

“Affirmations” affirm your path, ideas and being.  If you really want to take that business to the next level that you know will require more than one, one-time action, it requires focus, drive and follow through. It takes being impeccable with your word and always doing your best. 

It will take other things as well, depending on who you are, what your business idea or life path you desire and where you are now.  Do you know what those things are? Do you know what qualities you need to invoke for your success?

That single-minded devotion to your dream takes tools to make it happen. Reminding yourself everyday of your dreams and supports you in making that happen – otherwise known as manifesting.  In fact it’s one of the keys in many personal growth systems. Don Miguel Ruiz in his book, “The Four Agreements Companion Book” says to make your own Book of Law which is about writing down what you believe about yourself and the world in order to create it. “Creating Money: Attracting Abundance” by Duane Packer and Sanaya Roman has affirmations throughout the book as a core practice of creating change.  Doreen Virtue, PhD. includes affirmations in everything of hers that I’ve come across.  And Suze Orman, “Financial Guidebook: Put the 9 Steps to Work” calls this same idea “creating new truths” and it’s one of the first steps in her process. 

Whether you call them beliefs, affirmations or truths, we’re all getting at the same thing: affirming a positive present and acting on it.

In the first year of my business I doubled my income. I didn’tknow it, but I was using affirmations and integrity work. I kept saying to myself, “I’m making more money doing bookkeeping.” And so I sought that out. Then it became true and set up a self-fulfilling prophecy.  I went from making $1200 a month to $4000 a month in a year, freelancing, even when other people told me I was nuts. I began to expand into my skills and knowledge as a coach and counselor. They told me to go out and get a real job. But I am clear that I want to be doing something meaningful with my life: inspiring financial liberation. So I chose it, I affirmed it and I acted on it.

So why?  The truth that I can find is that your mind manifests what you believe.  The same is true of negative patterns. Have you ever spent the afternoon thinking about how fat you feel or how difficult things are? Have you found that things feel worse when you do that? It’s the same idea. What you focus on you bring into being.

The deeper truth is that when you’re planting your own seeds in your unconscious or conscious mind, it leaves less space for other, negative thoughts to get in there and have a field day of self destruction, defeat, or questioning self worth.  Being active has the added bonus that it creates change much faster than passively receiving negative feedback. You’ve created your own willingness to have the change that you are intending. You are practicing having what you want.