The Power of Your Mind

Today’s Affirmation:
I AM the engine of MY dreams! MY dreams NEVER give up on me and I NEVER give up on MY dreams!

The results are in! For thousands of years, the wisest of the wise among us have been telling us, “It’s all about the mind, stupid.” It makes sense. The mind, via the brain, is the part of our being that interacts with and makes sense of our environment.

Modern science has demonstrated that the Universe around us, despite its physical appearance to our senses, is really just energy. Our mind/brain structure is tuned into that energy and literally creates the individual and collective realities that we experience within that field of energy.

However, the mind is not just a passive receiver of frequencies. It also has the ability to transmit, when trained properly, frequencies that can manifest objects of its desire.

We’ve all heard quotes like these.

• “The Universe is Change; our life is what our thoughts make of it.”
  ~ Marcus Aurelius
• “Wealth is the capacity of man’s mind to think.”
  ~ Ayn Rand
• “We become what we think about most of the time.”
  ~ Earl Nightingale
• “Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve.”
  ~ Napoleon Hill
• “We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make the world.”
  ~Buddha
• “A man is a product of his thoughts. What he thinks, he becomes.”
  ~ Mohondas Gandhi
• “For as a man thinks within himself, so is he.”
  ~ Proverbs 23:7

These are just a few of the most famous quotes. You could literally fill a book with quotes from humanity’s best and wisest people sending this very same message to you. But, are you listening?

Do you still believe that life is something that happens “out there” and “to you” rather than “in here” and “by you”? Do you still believe that your thinking is out of your control? There’s nothing you can do about it? Thoughts just pop into your head?

Affirmations are a workhorse tool when it comes to changing and choosing the thoughts you want to think in your life. It is more complex than just saying the words over and over, but  there are many resources on this blog and elsewhere to help you with the finer points.

You CAN change and master your thinking. That is the first thing you must believe.

I have been writing and recording audio affirmations for more than 20 years. First, I used them to improve my own thinking and my own life. Then I shared with them others. Now I have created a website called The Affirmation Spot where I make the power of audio affirmations available to you.

How does it work? Just like you learn the lyrics to a song with repeated listening. You’ve had that experience of suddenly knowing the lyrics to a song when you didn’t even know you’d been listening. Audio affirmations provide the same benefit. Soon the positive affirmations are appearing in your mind to replace the negative programming that was there.

I’d like to invite you to The Affirmation Spot today. You can download any single affirmation on the site for free to try or you can jump right and download the ones that make sense for you in your life right now.

You will find short affirmation singles, extended affirmations and meditations, and ebooks. I home record all the audio to keep the prices down and affordable for everyone.

You can always contact me directly and I am happy to help you get the most of your affirmations. I’ve been writing, recording, and using audio affirmations for more than 20 years. So, I’ve encountered and found solutions to the things you may face, as you begin using affirmations. I’m here to help.

Follow your bliss! Achieve your bliss! Become your bliss!

Ray

Visit The Affirmation Spot Now

Ray Davis is the Founder of The Affirmation Spot and focuses on empowering minds to think positively, achieve goals, and live dreams. He is author of the ebook The Power to Be You: Game-Changing Posidigms for Daily Life. and the forthcoming The Power to Be You 2.

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Never Give Up on a Dream – The Affirmation Spot for Wednesday August 4, 2010

Today’s affirmation:

“Today I am ready to convert my perseverance into success.”

Quitting is the answer to your dilemma. You know you want to give up. So, do it. You have a dream, but it is just pie-in-the-sky nonsense. What are you thinking? Are you crazy?

Do you really believe you could be the next great childrens’ author. Are you really visualizing yourself sitting on Oprah’s couch discussing your latest best seller? YOU??? Come on! Get real. You’ve sent 20 manuscripts out and how many rejection letters? That’s right. 20.

And you, thinking you are the next great country music star. You’ve made five demo records and not one call back. You’ve been at this for three years now. When are you going to face reality?

Oh, and Mr. basketball, you have dreams of a major college scholarship and then the NBA? Yeah right! You play three minutes a game on your high school team. The coach barely knows your name. And you think you’re the next Michael Jordan? Face it, my friend, basketball is a dead end for you.

Do you ever have thoughts like these? Do you ever hear those around you say things like this because they “care about you”? There’s always someone around to shoot down your dreams, if you are not already doing it. In some cases, it’s even an expert – an editor, a coach, or record producer. I mean they know what they are talking about, right?

The next time you have these kinds of thoughts I want you remember the following.

His sophomore year in high school, Michael Jordan didn’t even know he was the next Michael Jordan.

He was cut from his high school basketball team. I don’t know if that high school basketball team was unbelievably talented or the coach just wasn’t a very good judge of ability. Can you imagine arguably the greatest basketball player ever cut from his basketball team? The coach was presumedly an expert.

Michael could have taken the expert’s word and given up. He could have taken up the vilolin or given up on school activities all together. Instead, he worked harder; became more determined. Three years later he was starting for one of the top college programs in the country and on his way to a Hall of Fame NBA career and six NBA championships.

What if Michael Jordan had accepted the judgment of an expert and quit? The man revitalized a sport, gave a city with a reputation for losing the opportunity to be champions, inspired millions of young athletes, and gave every fan a highlight film that will run in their minds forever.

Back in the 1920s there was an unknown cartoonist from the midwest shopping his idea for an animated cartoon featuring a mouse. Walt Disney made two cartoons featuring Mickey Mouse that were rejected by distributors. Then timing and adaptability intervened.

Disney latched on to the new sound technology in Hollywood and created a third Mickey Mouse film with sound called Steamboat Willie which debuted in New York on November 18, 1928.

The mouse and Walt went on to do quite well for themselves. A major media empire and the world’s number one tourist destination bear the name Disney because he believed in his idea and he did not stop at “no”.

Had Disney quit generations would have been deprived of the eternal childhood represented by Disney message.

A retired motel and restaurant owner in his 70s spent two years driving the country pitching his secret recipe for fried chicken to restaurant owners. The story goes that Harland Sanders heard no over 1000 times before someone finally said, “yes”.

Today Kentucky Fried Chicken is served in more than 80 countries around the world. Everyone knows about “The Colonel’s secret recipe.”

What is the common element here? Belief? Yes. Commitment. Sure. The real common element here is perserverence converted into success. These people pushed through their own doubts and the opinions of others to achieve their goals.

They also didn’t listen to the experts who said it couldn’t be done. The experts thought the train, the automobile, the airplane, radio, television, and the Internet would never succeed. Experts are always learned people about “what is”. They are entrenched in “what is”. Experts are weak at seeing what “can be.”

That takes a visionary. Find a visionary who believes in you and what you are trying to accomplish. That restaurant owner who finally said yes to Colonel Sanders was a visionary.

The world would have been worse off if any of these men had given up. What will the world be missing out on if you quit on your dream?

So how about it? Are you up for that 21st manuscript submission? Are you ready to make another demo and make this cut the one that gets noticed? Are you ready to give a little extra at practice today and let the coach really see what you can do?

If you are inspired to keep going, continue visualizing Oprah. If you are motivated to take Nashville by storm, keep seeing yourself accepting your award as newcomer of the year in country music. If you are ready to take the court with a new purpose and determination, then keep dreaming of the NBA.

Others are going to call you crazy. “They” called Jordan, Disney, and Sanders crazy too. “They” called the Wright Brothers and Edison and Leonardo DaVinci crazy.

You might have another bout of you calling yourself crazy. That’s normal. Just don’t give up on your talent, don’t give up on your passion, don’t give up on the promise of your dreams.

Start right now by restating your dream to the universe and your commitment to achieving it. I’d be honored if you began by leaving a comment on this blog.

Quitting is an answer. It is just not the right answer when it comes to your dreams.

Be peaceful Be prosperous

Ray

July 16 Affirmations

I am going to begin semi-regular topical affirmations of the day posts. These will be affirmations in several popular categories all in one post. If there is a category you’d like to see added for future posts, please leave a comment.

May at least one of these hit the spot for you today!

Stay inspired!

Ray

• Wealth Affirmation: As my mind expands and expects wealth in my life, my wallet opens to receive it.
• Career Affirmation: Today is day! The job of my dreams is coming my way!
• Business Affirmation: Today and every day, I build my business on the foundations of integrity, determination, and vision.
• Sales Affirmation: I am the very embodiment of a sales professional. Customers are attracted to that and buy what I’m selling.
• Health Affirmation: My immune system is healthy, strong, and protecting me.
• Gym Affirmation: Step by step and rep by rep, I am building my ideal body.
• Recovery Affirmation: Moment by moment and brick by brick, I am building a life of things more important than my addiction.
• Spiritual Affirmation: My connection to spirit (God, the Universe) is stronger than ever before!
• Relationship Affirmation: When I am ready my ideal relationship appears. I am ready today!
• Writer Affirmation: Whenever I meet a blank page amazing things happen!
• Education Affirmation: Today I release my mental blocks to taking tests and ace them instead!
• Nature Affirmation: The Earth is an amazing blessing and every day I find ways to appreciate it.

The Power of L.O.S.S. – The Affirmation Spot for Sunday May 23, 2010

Today’s Affirmation:
I accept my losses and learn from them! Defeat is simply opportunity disguised as setback.

Many people see losing or a loss as a very negative thing. Like anything else, losing is all in how you look at it. A well-studied loss can be every bit as valuable in our journey as a victory. I’m not saying that losing is more fun than winning or that winning isn’t valuable. Clearly, we all want to win.

The truth is that most winners had to experience losing before they ever succeeded. So what if you chose to look at your losses in a slightly different light?  A loss might be seen as Lessons and Obstacles on your way to Stunning Successes.
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• L – Lessons: Losing nearly always provides some lessons and some clues on how to improve. If you pay attention to the things that contributed to the loss, you can apply those lessons to future situations. Given time, you find the winning combination.
• O – Obstacles – Losses are clearly obstacles. After all, your goal was to win or succeed. However, an obstacle might challenge you to improve or increase your determination to succeed. Used as mental and emotional leverage, a good obstacle can propel you to future victories.
• S – Stunning – Losing can get you down and make you feel unworthy. In that dark moment of loss, remember to see what a stunning miracle you are. You are a diamond in the rough slowly being polished into something very special.
• S – Successes – Success is that moment of break through when the journey of loss has been transformed into victory. The lessons, obstacles, and seeing how stunning you are kept you on track to enjoy the sweet taste of success.

So you see a loss is never loss. It’s an opportunity, an invitation to a journey of self-discovery, stretching yourself, and new achievement.

Stay inspired!

Ray

Inter-Being – The Affirmation Spot for Saturday May 15, 2010

Thich Nhat Hanh was nominated for the 1968 Nobel Peace Prize by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He did not win the Nobel, but it was a great honor nonetheless.  He was banished from his home country Vietnam during the Vietnam War. He led a group of Buddhist monks who were actively seeking peace in their country which invited the disdain of both sides.

“Thay” (teacher), as he is known by his followers, founded a retreat called Plum Village in France. Vietnam’s loss has been the West’s gain. For the past 35 years, Thich Nhat Hanh has taught, written, and spoken on his brand of “Engaged Buddhism” in Europe, the U.S., and around the world.

I first became aware of his work about 20 years ago when I picked up a book titled “Peace is Every Step”. Since I have read many of his other books. One of my favorite passages from any of his books – in fact one my favorite things I’ve ever read – is his brief essay on Inter-being.

Today I’d like to share this beautiful and powerful insight with all of you. I hope it transforms the way you think about the interconnectedness of the people and things around you.

Stay inspired!

Ray

Inter-being

If you are a poet, you will see clearly that there is a cloud floating in this sheet of paper. Without a cloud, there will be no rain; without rain, the trees cannot grow; and without trees, we cannot make paper. The cloud is essential for the paper to exist. If the cloud is not here, the sheet of paper cannot be here either. So we can say that the cloud and the paper inter-are. “Interbeing” is a word that is not in the dictionary yet, but if we combine the prefix “inter-” with the verb “to be,” we ha vea new verb, inter-be. Without a cloud and the sheet of paper inter-are.

If we look into this sheet of paper even more deeply, we can see the sunshine in it. If the sunshine is not there, the forest cannot grow. In fact, nothing can grow. Even we cannot grow without sunshine. And so, we know that the sunshine is also in this sheet of paper. The paper and the sunshine inter-are. And if we continue to look, we can see the logger who cut the tree and brought it to the mill to be transformed into paper. And wesee the wheat. We now the logger cannot exist without his daily bread, and therefore the wheat that became his bread is also in this sheet of paper. And the logger’s father and mother are in it too. When we look in this way, we see that without all of these things, this sheet of paper cannot exist.

Looking even more deeply, we can see we are in it too. This is not difficult to see, because when we look at a sheet of paper, the sheet of paper is part of our perception. Your mind is in here and mine is also. So we can say that everything is in here with this sheet of paper. You cannot point out one thing that is not here-time, space, the earth, the rain, the minerals in the soil, the sunshine, the cloud, the river, the heat. Everything co-exists with this sheet of paper. That is why I think the word inter-be should be in the dictionary. “To be” is to inter-be. You cannot just be by yourself alone. You have to inter-be with every other thing. This sheet of paper is, because everything else is.

Suppose we try to return one of the elements to its source. Suppose we return the sunshine to the sun. Do you think that this sheet of paper will be possible? No, without sunshine nothing can be. And if we return the logger to his mother, then we have no sheet of paper either. The fact is that this sheet of paper is made up only of “non-paper elements.” And if we return these non-paper elements to their sources, then there can be no paper at all. Without “non-paper elements,” like mind, logger, sunshine and so on, there will be no paper. As thin as this sheet of paper is, it contains everything in the universe in it.