why affirmations don’t work (and what to do about it)

Why affirmations don’t work
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there is no shortage of resources stating that if you affirm what you want, you will manifest that in your life. while it is true, it is, however, incomplete. there is a catch to it. 

let me share how affirmations work

how affirmations work

your mind has 2 parts:

  1. the conscious mind – also known as the objective mind/rational mind/logical mind. The part of your mind that has the ability to make a choice. 
  2. the subconscious mind – also knows as the irrational mind/subjective mind. 

you perceive life in a certain way, which gives you your thoughts, your actions and your results — basically, the life you are living right now.

when you alter the way you perceive, you alter all of that. (more on this in “basic nature of thoughts”). 

by consciously affirming the life you want to manifest, you are impressing those ideas to your subconscious mind. you are essentially reprogramming your mind to think and perceive in a certain way, in a way that helps you live the life you want. 

when you affirm how you want your life to be, you start thinking and acting in alignment with those affirmations and eventually manifest that life. 

main reason why affirmations don’t work 

the main reason why affirmations don’t work is because every time you affirm there is a little disbelieving voice inside you that says “huh, that’s not happening” or “it is not possible” or “i don’t know how”, and so on.

when you say such things, you are neutralising the work you are doing with affirmations.

you don’t believe it will happen, you don’t have faith in it and hence it won’t happen (recommended read “how thinking is a self-fulfilling prophecy”).

you may be affirming 

“i am wealthy” or “i am living an abundant life” — while your conscious mind is immediately rejecting the idea. 

it could be true that you are not actually living a wealthy or abundant life as per your definition of the terms. but part of the act of affirming is that you affirm regardless of your current circumstances; you have a blind faith that it will be so. 

“therefore I say unto you, what things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.”

Mark 11:24

you have to believe it is so before it is manifested

ask and you shall receive only works if you believe that you will receive what you ask for. 

it is a game of belief, a game of faith. 

if you don’t have faith that things will work out as you affirm then they won’t.

5 ways to make affirmations work 

  1. read “the power of your subconscious mind by dr. joseph murphy
  2. no matter what your current situation is, believe that your affirmations will manifest. (i know it is easier said than done but this is of utmost importance) 
  3. monitor your thoughts, look out for the self-destructing thoughts that sabotage your affirmations. (recommended read “5 ways to think consciously”)   
  4. repeat words such as ”wealth”, ”success”, ”health”.
    repeating these words alone won’t bring any negations in your mind since you are not bringing yourself or your life situation into the affirmations. but these words in themselves are powerful. 
  5. imagine how you would feel, how you and your life would look like, what you would do when you have manifested what you are affirming. in other words, visualise. this will help anchor the affirmation in your subconscious mind. 

closing thoughts

how you perceive the world gives you the life you live. by affirming consciously, you are reprogramming your mind to perceive life in a certain way.  

the main reason why affirmations don’t work is because of the lack of faith on your part. have faith, believe that what you are affirming will happen (no matter what your current circumstances are)

“if you can see it in your mind, you can hold it in your hand”

bob proctor

watch out for any disempowering thoughts around your affirmations, and stop them immediately. 


i hope this helps you manifest the life you want.

x

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