Simply put, an affirmation is a phrase or sentence that affirms something positive. The goal of using affirmations is to change one's mindset to some degree and bring about some kind of change.

Of course, there's a little work involved. Isn't there always?

Think of it this way. Some poeple, not you, of course, tend to think of themselves in a negative manner. They beat themselves up when they make a mistake and sometimes they think of everything they do as being a mistake. These are they people who need a little positive mind fuel.

Pretty much all of us do a little bit of this, at least. what do we say to ourselves when no one else is listening? And would we ever say it to someone else? How many times a day do we say these things? And for how many years have we done it?

Most of us do it far more than we're aware of. Maybe we learned it when we were young, and were ridiculed for mistakes. Maybe somewhere we learned that if it isn't perfect it sucks, and so do we. Some people use their perfectionism to create more and better ideas or things. It's their driving force. Some use it as an excuse not to do anything, because they might fail.

Practice makes perfect and many people have a highly practiced negative mindset. The idea behind affirmations, and any form of motivation or 'positive thinking' training, is to try to change some of that.

Greg, you dip, none of that **** works! Well then, ponder this: You spend 20 or 40 years talking to yourself in a lousy manner. Many times a day (many times more than you might think.) How's muttering a phrase three times, or going to a one hour motivation class going to change that? Especially if you don't believe in it? Of course it won't work, unless you put in some effort. Like anything else.

It's like exercising. Three pushups won't do anything if you only do them once. It doesn't matter how fast you do the three, or perfectly, they won't work. So you have to do them consistently, over a long period, to see results. Then you have to keep doing them to maintain those results.

Once you can do those three push-ups easily then you have to up the difficulty level, or your progress will stop.

Mental exercise works the same way. Do affirmations work? They can, if you do them consistently, if they're believeable (to you,) and if you put the emotional content and belief into them.

If you're going to use affirmations, or any 'positive thinking' method, you need to practice. If you subscribe to an 'affirmation of the day,' for example, you should actually say those affirmations, several times a day. Every day.

Ever pay to go to a seminar by a Randy Gage or Brian Tracy? That ticket's going to cost you a few bucks. You'll go, take several pages of notes, and when you're done you'll put them away, to be forgotten about. Or you'll practice some of them and your housemates will have some fun at your expense.

But it does need to be practiced. If you find a set of affirmations that you like then practice them. Say the affirmations over and over, every day. Remember, you'll trying to over come years of negative practice. Doing this for a week just won't do much. It needs to become a habit.

There's another thing that needs to be done, whether it's affirmations or push-ups. You have to believe that it's going to work. With an affirmation you have to say it with conviction. As Bruce Lee might say, "You need Emotional Content."

A great place to do this is in your car, to and from work. Or if you work from home find a quiet place, or drive to one. Put in a CD with your favorite affirmations and say them out loud. Put in a Brian Tracy CD and immerse yourself in what he's trying to tell you.

And do it over and over again, like push-ups. The more determination and belief you have, just like the push-ups, the more the mental exercises will work for you.