Thursday, June 09, 2005

The Problem With Affirmations by David McGimpsey



Do you know the problem with affirmations? You know, the really, really powerful ones?

Affirmations are great. They allow us to program our minds such that, realistically, anything is possible. They are also, however, very dangerous. They are dangerous because everyone does them. Everyone does them and they don't even know it. And that's what proves their power.

Every single day people affirm their actions. Every day the affirmations become reality. These affirmations are generally known as self fulfilling prophecies.

Mary has to attend a party. She is shy and constantly tells herself that no one will like her and that she is worthless, a mere speck in relation to the fun and fantastic heavy weights that will be there. What happens at the party? Mary's talked herself into being a boring wall flower that no one finds interesting.

Brian has to attend a job interview. He has been out of work for six months. He tells himself he is worthless and he can see no reason the employer would want to hire him. Guess what? You're right! Brian didn't get the job. Why? Because he came across as unsure and acted as though he'd already been denied the position.

We do this to ourselves every single day. The more we tell ourselves we are unlikely to do something or can't do something the more we are setting ourselves up to fail.

A prime example is the following quote, "I'm tired." Some of us (myself included at times) say it so much we talk ourselves into being tired.

My advice? Stop the negative thoughts. Accept that if we tell ourselves we can't do it, we won't.

Imagine the internal power if we can turn the constantly negative "I can't do it" thoughts into "I can do it and I will do it". You never know, you might just succeed. Try it for a day, then a week, then a month and then keep doing it and success will follow you.

About the Author
About the author: David McGimpsey is the host of a motivational and self help website at http://www.dontquit.org Advice, articles and reviews are free including subscription to a weekly motivational newsletter. David can be contacted at feedback@dontquit.org

There Must Be More To Life Than This by David McGimpsey



If you suffer from a nagging feeling of "there must be more to life than this", you're not alone.

"There must be more to life than this" can be an extremely de-motivating force. Guess where this feeling usually comes from? Your Job. Why? Most people hate their jobs.

The first point that needs to be addressed is that it's okay to hate your job. It's normal! The amount of people who like their jobs are few and far between. Most that enjoy the daily grind are either very lucky or have been in their current job less than six months.

Secondly, changing your job is not a solution to "there must be more to life than this" or to your lack of motivation. Remember the old saying "The grass is always greener"? Changing jobs is only a short term solution. Work place politics soon catch up with you.

Positive habits are all that stand between you and this feeling of "isn't there more?". Of course there is more to life, but we need to stop seeing our jobs as be all and end all. Being positive about everything, job included, allows you to put your work life in perspective.

At all costs we must remember that work is only a means to an end. We cannot allow it to take over our lives. Your job is what you have to do so you are motivated enough to go out and discover what life really has to offer. Work should only be a means to fund what we do when we're not there.

About the Author
David McGimpsey is the host of an inspirational and motivational web site http://www.dontquit.org dontquit.org offers a free weekly ezine containing articles, book reviews, news, advice, quotations and special features.