Dreams are the seedlings of realities. Your circumstances may be uncongenial but they shall not long remain so if you but perceive an ideal and strive to reach it.
James Allen, As a Man Thinketh
How to Achieve
Prosperity Consciousness
Most people believe that wealth is the result of years of hard work and careful saving, unless one has inherited a fortune. This is a delusion. Statistics indicate that the majority of people in the United States, after spending the major part of their lives in work they sometimes didn’t even enjoy, end up barely able to survive on social security and a small pension, if they have one at all. Reprogramming your ideas about money will attract it to you far more quickly than working a twelve-hour day and diligently saving every nickel. The road to riches is paved with strong, positive ideas, held constantly in the mind, eventually attracting an abundance of money into your life. Accumulating wealth is the result of an attitude, and not the outcome of hard labor; thus, changing your attitude is the key to becoming rich. Your inner feeling about money determines whether or not you will have it, because that to which you give your attention is what manifests in your life. If you focus attention on the lack of money and the fear of poverty, that is what’s reinforced and becomes a reality for you. All human wealth is created by the human mind, and those who believe they deserve to be wealthy can create it.
A common myth about money is that there isn’t enough of it for everybody. This is ridiculous because there are billions of dollars in the United States Treasury, and you deserve your fair share. Don’t fall into the negative attitude of resenting affluent people, those who may have amassed far more than their share. If you resent wealthy people, you’ll end up resenting yourself when you make money. Focus on the positive; you will be contributing to raising the consciousness of others by serving as an example, and you can say: “Look at me, I wasn’t born rich, but I’ve become prosperous by changing my thinking, and you can do it too.” Remember, the money you make goes back into the economy to be distributed to others, which helps prosper everyone you buy from or give money to.
You may think, “This is no time to make money because the cost of living is so high, it’s almost impossible to save money and become wealthy.” This is another myth, because there have been people who’ve become wealthy in every economic crisis this country has ever had. Many people make fortunes during an inflationary period, and you can be one of them. The particular state of the economy doesn’t have to affect your personal situation if you learn to think positively and control your fears. Rise above the statistical world with positive thinking!
You Deserve to Be Wealthy
Before you can become rich, you must believe that you deserve it. It’s impossible to convince your subconscious mind to bring you money if you have been programmed to the idea that you don’t deserve it. We have all heard stories of people who had the ability to make a fortune but lacked the ability to keep it. Such people don’t feel worthy of success; they don’t think they deserve all that money, so they invariably sabotage themselves when they acquire it.
A man I knew in Toronto made a fortune as the owner of a camera store. When he had built his business to the point where he could retire and let his staff manage it, he suddenly began making mistakes: acquiring inventory he couldn’t sell, firing his best manager, closing the store at peak hours. In a short time his business went downhill, and he went into debt. This so discouraged him that he began mismanaging his funds, and very soon he had to declare bankruptcy. He blamed his wife for the cause of his problems, divorced her, and started a picture framing business. Within a few years he was equally successful and once again wealthy. Again, he couldn’t handle it. He made some under-the-counter deals on the fringe of the law, cut some corners and damaged his reputation, and eventually had to close his doors.
Sometimes it’s not a fear of success but a fear of failure that prevents people from becoming wealthy. A person may be going along well, accumulating money, and then begins to worry: “I’m making money now, but how long will it last? What if I lost it all? What if people stop buying from me?” “What if the stock market crashes?” “What if I lose my job?” and so on. Although it’s important to be prudent enough to provide for extenuating circumstances, such as a company layoff, we must constantly counteract these negative ideas with positive affirmations such as, “I deserve to be wealthy,” “I deserve happiness,” “I deserve success.” As soon as you get these thoughts firmly implanted in your consciousness, you have taken a giant step toward achieving wealth.
Poverty Consciousness
Before discussing the use of affirmations to develop a prosperity consciousness, let’s look at some of the negative statements you may have acquired about money, because these need to be eliminated before you can make any progress. What did your parents tell you about money? What were their attitudes? Did they tell you that you were capable of earning a million dollars if you wanted to, or did they say, “You’ll never amount to a hill of beans!” Women in our society used to be told that they had no need to make money because a man would always take care of them.
An excellent beginning exercise is to write down on a piece of paper all the negative things you can remember your parents, relatives, teachers, coworkers, and close friends telling you about money. Please take a moment now before you read any further to complete this exercise. It’s important to take the time to do it because it will help you discover what concepts have been programmed into your subconscious about money. Once you know them, you can set about systematically to remove them. You also may have programmed your own subconscious into many negative ideas about money, for example: “I don’t deserve to make money because . . .”
— I don’t have enough education.
— I’m locked into a job that doesn’t pay very much, and I don’t know how to do anything else.
— I married too young, and I now have too many responsibilities.
— I’ve gotten myself so deeply in debt that I’ll never be able to get out.
— I can’t be spiritual and make money too.
— I can’t get a high-paying job because I’m female.
— I shouldn’t make more money than my husband.
— My parents said I wasn’t very bright, so I don’t deserve it.
— My parents never had much, so I don’t expect much either.
— I’m too young (or too old).
— I’ve never been able to get what I want, and I know I won’t now.
— I don’t have enough skills.
If you harbor ideas like these, you will eventually become discouraged and decide that you’re not going to make a lot of money. Although millions of people seek wealth and would like to have a financially secure future, they defeat themselves by this type of thinking. They have tried everything but changing their thoughts—the one thing that would make all the difference.
The power of thought is the only thing over which you have unquestionable control. A definite, strong idea, when it is held constantly in the mind, can actually change the biochemistry of the brain so that it will no longer be programmed for failure or defeat. Thoughts are things; they have an electromagnetic reality, and they create their visible counterpart in the outer world. If you change your inner thoughts, your outer conditions must also change. That is a natural law. So begin now to have constant vigilance over your thoughts. Never again allow yourself to say, “I can’t afford it,” rather say, “I’m going to buy it. I’m planning for it now.”
For instance, if you want to visit Europe, don’t defeat your plans by thinking you’ll never be able to afford it. Say instead, “I’m working on my trip to Europe now,” and then set about collecting pictures and articles of places you would like to visit. Get a special box to hold your collection of information. Label it My Trip to Europe. Each time you place an item in your box, the idea will become a little more possible, a little closer to its physical manifestation. Your thoughts will begin to draw to you the money you need to accomplish your dream, and your physical experience will follow your image.
Reverend Ike, the famous preacher who inspired thousands with his sermons on prosperity consciousness, tells about his youth in Harlem. Whenever his friends saw a white man driving a big, expensive car through the area they would grumble about the “honkies” who kept them in poverty. Instead of complaining, Reverend Ike would say, “That’s my car; there goes my car. I’m going to own one just like that.” And now he does—in fact, several! Instead of resenting them for their wealth, he identified with them, and became just as prosperous.
After graduating from college I worked as a therapist for a government-funded mental health agency that was very limited in its ability to pay its counselors. I earned five dollars an hour and was barely surviving. One Monday morning, a colleague, Mike, announced that he had spent the weekend in a workshop with Leonard Orr, a wealthy San Franciscan who was teaching people how to develop “prosperity consciousness.” Mike said Leonard taught him how to make affirmations to attract money into his life, and he shared the method with me. Since I already knew about the power of the mind and had used visualization to change many other aspects of my life, I decided to use these ideas to increase my salary. Three weeks later, after having spent two years at the agency without a raise, my salary was increased by a few dollars. Excitedly, I told the director that my affirmations had worked. “You call that prosperity?” he replied with a smirk. “Around here it is,” I retorted, but I knew that was only a beginning. I kept making my affirmations, and small things began to happen almost immediately. An unexpected check refunding an overpayment on a loan arrived in the mail. Then I received a large tax refund I had not counted on. Within a month, I was offered another job at a tremendous salary increase.
Success is a much more empowering concept than failure. Just as it takes more energy to frown than to smile, it also takes more energy to fail than to succeed because it takes a lot of concentrated energy to hold on to negative ideas about ourselves, and it drains us emotionally when we do. Remember, in developing prosperity consciousness, you will not only be up against your own resistance, but those of other people as well. Perhaps your parents or your mate will come up with some good reason why you can’t possibly succeed at this, especially if they’re insecure about your changing in some substantial way, or outstripping them. They may say things like, “This positive thinking stuff is too simple; it couldn’t possibly work, and you’re crazy to believe in it.” Ignore these comments and just keep on making your affirmations. Better still, don’t tell people who are likely to resist your efforts. Work in silence and accomplish your goals without having to use your energy convincing unbelievers. It isn’t easy to stay positive when everyone around you is complaining about how broke they are. Don’t listen to them! A mental trick I use when people try to give me negative ideas (or even when I catch myself saying them to myself) is to think Cancel, Cancel! and then immediately exchange the negative thought with a positive one.
Setting Your Goals
Deciding on your goals is the first step in your program. Once you make a decision to be rich, you have taken a giant step toward achieving it. But, before you can attain wealth, you must know exactly what you want and what you intend to do with it when you get it. People don’t really want money—after all, it’s just a piece of paper—they want what money can buy. Once you have a strong idea of what you intend to do with your money, you can begin to focus on the specific amount you will need each year to accomplish your desire. When you make your affirmations, don’t just ask for enough to survive, ask for sufficient money to enjoy your life, such as traveling, buying a house, going to college, or getting some good stereo equipment. A friend of mind began making affirmations and told me that one of them was: “I will always have sufficient money to meet my needs.” This is a limited concept and can result in just barely surviving. You want to do more than just meeting your essential needs. A better affirmation would be: “I will always have more than enough money to meet my needs and to enjoy my life.”
Since the first requisite is to discover what you desire in life, where you are going, and what you intend to do when you get there, ask yourself: “How much money would I like to have each year to create my life the way I would like it?” Don’t just read this question. Stop and take a moment right now to think about it. Make sure you know what you desire from life. Ask yourself this question: “How much am I worth an hour?” If you think it’s only a few dollars, then that’s all you’ll ever get. You must begin by raising your own self-worth and self-value. Put a price on your time and skills that demonstrates their true worth, and don’t downgrade yourself by underestimating the value of your time and energy. Your persistence, dedication, eagerness, loyalty, and conscientiousness are all worth money.
Remember, ideas form the foundation of all fortunes. Once you decide what you desire in life, you will have put into motion a force that will go out into the universe like a rocket, bringing back to you what you have asked for. The moment you choose your definite goal and start making affirmations, you will observe a strange circumstance; the ways and means of attaining it will begin immediately to reveal themselves. Any dominating desire, goal, or purpose held firmly in the conscious mind through imagery and repetition of thought is taken over by the subconscious mind and acted upon, and it is thus carried out to its logical conclusion by whatever means are available. The Creative Power Within will find the means.
Since the starting point of all achievement is adopting a definite purpose and a solid plan for its attainment, use the financial commitment statement on page 100 to write down three goals: those you wish to accomplish this year, those you will accomplish within five years, and your long-term, lifetime goals. Specifically state your goals even though these may not be totally clear at this point. By programming your subconscious to specific objectives, the means will reveal themselves. If the method of achieving them is not presently clear to you, write down dreams and fantasies about how you could make money. These could include, for example, writing a book, winning the lottery, being offered a new job at a larger salary, starting your own business, etc.
The purpose of this exercise is to start the wheels of your subconscious into motion by making a commitment. After you’ve jotted down your desire (or daydreams), make a plan to manifest it. State the maximum time allowed for each step of the plan and describe precisely what you intend to do to reach your objective. Make your plan flexible enough to permit changes at any time you are inspired to do so. Remember that the Creative Power Within may present you with a plan far superior to any you can presently envision. Be ready, therefore, to recognize and adopt any superior idea that may later be presented to your mind.
Make a copy of the Commitment Form (see page 100) and place it where you can see it regularly, then repeat it aloud at least once a day. If you have people who believe in you and in your ability to create whatever you want in life, tell them about your plan. Then they too can hold the image that your lifetime goals are coming true for you now.
Another way to impress the subconscious with your goals is to make a Treasure Map. After you have carefully thought out all the things you would like to do with the increase in money you are going to have, get a large sheet of posterboard. Begin looking through magazines and newspapers for pictures of your dreams. For example, an ad for the type of car you want, pictures of foreign lands, a cruise ship or plane flying to a dreamed-of vacation paradise, a beautiful new home, being a successful executive going to the office, a harmonious relationship (symbolized by a family having fun together, or sitting before a fireplace with your partner), or whatever appeals to you. Make a collage of your ideas and put it on a wall where you can look at it frequently. This further impresses your subconscious with the thought that this is coming true for you now, and you will give it life and power by doing this. Be sure to put yourself in the picture. Get a photo of yourself and of others you will want to have with you when you achieve prosperity, and paste them on the collage. You will then have taken a powerful step toward realizing your goal.
I, _________________________, on this ____ day of __________, 20___, hereby formally adopt the following financial goals:
By the end of this year, I will be earning at least $________ per month. Five years from this date, my yearly income will be at least $________. By the end of ________, my net worth will be at least $________. I intend to retire from my job by ____________, and devote my time to activities I enjoy, including:
Some of the things I intend to do to manifest this plan are:
In order to accomplish the above goals, I pledge that I will spend some time each day visualizing, and will make the following affirmations:
Signed: _______________________________ Dated: __________
Using Affirmations to Attract Money
An affirmation is a strong, positive statement about something you want to manifest in your life. To affirm means to make something firm; thus, by stating your goal in a definite way, you make it more firm to your subconscious mind. Affirmations are positive signals you send to your brain every time you say them, so that through the law of attraction and vibration, your subconscious can begin working to provide you with whatever you want. Writing down affirmations is an extremely powerful technique for reaching deeply into the subconscious, and is the fastest way to incorporate these ideas into your consciousness. It is far more effective than simply stating your goals. Some of the most dramatic changes in my life have occurred through using affirmations. In fact, a few times the telephone has rung in the middle of my writing an affirmation, and it was the manifestation of what I had just written. The more you practice this technique, the more effective it will become for you.
The technique of using affirmations has been around for years. It’s been taught in self-development courses and used by all positive thinkers and successful people. An excellent book on using affirmations to achieve prosperity consciousness is Moneylove by Jerry Gillies. I strongly recommend that you purchase this book. Some of the affirmations in this chapter are from Gillies’ book. Another wonderful book, now a classic, is Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich.
Accentuate the Positive, Eliminate the Negative
Many people are not successful using affirmations because they already have so many negative ideas about themselves programmed into their subconscious minds that the positive affirmations cannot overcome them. Furthermore, they often don’t know they harbor these false ideas, so they faithfully repeat affirmations that don’t manifest because their negative past programming needs to be expunged first.
I learned this important point from Leonard Orr’s money seminars. Orr discovered that all the negative material about money absorbed through the years must be dealt with before a person can become rich. Poverty consciousness, which may have been with you all your life, will dominate unless you remove all doubt so prosperity consciousness can get a firm foothold. The way to do this is to write down your positive affirmations and, while you are doing it, listen carefully to your body and your inner feelings for any negative thoughts that negate your affirmation. Write these down, too; then immediately refute them by writing down an opposite response. Keep on in this way until you can write the positive affirmation without getting any flak from your mind negating it. In this manner you can clear your mind completely of the negative ideas that make you think you don’t deserve to be rich.
Here’s an example of the kind of dialogue you might have with yourself:
I, [name], deserve to be wealthy and prosperous, and this is coming true for me now.
“Oh yeah, why should I be wealthy? I don’t have any special talents, and I don’t have a college degree.”
You know very well that you don’t have to have a degree to become rich. Henry Ford didn’t finish high school, and neither did Tom Edison, or a lot of other prosperous people. And as for special talents, you really have plenty of them; you’ve just never had a chance to develop them. What about your writing ability and the paintings you did in high school that your teacher said were so good, and the pottery you’ve designed? Besides, you may think up something unique to sell that nobody has ever thought about before.
“Well, maybe you’re right!”
I, [name], deserve to be wealthy and prosperous; and this is coming true for me now.
“Maybe I could sell something special or buy a small business. But Mom always said it wasn’t important for women to make money because men don’t want you to earn more than they do.”
Really? What a limited concept! Are you going to depend on someone else all your life? What’s wrong with having plenty of money of your own?
“Nothing.”
I, [name], deserve to be wealthy and prosperous, and this is coming true for me now.
“Why should I deserve it when there are lots of people out there barely surviving?”
You deserve it because you’re willing to take the time and energy to write these affirmations and gain control over your mind. You know that your subconscious will respond to whatever you program it with, so why not try it? Besides, your being poor isn’t going to help all the other poor people.
“Okay, I think you’re right. I deserve it as much as anyone else, and I’m willing to work for it.”
I, [name], deserve to be wealthy and prosperous, and this is coming true for me now.
“Hey—I think I’m beginning to believe this. I do deserve money!”
If, when using this technique, you get the same objection every time, invent an affirmation that is the opposite of that response. For instance, if you keep repeating, “I don’t think I have any special talents,” then write, “I deserve to be paid just for being the person I am,” or “My special talents are now being revealed to me.”
It’s advisable to write your affirmations in three persons and always include your own name. Writing it in three persons has the effect of letting your subconscious mind think others also believe you deserve to be wealthy. For example:
I, [name], deserve to be wealthy and prosperous, and this is coming true for me now.
You, [name], deserve to be wealthy and prosperous, and this is coming true for you now.
She, [name], deserves to be wealthy and prosperous, and this is coming true for her now.
Once you start actively reprogramming your subconscious, thereby becoming totally committed and emotionally involved in creating your own prosperity, you are sure to succeed. It’s best to write a page of affirmations every day. Don’t just do it by rote, but really think about and visualize in your mind’s eye the meaning of the words you write. Notice your resistance, feelings of doubt, or negative thoughts; be sure to write them down, too. Then challenge the negative thoughts and counteract them with positive statements. In this way you will be able to discover why you have not been successful and how you have kept yourself from getting what you want. Once you feel that you’ve really overcome your negative programming, discontinue writing the negative and continue writing the positive.
The repetition of positive messages to your subconscious and the refuting of negative ones are the only foolproof ways to reprogram your brain. An actual chemical change takes place in the brain through repeated positive thinking. Poverty consciousness is always the result of ideas others have given you, while prosperity consciousness is the result of the ideas you give yourself. As you use this procedure, negative ideas you have buried in your subconscious will surface and be dealt with so you can clear your mind for wealth. It can save you years of trying to discover through psychotherapy why you can’t succeed.
As a step in convincing your subconscious mind that you deserve to have money, Jerry Gillies suggests in Moneylove that you get a piece of paper, title it “Five Reasons Why I Deserve to Be Rich,” and jot them down. We all have more talents and abilities than we usually acknowledge, and you probably have far more than your parents ever gave you credit for. Writing this down makes it more real to your subconscious mind.
Next, write down ten ways you can earn money. If you can think of ten ways you will succeed, you’ll never be discouraged by temporary setbacks or by external conditions, such as high unemployment or the rate of inflation, and you’ll never be broke. If you feel locked into a particular job and think you couldn’t possibly do anything else, use this affirmation: New opportunities for making money are opening to me daily. Money can come from unexpected sources, and this affirmation takes away the restrictions on your earning potential. New vistas for making money surround you. By affirming this on a regular, daily basis, opportunities you have never even dreamed of will be placed in your path. The cooperation of others will become available to you, and job offers may suddenly appear as if by a stroke of magic. Your fears and doubts will disappear, and self-reliance and creativity will take their place. Somewhere along the way, the idea or the job for which you have been searching will reveal itself to you. That has been the experience of most people who use affirmations on a regular basis.
Patricia used affirmations very successfully. She came to me for counseling because she was very dissatisfied with her job as a secretary in a local electronics firm. She had worked for the company for six years, and was now at the top of her salary scale. As a single parent of three children, Patricia simply couldn’t afford any luxuries, and was worried about meeting her obligations. She was tired of scrimping and wanted to explore other options so she could earn more money. We discussed her returning to college and getting a degree, but Patricia felt this was not practical with three small children. I taught her the technique of making affirmations, and she agreed to practice this faithfully, and to especially concentrate on writing this affirmation: New opportunities for making money are opening to me daily.
During December, Patricia brought me a beautiful dried flower arrangement as a Christmas gift. I admired the artistry, and Patricia shyly admitted that she made the arrangement herself. She had developed this hobby in order to have something to do with her hands when she was home with her kids watching television. I emphasized that she was extremely talented and encouraged her to think about opening a small business selling the floral arrangements. Not being in a financial position to quit her job, Patricia decided to clean out her garage and convert it into a flower shop. She had some business cards printed, got a license, set up a table, and began selling on the weekends. As her clientele grew and her self-esteem increased, she decided to take the plunge and applied for a small business loan to rent a store in a shopping plaza. Within a year she was making more money than she had ever earned as a secretary. An opportunity to make money, which she would never have dreamed of before, had presented itself to her as a result of her having diligently made affirmations, thus opening her subconscious mind to new possibilities.
Affirmations for Women
Women have often been given some very negative programming about money. In the past they were taught to believe from an early age they shouldn’t attempt to make a lot of money because they’ll always have a man to take care of them. How sad to groom our female children to be parasites, totally dependent on another person! Women have also been told that they will never make as much money as a man and they shouldn’t bother trying. As a result, they often feel they don’t deserve a high-salaried position and don’t even strive for it. But highly motivated women can rise above the statistical world, which pays women some seventy cents for every dollar a man earns, and can bring into their lives whatever they wish through the power of their thoughts. Some excellent affirmations for women can be found in Shakti Gawain’s beautiful book Creative Visualization, and Sondra Ray’s I Deserve Love.
Here are some affirmations especially for women:
I am a capable and successful person, and abundance is my birthright.
I am a powerful, dynamic, and intelligent person, and I am manifesting my abundance now.
I am self-confident, and my actions are decisive. I attract money to me through my desire to succeed.
I deserve to be as successful as the most successful man, and this is coming true for me now.
I am equal to the best of men, and there is no limit to my potential.
I am entitled to a share of the world’s wealth, and this is coming to me now.
The genius in me is being released, and I am now fulfilling my destiny.
I have enough time, energy, wisdom, and money to accomplish all my desires.
I expect the unexpected; my highest good now comes to pass.
There is an infinite number of possible affirmations. Adopt the ones most fitting to you. Be sure to personalize them to fit your particular situation.
Upgrading Necessity to Pleasure
I particularly like an affirmation used by Leonard Orr: I work smarter, not harder. Freedom is something we all want, and is probably one of the major goals of most working people. But, working just to accumulate enough money with which to retire is poverty consciousness, and you’ll probably end up living on a pittance. It’s like saying, “I don’t deserve to have any freedom until I’ve put in so many years of hard labor”—just like a prison sentence. There is no reason why we should have to follow a Biblical injunction written over two thousand years ago, admonishing the people of that time to “earn your bread by the sweat of your brow.” Many people are hooked to that concept. If that idea has been impregnated into your subconscious mind, the affirmation I work smarter, not harder, can change it.
One of the best things you can do for your own prosperity consciousness is to lift someone else’s, so another important affirmation is: The more I help others prosper, the more I prosper myself. Money paid to others just means more money in circulation that can come back to you. A variation of this affirmation is: A great deal of money is now coming into my life; I deserve it and will use it for my good and that of others.
Many people are programmed to the idea that money is only for necessities, and it’s frivolous or “unspiritual” to spend it for personal pleasure. If you feel this way, your life will be joyless and dull, and it’s a good way to keep yourself in poverty. A life without fun, entertainment or vacations is not worth living and, as the saying goes, can “make Johnny a dull boy.”
If you think spending money on yourself is immoral, you may have to work on programming yourself to the idea that part of the purpose of life is to enjoy it.
A friend of mine dated a man who was the classical stingy bachelor. Although Fred earned good money, he was extremely cautious about every penny he spent, and never bought any luxuries. He owned two suits, always ate at home, and refused to purchase birthday or Christmas gifts for his friends and family, which he considered frivolous. The money Fred saved with his miserly habits went into a passbook savings account at four-and-a-half percent interest. Since inflation was higher than that, Fred’s money was slowly eaten up each year, guaranteeing he would end up as one of the many elderly people who barely subsist. He is a prime example of a person with poverty consciousness. Fred is probably still manifesting it to this day because he’s too stingy to buy a book like this or attend a seminar on prosperity consciousness. His life is a joyless one.
The most effective way to live is to balance your necessary expenses with some pleasurable spending. Realize that some of your money is yours to keep, to spend on things you really enjoy. Remember, you’re not working just to pay your bills, but also to enjoy your life. Because of their poverty consciousness, many people expand their expenses to meet their earnings so that there’s never anything left over for pleasure. If your subconscious mind gets the message you only need money for necessities, it will arrange your affairs so that everything you earn goes for the basic things of life. So, take a step toward prosperity consciousness by taking some portion of your money every week, even if it’s only five or ten dollars, and use it for yourself. Economizing all the time creates poverty consciousness. Learn to love yourself enough to realize you deserve the good things in life. To overcome the idea that you don’t deserve pleasure, use one of these affirmations:
A percentage of everything I earn is mine to keep for myself.
My income now vastly exceeds my expenses.
While using this principle, at the same time be wise enough not to spend foolishly and indulge yourself in luxuries you don’t need. Don’t forget to regularly save a certain percentage of your income, which is equally important.
Personalizing Money
It’s a good idea to personalize money instead of treating it as just a dirty piece of paper. That way you can develop an affinity for money that will attract it to you. For instance, you might think of money as a beautiful woman or handsome man who loves to visit you and can’t get enough of you. In doing this, you could write:
Money knows where I live, and she visits me daily.
Money is a lover of mine, and I treat her kindly so that she comes to see me often.
Some people say they’re really not interested in money, and pay little attention to it. If you’re impersonal about money, it will be impersonal about you, and reject you. Everything in the universe has a life at some level, and money is no exception. Thus, make it into a reality in your life by giving it the respect you would give a dear friend or loved one. “I love money, and money loves me.”
Increasing Your Prosperity Consciousness
Prosperity consciousness really is a spiritual idea, based on the principle that the Creative Power has provided infinite wealth, and a part of it is for our own personal use. There is a Power greater than the power of conscious thought, but usually it’s not perceptible to our finite minds. Recognizing this truth is essential for the successful development of prosperity consciousness. No great enduring success has ever been achieved by those who do not recognize and use the spiritual powers of the universe. If you are connected with Spirit, you will find yourself with an abundance of opportunities to amass wealth, and it will never be at the expense of others.
Another good affirmation for increasing prosperity consciousness is: My income increases every day whether I’m working, sleeping, or playing. This is true because, if you have a savings account, even with only fifty dollars in it, your income is increasing every day because it’s earning interest. It also means that you program your subconscious mind to give you valuable ideas each day so that your income will keep increasing. If you are working, most of your days involve a positive cash flow.
Make up a set of cards with your favorite affirmations printed on them and put them in an area where you can see them every day. You can put them on your refrigerator door, on the mirror in your bathroom, on the dashboard in your car, and on your bedroom nightstand. Even if you don’t always read them, they’ll be going into your subconscious mind every time you pass them and activate the brain cells connected with these positive thoughts. They will encourage and remind you of your own capacity for attracting money into your life.
A part of developing a prosperity consciousness is feeling good about yourself in general. Here are some affirmations you can use as needed:
Self-Confidence
I am completely relaxed, self-confident, and self-assured in everything I do.
I can accomplish any goal I desire through planning and self-motivation.
Concentration
I have the ability to focus my undivided attention on any particular task at any time. I am able to concentrate deeply on anything I set my mind to. I can shut out all distractions and focus my entire attention on the problem at hand.
Problem Solving
Every problem is an opportunity for me to be creative, and I am highly creative. I consider every problem that confronts me as a new door to be opened. I begin every job thinking of new and better ways to accomplish the task.
Relaxation
I am able to totally relax at will any time I wish. Regardless of the circumstances, I am a very relaxed and calm person, completely in control of myself.
Energy
I have all the energy I need for the day ahead. I am filled with rejuvenating life energy, and my total being is refreshed and energetic.
Composure
I am poised, relaxed, and peaceful. I accept challenges and disagreements with calmness.
Affirmations for Salespeople
I daily make valuable contributions to others by giving them an opportunity to own (name of product).
I am a friendly, pleasing person, and my customers like me.
I am highly disciplined and able to accomplish all of my daily plans.
People who enjoy my product are now being attracted to me.
Whenever people do not wish to buy my product, I never take it personally.
The more I sell, the easier it becomes to sell even more.
I enjoy my job and get great pleasure from dealing with my customers.
The great universal forces are now helping me to achieve my goals.
Affirmations are tools that can change your entire life, but if you don’t use them, they don’t work. You will not succeed if you constantly say, “Oh, I’m just too busy right now to sit down and do this.” You must be willing to put the time and energy into this technique to experience the tremendous life changes that will begin taking effect once you do. You cannot begin this experiment and then immediately start checking yourself and say, “Wait a minute, I’ve written these for three days now, and so far I haven’t received any money. This doesn’t work.” The subconscious never acts on a fleeting thought; it must be given constant programming until the ideas become firmly lodged in your mind and replace the negative ones already there. No enduring success will be achieved by those who are unwilling to put the necessary time and energy behind it. We must learn to think abundance constantly and hold steadily to constructive thought. It takes constant vigilance to gain supremacy over our unruly minds. The man or woman who will do this persistently and diligently is ensured of tremendous success in every area of life.