"There is nothing that you cannot be or do or have."

-- from the teachings of Abraham-Hicks*

This fully empowering declaration can manifest through you in infinite ways. It can put food on your table, love in your home, wisdom in your words, a car in your garage, and can bring you anything else your heart desires. It all comes down to a matter of alignment. Your desires and your beliefs must match up. Once they do, you become virtually unstoppable.

One powerful tool for manifestation is the use of affirmation. Since we understand this manifestation process as a product of our alignment, it's valuable to look at the practice of repeating affirmations through the lens of alignment. Then we can see clearly why affirmations work sometimes and not others.

If your affirmations are not working, consider this:

Saying words that you do not believe, even though you want them to be true, perpetuates a misalignment.

Example: You Affirm a higher income than you believe is possible and then feel inner conflict or inadequacy during your affirmation practice.

Saying words you do believe, but you don't want them to be true, offers a different flavor of misalignment.

Example: You reach for some manifestation and fail. Then, feeling defeated, you claim that you don't want it anymore when really you do.

In both cases, your manifestation will lag way behind your desire because of the misalignment between your words and your actual belief (as in the first example) or your words and your true desire (as in the second example).

You can speed up this process and make your manifestations even more satisfying by using a well-chosen affirmation.

The simplest and most powerful affirmation begins with the two sacred words, "I am."

To find out the most powerful word(s) to place after "I am," follow these four super-simple steps:

Look at what is bothering you the most.

Find its polar opposite.

Now find the word or phase that sums up its opposite quality in a general way.

Test the word in the phrase, "I am…" Make sure it feels good to you when you contemplate it. If it doesn't, if you feel any discomfort whatsoever with the phrase, keep searching until you find a word or phrase that completes the affirmation in a way that makes you smile.

Here’s an example. If you are struggling financially, you may be feeling “poor.” When you look to it’s opposite, you find “rich.”

You may say, "I am rich." If that works for you, great. You’re done. That’s your affirmation. But if the word "rich" bothers you on any level, it is not a good word for you in your personal affirmation. You may want to try, "I am well paid for what I do," or " I am comfortable and secure regarding money." Find words that soothe you when you hold them as your truth.

You can apply this to any aspect of your life from the most material to the most spiritual.

Once you have your affirmation, you can use it in two simple ways:

Repeat it like a mantra. Let this statement set your tone rather than the default thinking that is usually running through your mind

Set aside times for deep contemplation on your statement. Elaborate on it. Look for what it means to you. Meditate on the words.

This simple "I am..." affirmation practice can change your life. I wish you everything your heart desires.